The effective nuclear charges (Z(eff)), which are empirical parameters in an approximate spin-orbit Hamiltonian, are determined for the first- through third-row transition metal elements by using experimental results for the fine structure splittings in atomic terms. All calculations use multiconfiguration self-consistent-field (MCSCF) wave functions, whose active space includes nd and (n + 1)sp orbitals (n is the principal quantum number), with the effective core potential (ECP) basis sets proposed by Stevens et al., augmented by one set of polarization f functions. First-order or second-order configuration interaction (FOCI or SOCI) calculations were also performed in order to understand disagreements between the MCSCF results and the experimental ones.