code: public static Comparable getPartnerLevel() {
      if (TraceComponent.isAnyTracingEnabled() && tc.isEntryEnabled()) SibTr.entry(tc, "getPartnerLevel");
      Comparable pl = partnerLevel.get();
      if (TraceComponent.isAnyTracingEnabled() && tc.isEntryEnabled()) SibTr.exit(tc, "getPartnerLevel", pl);
      return pl;
    }
docs: Return the 'protocol version' of the connection partner for any current encode
  on this thread. The value is a Comparable, which is actually an instance
  of com.ibm.ws.sib.comms.ProtocolVersion.
  
  @return Comparable A Comparable whose value is the 'protocol version' of the current
  connection partner, or null if no encode is in progress.