Law Students
Ms. JD 
A forum for dialogue and networking among women lawyers and aspiring lawyers.
Post Frequency: 1.4/day Last Entry: November 20, 2009 at 10:55:05 Recent Entries: 423
By Renuka George (Editor-in-Chief) et al.
Go to Ms. JD, find other Law Students blogs, or browse all law blogs.
Search
Posts
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending November 20, 2009
Posted on November 20, 2009Half AmLaw 100 Firms Say They'll Abandon Lockstep. Now What? U.S. Ranks 31st in Global Gender Gap Rankings ABA Lobbies to Let Unemployed Law School Grads Convert Private Student Loans to Federal Ones Anker Named 2009 Woman of Justice EWLA Insists on Naming Women for Top EU Positions Sidley Austin LLP Partner Virginia A...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending November 13, 209
Posted on November 13, 2009U.S. Lags in Global Gender Gap Ranking Attention Law Students: ABA Proposing Loan Relief Law School As An Investment Why Is Feminism Still So Divisive? The GOP's Women Problem read more
NAWL?s National Survey on Retention and Promotion of Women in Law Firms
Posted on November 12, 2009Every year, I write a blog post on Ms. JD about NAWL's Annual Survey on the Retention and Promotion of Women in Law Firms. So, 2009 is no different. However, my enthusiasm for the topic is different this year. The report is available here. read more
Do we have a pipeline problem?
Posted on November 12, 2009After I posted yesterday about the NAWL survey, I couldn't sleep. Despite what I suggested in my original post, I am concerned about the findings, actually deeply concerned (well, except about the rainmaking finding). That concern leads me to this question: Do we have a pipeline problem? One of the main premises upon which the NAWL report is based is that for more than two decades women have graduated from law schools and started careers in private practice at about the same rate as men...
The Good Wife: Week 7
Posted on November 11, 2009I just deleted my copious notes from this week's episode. Awesome. Here's what I remember: Fatherhood Bias: Reality finally catches up with TGW's big firm and it's time for layoffs. Reviewing mid-level associates, Power Suit and Will choose not to fire "Bayer" because "his wife is pregnant...
What Men Missed When They Missed The Catalyst Release of ?Women of Color in US Law Firms?
Posted on November 10, 2009By Brande Stellings, J.D. and Jennifer Kohler It was easy to talk to the men in the audience at the Catalyst release event for our latest research report, Women of Color in US Law Firms. There were only two. In retrospect, while the event was successful ? bringing together a wide array of practitioners from the government, public, and private sector ? almost all the attendees were women...
Microsoft Women & Minority Initiatives
Posted on November 10, 2009Earlier this fall Microsoft hosted a Summit for Women and Minority Law Students on careers in intellectual property practice areas. The Summit included a panel discussion with women and diverse attorneys who represent Microsoft in various capacities, a report from Microsoft's deputy general counsel on Microsoft's internal diversity program and ongoing commitment to the corporate Call to Action to diversify outside legal representation...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending November 6, 2009
Posted on November 06, 2009Survey Shows Large Firms Have Few Women Among Top Rainmakers Female Lawyers Make Case for Women's Rights Survey Says: Women Lag Far Behind As Rainmakers Part-Time Lawyers: Clients Accept Us Survey Probes Secrets of Successful Women Lawyers read more
Suit Filed against the National Conference of Bar Examiners over Testing Accommodations
Posted on November 06, 2009Stephanie Enyart is a 2009 graduate of UCLA School of Law. We introduced Ms. JD readers to Stephanie last year, after the ABA Student Division's magazine featured a story about her experience as a legally blind law school student and her role in founding the National Association of Law Students with Disabilities...
The Good Wife: Week 6
Posted on November 04, 2009Another week, another client TGW connects with on a personal level. This time it's a wrongly convicted criminal defendant and his retrial brought with it these nuggets for discussion: Remember: The Good Wife = TGW Her Boss = Will Her Scary "Mentor" = Power Suit Super Comptetitive Associate Played by the Former Logan Huntzberger = Hot Shot The Stereotypical Public Interest Attorney: Originally the defendant was represented by a "Legal Aid" attorney and boy is she a doozy...
'The Mismeasure of Women' - Joanne Lipman Advocates a Change in the Conversation About Women
Posted on November 03, 2009In her recent article for the New York Times, Joanne Lipman, a former deputy managing editor at The Wall Street Journal and founding editor in chief of Conde Nast Portfolio magazine, makes the case for re-assessing the way that we measure the progress of women...
DRI Women's Seminar
Posted on November 03, 2009[Ed. Note: This post contains event information from one of Ms. JD's readers. For more information about the DRI's 2010 Sharing Success: A Seminar for Women Lawyers, click the link below.] I am promoting the Defense Research Institute's annual Women's Seminar...
NWLSO at UCLA: 2008-2009 Event Recap
Posted on November 03, 2009Since March 2008, chapters of Ms. JD's National Women Law Students' Organization have been meeting on campuses accross the country. At UCLA Robin Shofner and Hilda Montes de Oca have been responsible for leading a particularly vibrant chapter. To learn more about how to start a NWLSO chapter of your own get started here...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending October 30, 2009
Posted on October 30, 2009Explaining the Origins of 'Ms.' This Suit's for You: Ex-Armstrong Teasdale Associate Accuses Anheuser-Busch of Discrimination Report Shows Women Leaving Law Practice The Mismeasure of Woman Sidley Austin LLP Partner Virginia A. Seitz Honored with a 2009 PAR Flextime Success Award The Challenge for Women IP Lawyers Pioneer for Female Lawyers Proved Her Mettle in the Courtroom Women at the Rain Dance National Association of Women Lawyers Releases Fourth Annual Survey read more
Fighting for Gender Equity through Employment Discrimination Litigation
Posted on October 29, 2009[Ed. Note: Ms. JD is pleased to host this content by Michael Siegel. Michael Siegel is a recent law school grad and incoming associate at Siegel & Yee in Oakland, California. He hopes to be an ally of Ms. JD and righteous women everywhere.] By Michael Siegel ?Young women attorneys should not be afraid to brave new areas of expertise and find creative ways to defend women, especially women of color, from all the misogynous ways that they are humiliated and discriminated against on a daily basis...
So You Failed The Bar?
Posted on October 29, 2009It?s not the end of the world. Trust me on this. And yes, I know you?ve all heard stories about successful attorneys that failed the bar the first time around. Hey, If JFK jr couldn?t pass???but it doesn?t make you feel any better. I know. So, take a day or two to wallow...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending October 23, 2009
Posted on October 23, 2009AutoAdmit Case Ends Not With a Bang, But With a Whimper S&C Promotes Five Associates - Including Four Women - To Partner Women in the Workplace Still Face Inequality Females Earning More Deals in Heels: 80 Percent of New S&C Partners Women Formidable Foe of Few Words: Mary Cameron read more
Ms. JD's Third Annual Conference on Women in the Law: Avenues to Advancement
Posted on October 23, 2009In just 30 days, hundreds of Ms. JD readers, NWLSO chapter members, and women attorneys from around the country will gather on Northwestern Law School's downtown Chicago campus for Ms. JD's 3rd Annual Conference on Women in the Law: Avenues to Advancement...
The Good Wife: Week 5 (or the week the lady lawyer played the pregnancy card)
Posted on October 21, 2009This week found TGW acorss the negotiating table from a very pregnant adversary, who wasn't afraid to use her condition to her advantage. No joke: she faked labor pains when a deposition went south. Talk about your zealous advocacy. This actually isn't the first time I've seen something like this...
Event Announcement: MCCA's 'Creating Pathways to Diversity' Conference
Posted on October 19, 2009Ms JD Members Invited to Celebrate a Day of Diversity The Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA) will host a Day of Diversity on November 11, 2009 at the New York Marriott Marquis, which will include the Creating Pathways to Diversity Conference and the Northeast Region Diversity Dinner...
Superwomen JDs Interviews the Law School Industry Czar
Posted on October 19, 2009Since 1990 Ron Fox has: provided individual guidance to lawyers in transition seeking positions consistent with their personal values and their professional goals through Career Planning for Lawyers; posted on his Lawyer Satisfaction Blog ; consulted to over 25 law schools, including Cornell, Boston College, Notre Dame and Northwestern; presented workshops for the Massachusetts Bar Association, the Association of the Bar of the City of New York and the New York State Bar Association?s Committee on Lawyers in Transition; created and facilitated the ABA Public Service Division's "Town Meeting" for the six Washington D...
A Woman's Nation Changes Everything
Posted on October 19, 2009The Shriver Report: A Woman's Nation Changes Everything, released this week, focuses on a vast array of issues facing women in the workforce, from health to education, media to marriage. The comprehensive examination of women in the labor force includes data points, policy suggestions, academic research, and reflective essays...
Extending Legal Education through Skills Training
Posted on October 18, 2009?Law school teaches you the law, but it doesn?t teach you how to be an attorney.? I can?t tell you how many times I heard this sentiment as a law student interviewing with attorneys. It didn?t exactly inspire confidence in my law school studies, and inevitably leads to the question?if that?s the case, where do law students learn how to be successful attorneys? read more
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending October 16, 2009
Posted on October 16, 2009Top Dealmaker Mary-Laura Greely Joins McDermott Will & Emery's Boston Office Sidley Partner Debra Pole Named to the DirectWomen Board Institute Class of 2009 Balance on the Bench Childs: Percentage of Female Partners at CC is 'Not Good Enough' Cathy Fleming Joins Hodgson Russ LLP read more
The Good Wife: Week 3 & 4
Posted on October 14, 2009Week 3 & 4 were pretty light on the juicy lawyer-mom stereotypes, and are therefore fodder for just one post. Again, relying on our abbreviations* Week 3: Tank top under the suit! Episode 3 opens with a classic multi-tasking scene. Breakfast. Phone call...
Networking Advice for Law Students Part V: The Harder You Work, The Luckier You'll Be
Posted on October 13, 2009In the first four installments of this series I recommended you: Network with people you genuinely enjoy and in activities you find interesting. Take advantage of existing networks around you: in your legal market, from your alumnae associations, through affinity groups, and in your bar association's work...
Superwomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Kate Anderson of Los Angeles, CA
Posted on October 12, 2009Bio for this week's superwoman JD: Kate Anderson is an associate in the litigation department of the Los Angeles office of Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP. Shortly after her arrival at the Firm, Ms. Anderson was part of a team of lawyers involved in preparing and trying a legal malpractice case...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending October 9, 2009
Posted on October 09, 2009New Philadelphia Group Focuses on Lawyers Who are Mothers Percentage of Women, Minority Attorneys at Texas Firms Holds Steady Law Professor Catharine MacKinnon Discusses Women's Rights Women a Big Force in Business, Study Finds Lawyer Suaad Allami Spearheads Program to Aid Iraqi Women read more
Lisa Belkin on The New Gender Gap, Flexible Work
Posted on October 06, 2009Lisa Belkin has two pieces in the New York Times this week, both focusing on women in the workforce. One piece, featured in New York Times Magazine, discusses The New Gender Gap: Under other circumstances, that would be cause for celebration. But women have gained this latest bit of ground mostly because men have lost it ? 78 percent of the jobs lost during this recession were held by men...
The Silent Type of Feminist
Posted on October 02, 2009Feminist Legal Theory, a blog written by students at the University of California, recently published a post by one woman law student who edited "feminism" out of her resume in an effort to be more competitive in the interviewing process. This summer, as I organized my materials for on campus interviews, the thought of editing ?feminism? out of my resume never occurred to me...
Reduced Hours, Full Success
Posted on October 02, 2009The Project for Attorney Retention's newest report, Reduced Hours, Full Success: Part-Time Partners in U.S. Law Firms, maintains that law firms can create successful part-time programs. Part-time arrangements have long been viewed as bullets to the heart of lawyers? careers?and dubious propositions for law firms? bottom lines...
Mareile Cusack, General Counsel, Ariel Investments
Posted on October 02, 2009Mareile Cusack, General Counsel at Chicago investment firm, Ariel Investments, recently selected for The Glass Hammer's Voice of Experience series, has a few words of advice for young women entering the legal profession: [Ms. Cusack] believes that young women first entering the industry should focus on obtaining the building blocks they need for the future...
The Harried Life of the Working Mother
Posted on October 02, 2009The PEW Research Center released a report today, The Harried Life of the Working Mother, discussing the competing roles mothers play at work and home. Women now make up almost half of the U.S. labor force, up from 38% in 1970. This nearly forty-year trend has been fueled by a broad public consensus about the changing role of women in society...
Getting More Women on Corporate Boards: The DirectWomen Board Institute
Posted on September 30, 2009In an effort to get more women on corporate boards, DirectWomen, an initiative by the American Bar Association's Business Law Section and the women's business group Catalyst, will be hosting the 2009 DirectWomen Board Institute on October 29-30, in New York City...
Networking Advice for Law Students Part IV: Pay It Forward (Be the Person Your Network Turns to for Help)
Posted on September 28, 2009Women helping women. That's my motivation. It doesn't have to be yours (although if you haven't made a conscious decision to invest in women's success I challenge you to come up with a decent reason why not). If you're not feeling particularly altruistic, consider this: your network is only as valuable as your contacts think it is...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending September 25, 2009
Posted on September 25, 2009In Kathmandu, Women Lawyers for a New Citizenship Provision Inland Empire Legal Association of Women Group Aims to Help Female Lawyers Succeed Hawaii Women's Legal Foundation Fundraiser Tantalizes with Unique Auction Items Cherie Blair to Speak at Women in Law Conference Women Get Fewer Cases, Smaller Fees Editorial: A Lack of Diversity on Court of Appeals Glass Ceiling Still Exists read more
The Good Wife: Week 1
Posted on September 24, 2009Did you catch this week's premier of The Good Wife? Somehow I managed to get through a whole summer's worth of advertising without realizing this was a lady lawyer show! Some cliches on display: Christine Baranski as the passive agressive, nice until she's not, BigLaw mentor Carey (better known as Logan Huntzberger) enthusiastically playing the smarmy your associate: "May the best man win" The superficially perfect but emotionally wrecked professional woman Critical comments about long hours from the exxential/meddling mother-in-law Oh yea, and Mr...
Creating a Cohesive Unit: Networking with Women Attorneys
Posted on September 23, 2009In a recent 'The Press-Enterprise' article, attorney Laura Crane, founding member of the Inland Empire Legal Association of Women describes a particular problem for women lawyers that she has recently noticed. When she entered a courthouse, she noticed a few women lawyers among the crowd of male civil litigators...
Dowd and the Deepening Gloom
Posted on September 23, 2009The first time a friend emailed me Maureen Dowd's latest downer I didn't think much of it. Women are less "happy" than they were in the '70s and men aren't. I cynically dismissed this because: 1. Of course women are less happy than in the '70s...
AmLaw - Bad Economy: A Boon for Women Lawyers?
Posted on September 21, 2009Reporting on an event marking the 2009 edition of 'Working Mother' magazine's "50 Best Law Firms for Women," AmLaw Daily is questioning whether the recession has been a means to bring about change for women in the legal profession. AmLaw concludes: "It's optimistic to believe that most large law firms are rethinking the work/life balance equation during these hard times...
Networking Advice for Law Students Part III: Follow-Up (Even on Business Cards) No Matter How Awkward
Posted on September 21, 2009Ahh, the awkward follow-up. We all dread it. That?s no excuse. Now as I?ve argued previously, this is easier if you?ve made a connection with someone that goes beyond a basic introduction and actually gotten into some shared interests. But even if you?ve got a business card in passing from someone you barely met, let no opportunity go underexploited...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending September 18, 2009
Posted on September 18, 2009Bad Economy: A Boon for Women Lawyers? Probably Not. The Juggle Isn?t Just for the Work Week: Handling Weekend Duties Gaza?s women lawyers will not have to wear Islamic headscarves?for now Helen Kim Takes Helm of Women Lawyers Association A small firm (started by a woman - no surprise) allows new parents to bring babies to the office...
Toward Inclusive Meritocracies: Examining the Relationship between Merit and Diversity in Large Law Firms
Posted on September 17, 2009by Arin N. Reeves, President, The Athens Group (Ed. Note: This article was originally published in the 'Diversity Insider: Dedicated to Creating a Diverse Profession,' a publication for the 'DRI: The Voice of the Defense Bar.') According to The American Heritage Dictionary, a meritocracy is a ?system in which advancement is based on individual ability or achievement...
The Question Rephrased: Are There Some Jobs Women are Just Intrinsically Better at than Men?
Posted on September 15, 2009It's an age old question - one that has been heavily debated in recent times: are there intrinsic differences between women and men that make each sex better suited for different jobs? read more
Networking Advice Part II: Embrace the Professional Association Member Within
Posted on September 14, 2009I used to think the point of joining a professional association was to achieve another of the legal industry's beloved, but empty, brass rings. What was the point of working your way through the ranks of your local Inn of Court or Women's Bar Association? I certainly didn't see one...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending September 11, 2009
Posted on September 11, 2009One Woman Recognized for Lifetime Achievement by AmLaw Daily BC Report: Many Women Drop Out of Law Gaza's Women Lawyers Will Not Have to Wear Islamic Headscarves - For Now Carroll, Burdick & McDonough's Jodi Swick Elected First Vice-President of California Women Lawyers Report Showed Gender Inequality at McCarthys Lawyer Deanna K...
Networking Advice for Law Students Part I: Don't Waste Your Time Being Miserable - Network Through Something "Interesting"
Posted on September 09, 2009I've already mentioned how important effective networking has been in my own career path. Now I'd like to share some of the tricks I've picked up along the way. First up: putting networking in a compelling context, or what I'm calling "Don't Waste Your Time Being Miserable - Network Through Something Interesting...
Heads up D.C.: NAWJ hiring a fall intern
Posted on September 09, 2009The National Association of Women Judges is looking for a fall intern. As in, they'd like a law student to spend some time every week working with judges around the country. As in, hello huge networking opportunity. Even if you're not looking for a clerkship - who doesn't want to hire someone recommended by a judge...
Ex-Big Firm Attorneys Open First Female and Minority-Owned Multi-Office Global Law Practice
Posted on September 08, 2009Two women lawyers have opened a U.S.-based, global law firm, Dziire & Bangudi, focusing on immigration law, international law and global business law. One of the women, Patrice Dziire, is American, and the other, Mayabanza Bangudi, is from Africa, lending diversity to the new firm's leadership...
Small Town Players Can Make a Big Difference
Posted on September 08, 2009The stories of women attorneys in top jobs are inspiring to those of us just beginning our careers. Reading the Forbes 100 Most Powerful Women List, reading about women who become managing partners of global law firms, and seeing another woman appointed to the Supreme Court...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending September 4, 2009
Posted on September 04, 2009Women Join Simpson Thatcher's Exec Committee - At Last Female Lawyers with Masculine Names May Have a Better Shot at Judgeships Eminent Domain Lawyer Christian F. Torgrimson Has a Passion for the Practice Ex-Big Firm Attorneys Open First Female and Minority-Owned Multi-Office Global Law Practice Attorney Louise Wells Named 1st Female Managing Partner at Morris, Manning & Martin Deane K Corliss, JD, MSN, Honored for Excellence in Healthcare Law That's History: Women at Law School, One Day in 1977 read more
Can Pumping a Bottle Get You Fired?
Posted on September 03, 2009Sue Shellenbarger at The Juggle reports that "an Ohio Supreme Court decision allowing a breastfeeding mother to be fired from her job for taking breaks to pump milk has ignited an angry buzz among bloggers." A closer look at the ruling reveals the court actually dodged the core question ? whether breastfeeding mothers are protected by pregnancy-discrimination laws ? and focused instead on the fact that Ms...
Women Managing Partners
Posted on August 31, 2009Morris, Manning & Martin, LLP announced the election of its new Managing Partner, Louise M. Wells. Wells will be the first female to hold the position since the firm was founded in 1976. ?I am honored to accept this responsibility,? Wells offered...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending August 28, 2009
Posted on August 28, 2009Downturn Dims Prospects Even at Top Law Schools Sex Discrimination Suit at Canadian Law Firm: Court Orders Canada's Largest Law Firm to Produce Confidential Data Diversity's Narrow View Seating Justice Sotomayor Excerpts: Sandra Day O'Connor Sotomayor and Woodrow Wilson's Vision read more
Derailed by Pregnancy
Posted on August 27, 2009I experienced a feminist lawyer's worst nightmare: my big firm law career was derailed by pregnancy. It was bizarre. I never dreamed that when I was supposed to be up for partner I would be waiting to see if I would need a heart transplant--because of a twin pregnancy...
Superwomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Andrea Chavez of San Francisco CA
Posted on August 23, 2009Bio for this week's Superwoman JD: Andrea Chavez is an Executive Partner and a co-founder of VLP. Andrea has spent her entire professional career negotiating and closing large technology transactions in the semiconductor, networking, software and digital media areas...
Doris Brin Walker Dies at Age 90
Posted on August 23, 2009Politically radical attorney Doris Brin Walker died at a San Francisco hospital last week. She was 90. Walker graduated from Boalt Hall in 1942, the only woman in her class. She was elected the first woman president of the National Lawyers Guild in 1970...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending August 21, 2009
Posted on August 21, 2009Female Lawyers Fighting Sexism Sidley Austin LLP Names Nadine M. Lacombe Director of Diversity Yale Law Women Announces 2009 Top Ten Family Friendly Firms Sandra Day O'Connor Broke Gender Barriers in Law Tulsa Attorney Karen Long Named to Ethics Commission in Oklahoma Colorado Women in Law Squeezed by Recession Former U...
Forbes 100 Most Powerful Women List
Posted on August 21, 2009Of the 100 women recognized by Forbes this month, I count 18 lawyers (or at least women with law degrees) in the mix: 2. Sheila Blair, Chiarwoman FDIC 8. Angela Braly, CEO WellPoint 16. Safra Catz, President Oracle 17. Christine Legarde, Minister of France's Economy, Finance & Employment 19...
Yale Law Women Releases Top Ten Family Friendly Firms
Posted on August 20, 2009Yale Law Women (YLW) has announced its fourth annual Top Ten Family Friendly Firms List.The 2009 Top Ten Firms, in alphabetical order, are: Arnold & Porter Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton Covington & Burling Jenner & Block Katten Muchin Rosenman Mayer Brown Munger, Tolles & Olson Patton Boggs Sidley Austin WilmerHale ?The Top Ten List, and any discussion of family friendly policies, is even more salient in this recession than in previous years,? said Yale Law Women Chair, Noorain Khan...
Do Women Create Their Own Glass Ceiling?
Posted on August 19, 2009According to a new study, administered at the University of New Mexico Anderson School of Management, women have imposed their own glass ceiling, reports MSNBC. The study shows that female managers are more than three times more likely to underrate their bosses' opinions of their job performance, in contrast with men holding similar management positions...
The First Decent Argument I've Heard for Why (1L) Grades Should Matter As Much As They Do
Posted on August 19, 2009I've always been skeptical of the emphasis placed on first year grades. And essentially I still am, but I've now heard the first argument that convinced me they might actually be a proxy for future success in the profession. Here's what happened: I was having lunch with a judge and we were talking about how short a window new associates get in which to prove themselves at law firms...
Hidden Mindsets, Storytelling, and the Advancement of Women Lawyers
Posted on August 19, 2009One reason that it?s so difficult for women lawyers to advance is the way the stories of their accomplishments are told. I chose the word ?tell? over the word ?report? because everyone wears blinders when observing and forming judgments about the world...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending August 14, 2009
Posted on August 14, 2009Female Attorneys May Have the Edge in Yaz Suits Women Lawyers Work the GFC Women Lawyers in the City The Stress of Being a Female Lawyer Hamas Orders Women Lawyers to Wear Headscarves Tribute: Lawyer Helvia Sipila Set UN Agenda on Women Women Lawyers Leaving Profession During Looming Shortages: B...
When is My "Education" No Longer First on My Resume?
Posted on August 14, 2009I'm pretty sure that every single person in my law school's public interest program has a resume that looks just like mine. Garamond size 11, anyone?? We all shared a career counselor and we all got the same format, font, and tone. I don't mind. Except that I haven't been in law school for a couple years now, and I'm wondering when I'm supposed to take a fresh approach...
Queen Bee Jealousy and 'Vision Thing': The Obstacles Faced by Female Bosses
Posted on August 12, 2009Several recent articles and reports found in a variety of law and business publications have dealt with the issue of how women are perceived in the legal profession by both their female and male colleagues. Specific focus has been given to the challenges faced by women in managerial roles...
Find Yourself a Living Metaphor
Posted on August 12, 2009Ed. note: Susan Letterman White is a legal industry consultant. Prior to consulting, Susan managed her own solo practice while raising children and then joined Hepburn, Willcox, Hamilton, & Putnam in Philadelphia as an associate, became a partner, and then the managing partner...
Working Mother Magazine and Flex-Time Lawyers Rates the Top 50 Law Firms for Women
Posted on August 11, 2009Working Mother Magazine and Flex-Time Lawyers recently released its list of the top 50 law firms for women. The firms "were evaluated on their workforce profile, family-friendly benefits and policies, flexibility, leadership, compensation, and their advancement and retention of women, among other factors...
Superwomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Dana Brody-Brown of Lewis and Roca LLP
Posted on August 09, 2009Bio for this week's superwoman JD: Ms. Brody-Brown is a partner in the firm?s Intellectual Property practice group. Her work is focused in the areas of trademark counseling and prosecution, including trademark audits, portfolio analysis and strategic counseling, selection and searching of trademarks, domestic and worldwide registration and enforcement, domain name issues, and licensing...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending August 7, 2009
Posted on August 07, 2009At Public Schools, Tuition Jumps Sharply Do Women Make Better Bosses? Hamas Imposes Islamic Dress Code for Women Civil Servants Attorney Emily Taube Touts Influences, Lessons Learned in Law Practice Here Comes My Baby - Learning About Being a Working Mom A Judge's Game - Profile of Judge Diane E...
Will flextime get you laid off?
Posted on August 04, 2009There was a provocative article on Forbes.com recently, titled "Will Flextime Set You Up to Be Laid Off?" In it, the author, Tara Weiss, discusses anecdotal evidence that working a flex schedule may, in fact, put you at the top of the layoff list...
Superwomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Michelle Campbell of AlixPartners
Posted on August 01, 2009Bio for this week's Superwoman JD: Michelle Campbell leads the strategic communications practice at AlixPartners, LLP, a global firm of senior business and consulting professionals that specializes in improving corporate financial and operational performance, executing corporate turnarounds and providing litigation consulting and forensic accounting services when it really matters ? in urgent, high-impact situations...
Ms. JD Weekly Roudup: Week Ending July 30, 2009
Posted on July 31, 2009Women on the Verge of the Law: From Anita Hill to Sonia Sotomayor What?s the point of judicial power if you don?t have Girl Power? Law Firm Gender Diversity Efforts Not Enough to Ensure Meaningful Inclusion of Women of Color No Doubts: Women are Better Managers MCCA 2009 Survey of Fortune 500 Women General Counsel Sotomayor's Judiciary Vote in Haiku by Dahlia Lithwick No Surprise, Mid-Level Associate Morale Down in Many Big Firms read more
Yes We Can: Marianne Short and Profound Change at Dorsey & Whitney
Posted on July 30, 2009Just came across A Conversation with Marianne Short, Managing Partner of Dorsey & Whitney over at Adam Smith Esq. The site reached out to Marianne when Dorsey was named to Working Mother Magazine's Best Law Firms for Women 2007, because the firm was the only AmLaw 100 member on the list that was managed by a woman...
When one woman leaves
Posted on July 28, 2009I've got to vent a little...A few weeks ago a female senior associate left my firm to go work for a judge. She is one of the few associates that has left voluntarily since I've been here. She is amazing - mother of 2, great attorney, part-time but cleary on track for partnership...
Elizabeth Wurtzel on Bitter Lawyer: Law is a Refuge for Worriers
Posted on July 27, 2009Over at Bitter Lawyer there's a great two part interview with Elizabeth Wurtzel. After the success of Prozac Nation, Wurtzel went on to attend Yale Law ('08) and talk her way into a part-time gig at Boies, Schiller. The interview is fun because Wurtzel offers a relatively unedited view into what life at a BigLaw firm is like for snarky young woman...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending July 24, 2009
Posted on July 24, 2009Women, Minority Lawyers See More Court Bias Than Men Do, Report Says Why More Than 75% of Minority Female Lawyers Leave Law Firms Within 5 Years Women Lawyers Leaving Profession During Looming Shortage: B.C. Law Society Female Minority Lawyers Don't Stay at US Law Firms Women Leaving Legal Practice: Law Society Women Failing To Crack Law's Glass Ceiling Loretta Tuell Breaks Barriers in Legal Profession Sen...
Catalyst Releases Women of Color in U.S. Law Firms Report - Quantifying Gaps in Perception & Experience
Posted on July 21, 2009Catalyst released it's study of Women of Color in Law Firms today. The report represents a major undertaking, and I recommend reading it yourself, but I will attempt to summarize the key points. First the problem: ...more than 75 percent of women of color associates leave their firms by their fifth year of practice, and nearly 86 percent leave before their seventh year...
"Whatever You Do Don't Get Pregnant"
Posted on July 20, 2009Over the years I've grown accustomed to unsolicited advice from professional women. It has been my experience that women feel empowered to tell one another what they should be doing with their lives to a much greater extent than men (at least with respect to younger women)...
Jack Welch is Wrong
Posted on July 20, 2009The Internet has been abuzz for a week over Jack Welch's comments that women can't have it all. Janet Bangall of The Gazette goes straight to the Forbes magazine 2008 list of the World's 100 Most Powerful Women to find out how wrong Welch is. Sure, she points out, the woman who ranks 1st on the list, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, doesn't have any children...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending July 17, 2009
Posted on July 17, 2009Why Women Are More Likely to Get Hired Than Men: The Dirty Truth About Law Firm Hiring Practices Temple Dean Testifies for Sotomayor Will We Ever Get Tired of Talking About Work/Life Balance? Arkansas Attorney General McDaniel Testifies at Judge Sotomayor's Confirmation Hearings The Place of Women on the Court Supreme Court Nominee Sotomayor Answers GOP Critics on Prior Remarks Studies Show Women of Color Struggle to Rise in Law Firms Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione's Tiffany Walker Wins Scholarship Lawyer Anita Pryor Contributes to Book on Women in Law 'Reaching the Bar' Minority Lawyer Associations Form With Eyes on Diverse Judiciary read more
Why the Supreme Court Needs a "Critical Mass" of Women
Posted on July 13, 2009Vanity Fair conributing editor Dee Dee Myers thinks the Supreme Court needs more than just another woman: what it needs is a critical mass. Critical mass isn?t a static number, nor is it an argument that there should be an equal number of men and women in every room...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending July 10, 2009
Posted on July 10, 2009Quinn Emanuel's Susan Estrich Redefines Multitasking Witness List for Sotomayor Has a Few Surprises Am Law Litigator of the Week: Dianne Elderkin of Woodstock Washburn Multicultural Women Attorneys Have a New Guide National Association of Women Lawyers Issues Evaluation of Judge Sonia Sotomayor for the Position of Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court Younger Women, Older Men Dominate Professions The Dorothy Problem: Are Women at Law Firms too Passive? Firefighter to Testify Against Sotomayor Lack of Self-Promotion Hurts Women in Large Law Firms Martin County Attorney Leslie M...
SuperWomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Kelly Hoey of New York City
Posted on July 10, 2009Bio for this week's Superwoman JD: Kelly Hoey is currently the manager of alumni programs at White & Case. In that position, Ms. Hoey works closely with the Firm's leadership (as well as alumni) in the development of alumni relations strategy, social networking initiatives and programming for the benefit of alumni...
Scaling Back Career for Baby
Posted on July 09, 2009In a recent post on her New York Times' Motherlode blog, Lisa Belkin turned a question she received over to her readers. Here's a snippet of Anna's letter to the readers: I used to secretly look down on stay-at-home moms. I?m not proud of being so judgmental, but opting out seemed like the easy road to me, an excuse to avoid the 9-to-5...
Justice Ginsburg on Sotomayor, Gender & the Court, & Roe
Posted on July 08, 2009This week's New York Times Magazine features Emily Bazelon's interview with Justice Ginsburg. It's relatively juicy stuff, given how guarded the Justices generally are. Ginsburg talks about Judge Sotomayor, feeling alone - even ignored - at conference, and how she thinks precedents on reproductive rights and discrimination should and will change...
"Don't Ask, Don't Tell" - Women's Failure to Self-Promote Helps Keep Firm Glass Ceilings Intact
Posted on July 08, 2009I always think Pat Gillette's assessment of the problems facing women in the profession hits the nail on the head. Her AmLaw Daily piece on self-promotion skills is no exception. After identifying external factors, like unconscios bias, that hinder women's advancement in law firm hierarachies, Gillette points the finger at women as well, arguing that a failure to effectively take credit when it's due and ask for advancement when it's available also stops women from excelling within firm structures...
A Plum Opportunity in a Down Economy: ED's Post Open at UT's CWIL
Posted on July 06, 2009The recently launched Center for Women in Law at the University of Texas School of Law in Austin is looking for a new Executive Director. The Center seems like a pretty amazing place to work. Not only are they the first of their kind, the job is a straight path to academia through a non-traditional route, not to mention an opportunity to work with a group of alumnae founders that's hard to beat...
Is Losing Lockstep a Step Backwards for Women?
Posted on July 06, 2009Many firms such as DLA Piper, Howrey, and Orrick are moving away from or re-examining a lockstep program of training and compensation. The lockstep program is a training and compensation program based objectively on the number of years served. While the lockstep program may not be perfect, it was an objective way to ensure that the base level for associates was fair...
AmLaw Litigator of the Week: Dianne Elderkin of Woodcock Washburn
Posted on July 05, 2009After a year of naming Litigators of the Week, The American Lawyer selected their first female litagator to receive the honor: We can finally confess something that's been bugging us for several months. We've been picking Litigators of the Week for a little more than a year, and we've never selected a woman...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending July 2, 2009
Posted on July 02, 2009Brabbit Gets Women Lawyers' Top Honor Are Women in Politics Still Routinely Demeaned in the News Media, or is it All About Sarah Palin? Second Female Managing Partner Takes Helm at Caroll, Burdick & McDonough Orrick Gives the Boot to Lockstep-Associate Model EpsteinBeckerGreen Recognized for Commitment to Diversity Four New York Firms Slide Off A-List Another View: In Praise of Law Firm Layoffs Munger Tolles Tops AmLaw's A-List, Once Again read more
Law School Application Numbers Down for Women
Posted on July 02, 2009The most recent statistics show that number of women applying to law school has dropped. A Spring 2007 ABA article addressed this trend, noting that from 2005 to 2007 there was a 12.7 percent drop for women despite, as the Wall Street Journal noted, a recent increase in law school applications...
Top Michigan Court Rules that Judge has the Power to Ban the Muslim Veil from Courtroom
Posted on July 01, 2009Michigan Rule of Evidence 611 has just been revised, giving judges the power to determine what witnesses should wear in their courtroom. Recently, a divided Michigan Supreme Court approved this rule, despite protests from the American Civil Liberties Union that the rule should contain an exception for religion attire...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending June 26, 2009
Posted on June 26, 2009The (Happy) Female Breadwinner Female Lawyers Lose Out in Crunch Dem Women in Senate Push for Sotomayor; So Does a Liberal Law Group Work-Life Approach Encourages Women to Come Back On the New Howrey Program: A Chat with Chairman Bob Ruyak Judge Arnette R...
Putting on Heels
Posted on June 24, 2009While getting ready this morning, I listened to a piece on NPR, Workers Dressing Better To Hold On To Jobs: The recession is changing the workplace in many ways. Financial Times columnist Lucy Kellaway says many workers are kicking it up a notch with dressier work clothes and more formal e-mails...
A Code of Ethics for Female Attorneys
Posted on June 24, 2009Recently, I heard Adrienne Suarez deliver her Code of Ethics for Female Attorneys. Favorite excepts include: Number 4: Given the choice of being a mentor or a tormentor to a younger, less experienced female attorney, I actively choose to be a mentor...
The National Association of Women Lawyers 2009 Annual Awards Luncheon
Posted on June 23, 2009The National Association of Women Lawyers (NAWL) will be holding its 2009 Annual Awards Luncheon on Thursday, July 23, from noon to 2 pm, at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York. The honorees include: Marcia Greenberger, Founder & Co-President of the National Women's Law Center; the General Mills Legal Department; LexisNexis; Holly Fujie, President of the State Bar of California; Nicole M...
I know a great au pair that needs a 6 month placement
Posted on June 23, 2009I know an au pair from South Africa that is looking for a replacement family since her "host mom" just lost her job and cannot afford her. I believe that she arrived in the US in January so she has until this coming January on her current visa...
Ms. Manners: Blogging from the Dinner Table
Posted on June 22, 2009This weekend everyone's favorite style mavens at the New York Times weighed in on the propriety of smartphone interuptions during business meetings. As in "is it ok to check email on my iPhone during a potential pitch from a potential contractor?" To which I say, "SERIOUSLY?!?!" I mean how is there any debate here...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending June 19, 2009
Posted on June 19, 2009Sotomayor Nomination Focuses Attention on Belizean Grove Women Lawyers of Color Guide 'Sisters, Daughters' to Successful Careers Justice Ginsburg Cheered Over Sotomayor Nomination Males Judges Advise Women Lawyers to Lose the Distracting 'Ally McBeal' Look Is Sonia Sotomayor Mean? Court Watch: Sotomayor's Dissents -- and Temperament read more
Sotomayor & the Belizean Grove: Are We Really Ready to Move Beyond Exclusivity?
Posted on June 19, 2009Over the weekend, Judge Sotomayor resigned her membership in the Belizean Grove in anticipation of her Senate confirmation hearings. Ever since I heard the news, I've been trying to decide what I think about her membership and the negative reaction to it...
Finding a Safe Harbor Mentor
Posted on June 17, 2009Ed. Note: The following article, by April A. Christine, comes to Ms. JD from the Los Angeles Lawyer. barristers tips BY APRIL A. CHRISTINE Los Angeles Lawyer March 2009 Finding a Safe Harbor Mentor A PERFECT STORM OCCURRED in October 1991 when three storms combined into one off the coast of Gloucester, Massachusetts...
Bar Exam Tips
Posted on June 16, 2009This is the time of year when people, some annonymous, some not, start posting their advice for studying for the July bar exam on various web sites such as Ms. JD. I still read a number of these websites -- the same ones that I read when I was in law school...
ABA Nominations: light on the ladies
Posted on June 15, 200913 = nominations for ABA leadership under consideration 4 = number of female nominees (and three of the four are at-large, as opposed to Board of Governors spots) 0 = number of women of color nominees (actually all the nominees, both male and female appear to be white) So what is going on at the ABA? read more
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending June 12, 2009
Posted on June 12, 2009Martha Minow Chosen as Harvard Law School Dean Sotomayor: In Her Own Words, on Tape The Palin Paradox: Women More Likely to be Elected in Male-Dominated Districts Adams: 'Wise Latina' Line Had a Point, and Not a Racist One A Study in Why Major Law Firms are Shrinking Odd Woman Out Get a Life? Not If You Want to Be One of the Nine Women Dominate Higher Education at Every Degree Level; the Female-Male Degree Gap Grows Sotomayor Says She Was 'Perfect Affirmative Action Baby' read more
Ms. JD Public Interest Summer Scholarship Winner: Christina Calloway
Posted on June 12, 2009Ms. JD is pleased to feature our second winner of Ms. JD's Public Interest Summer Scholarship, Christina Calloway. Here is her winner essay submission: ?You?re getting old. You should get married soon before you are too old to have children.? At 26 years old and finishing my second year of law school, my grandmother said these words to me...
Ms. JD Proudly Announces the Winners of Ms. JD's Public Interest Summer Scholarship
Posted on June 10, 2009Ms. JD is pleased to announce the two winners of our Public Interest Summer Scholarship: Sarah Mazzochi and Christina Calloway! These women truly exemplify commitments to public interest law through their work, studies and life stories. Thank you to all of those who sent in submissions - we received so many thought-provoking pieces...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending June 5, 2009
Posted on June 05, 2009Munger Tolles & Olson Breaks Ground on Innovative Child Care Center Debate on Whether Female Judges Decide Differently Arises Anew IP Litigator Recognized for Work on Behalf of Women Lawyers Latina Lawyers Defend Sotomayor's 'Wise Latina' Speech Littler Mendelson Tops Ranking for Female Lawyers Sotomayor and that Dangerous Word "Better" read more
If there are enough women making enough money, maybe they won't notice they're all making less than the guys?
Posted on June 05, 2009Last week, the Labor Department released data indicating that women are now receiving more higher education degrees at both the college and graduate level: Associate's Degrees: 167 for women for every 100 for men. Bachelor's Degrees: 142 for women for every 100 for men...
Conservative Radio Show Host Liddy on Sotomayor: "Let's hope that the key conferences aren't when she's menstruating..."
Posted on June 04, 2009Conservative radio show host G. Gordon Liddy made a series of inflammatory comments regarding Sonia Sotomayor's nomination to the bench earlier this week. He initially criticized her for making "racist comments" and then moved on to denigrating her gender, stating: "Let's hope that the key conferences aren't when she's menstruating or something, or just before she's going to menstruate...
SuperWomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Katherine B. Edwards of Alexandria, Virginia
Posted on June 04, 2009Bio for this week's Superwoman JD: Katherine B. Edwards has been practicing law for over twenty-five years and is known as one of the best energy attorneys in Washington D.C. Kathie earned her J.D. in 1981 from the University of Texas and also earned a Masters degree from Memphis State University...
How Female Judges Decide Cases
Posted on June 04, 2009Neil A. Lewis discusses the question of how female judges decide cases in his piece Debate on Whether Female Judges Decide Differently Arises Anew: Sandra Day O?Connor, the first woman to serve on the Supreme Court, is often quoted as saying that a wise female judge will come to the same conclusion as a wise male judge...
Taking a Break
Posted on June 01, 2009Enough in these rough economic times, Anna Stolley Persky reports that taking a vacation is still a good thing. The necessity of relaxation doesn?t change based upon the economic climate,? says Manning, a principal at Manning Sossamon. ?The only difference may be how lavish that retreat is...
Making Waves
Posted on June 01, 2009A recent New York Times piece, The Waves Minority Judges Always Make, looks at the persuasive force of minority justices. The first woman on the court, Justice Sandra Day O?Connor, often says that wise old women and wise old men reach the same conclusions...
The Secret of the Women in Black Robes
Posted on June 01, 2009What do Sandra Day O'Connor, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Sonia Sotomayor have in common? Well, besides the obvious? They were all young fans of one fictional teenage super-sleuth: Nancy Drew. In a delightful New York Times article, Nancy Drew and the Secret of the 3 Black Robes, Mary Jo Murphy reports that all three women admired the young, courageous heroine: It doesn?t take a big clue to deduce that there?s something between Supreme Court women and Nancy Drew of River Heights, Somewhere, U...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending May 29, 2009
Posted on May 29, 2009Ed. Note: This week's Roundup focuses on the spectrum of media coverage of Sonia Sotomayor's Supreme Court nomination. The articles highlighted below constitute by no means an exhaustive list of relevant articles. A Brief History of Presidential Spin on Female Court Nominees from O'Connor to Sotomayor Debate Over Who Sotomayor Is a Sensitive One Sotomayor Disclosure Form: Despite Gambling Win, Supreme Court Nominee of Relatively Modest Means A Latina Judge's Voice: Judge Sonia Sotomayor's 2001 Address to the 'Raising the Bar' Symposium at the UC Berkeley School of Law Legal Realism Informs Judge Sotomayor's Views read more
"A Latina Judge's Voice" & Embracing Bias
Posted on May 27, 2009Much has been made of Judge Sotomayor's pointing out that she views cases with a perspective that reflects her gender, ethnicity, and experiences. To an extent her critics seem to have hit on something that should bother us all: an admitted bias in a judge...
Book Review: Pioneering Women Lawyers
Posted on May 25, 2009A choice excerpt from Pioneering Women Lawyers: From Kate Stoneman to the Present: ... I had the occaison to look at my personnel file and there was my resumé, complete with several notes stapled to it. I couldn't stand it - I had to look at what someone thought was important enough to attach to my resume when I was interviewed...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending May 22, 2009
Posted on May 22, 2009Male Judges Advise Women Lawyers to Lose the Distracting 'Ally McBeal' Look Female Lawyers Fight Sexism The Woman's Lawyer: Leadership in Women's Issues Earns Kemp Smith Partner Kudos Supreme Stats: 106 White Males Among 110 Justices Federal Judges Grouse About Lawyers' Courtroom Attire Survey: Even in Bad Economy, Women Lawyers Move in Search of Work-Life Balance read more
Federal Judges Complain About the Attire of Women Lawyers
Posted on May 21, 2009At a recent judges' panel discussion at the Seventh Circuit Bar Association meeting, U.S. District Court Judge Joan Lefkow made a comment about the inappropriate dressing of some women lawyers. This opened the floodgates for similar complaints from other judges on the panel and the the majority-male audience...
Networking Matters
Posted on May 18, 2009I know it's hard to make conversation at cocktail receptions, follow-up by email, reach out for advice, and ask for favors. But it's worth it. How do I know? Because every single job I've ever had I got because someone (almost always a woman) I knew through my professional and social networks helped me get it...
Pam Karlan Kills at SLS Graduation
Posted on May 18, 2009I've already complained about my own law school graduation speaker. I only got more bitter when I read the text of Professor Pamela Karlan's remarks to Stanford Law School's Class of 2009. She's funny; she quotes Dante; she inspires. She also addresses her membership on The Short List: Would I like to be on the Supreme Court? You bet I would...
New Report: Even in Bad Economic Times Women Lawyers Seek Work-Life Balance
Posted on May 18, 2009A new survey released by the Rutgers Center for Women and Work shows that despite the current poor economic climate, women lawyers are still prioritizing work-life balance in their careers. The report, "Legal Talent at the Crossroads: Why New Jersey Women Lawyers Leave their Law Firms and Why They Choose to Stay," found a number of the women had chosen firms that provided "work and family balance...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending May 15, 2009
Posted on May 15, 2009New Study: Female Lawyers Leave Firms Primarily to Seek Flexible Situations Judge Hearn Elected Second Woman on Five-Member S.C. Supreme Court Legal Talent at the Crossroads - Women Lawyers in New Jersey Report: N.J.'s Female Lawyers Leave on Advancement Issues California Women Lawyers to Educate and Recreate - June 5 Conference Combines MCLE with Mini-Vacation Why Women Lawyers Leave: A Quest for Flexible Work and Supportive Environments read more
Women Lawyers' Mother's Day Project Receives National Award
Posted on May 13, 2009The National Conference of Women's Bar Associations has awarded the Hawaii Women Lawyers' and Hawaii Women's Legal Foundation's Mother's Day Project with the 2009 Public Service Award. The Mother's Day Project provides children in foster homes, domestic violence shelters, homeless shelters, or living with relatives, with Mother's Day gifts to give to foster mothers, biological mothers and grandparents...
SuperWomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Patricia Gillette of San Francisco, California
Posted on May 13, 2009Bio for this week's Superwoman JD: Ms. Gillette, a partner in Orrick's San Francisco office, is a member of the Employment Law Group. Ms. Gillette's practice focuses on all aspects of employment law, including wrongful discharge and discrimination litigation in both state and federal court, representation of employers in hearings before administrative agencies and counseling and training employers on preventive personnel practices...
Who goes to Law School? Why?
Posted on May 12, 2009For many years, the number of female law school applicants was on the rise. In the last five years that number has plateaued. Then at last week's Summit in Austin two second tier law school deans mentioned that they received too few female applicants this year to maintain previous gender ...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending May 8, 2009
Posted on May 08, 2009Barbara Bearnson Named 'Woman Lawyer of the Year' Coalition of Lawyers Fosters Diversity High Court Pick Should Be a Woman Supreme Court Watchers Eye Sonia Sotomayor Is the 'Sisterhood' Over for Women Lawyers? Top Women Lawyers Call for President Obama to Select Woman to Supreme Court New Jersey Women Lawyers Association Honors Sills Cummis & Gross Partner read more
End of the 'Sisterhood' for Women Lawyers?
Posted on May 07, 2009Recently, Vivia Chen wrote a piece for the American Lawyer entitled 'The End of Sisterhood.' In that article, she examines whether women lawyers are really as united as they make out to be. As Chen posits: "[W]omen -- particularly their immediate superiors -- can be [fellow women lawyers'] worst tormentors...
Nominate a Woman to the Supreme Court
Posted on May 07, 2009Last week, I had the privilege of attending the Women's Power Summit on Law and Leadership at the University of Texas. One of the most exciting experiences while attending was hearing firsthand from Justice Sandra Day O'Connor on the struggles she's faced as a woman in the legal profession...
Center for Women in Law Launched at UT
Posted on May 04, 2009This week the University of Texas School of Law launched the Center for Women in Law with a Women's Power Summit on Law and Leadership. An astonishingly accomplished group of women, among them at least three people on "the short list" and Justice O'Connor, were present...
SuperWomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Katherine B. Edwards of Alexandria, Virginia
Posted on May 03, 2009Bio for this week's Superwoman JD: Katherine B. Edwards has been practicing law for over twenty-five years and is known as one of the best energy attorneys in Washington D.C. Kathie earned her J.D. in 1981 from the University of Texas and also earned a Masters degree from Memphis State University...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending May 1, 2009
Posted on May 01, 2009The End of Sisterhood Women and Minorities Seen as Focus for Court Search Local Judge Kaye Hearn Unopposed for High Court Stereotypes, Cancer Couldn't Stop Beverly Baker from Reaching Her Goals Tool Time for Women in the Law Downturn Will Make Firms More Hospitable for Women, Partner Argues read more
Event Announcement: Backpack to Briefcase
Posted on April 30, 2009Backpack to Briefcase A Transitional Program for Law Students, Recent Graduates and Junior Associates Hosted by: New York City Bar - House of the Association 42 West 44th Street, New York Thursday, April 30th, 2009 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m...
Superwomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Penny Berger of Lincoln NE
Posted on April 26, 2009Bio for this weeks Superwoman JD: Penny Berger received her Bachelors and Masters degrees from Columbia University. She then went on to complete her PhD from the University of Chicago, followed by a J.D. from the University of Nebraska. After graduating from law school at the top of her class and participating as associate editor of her law review, Penny Berger took a job with Rembolt Ludtke, LLP and became one of the first women to make partner in Lincoln, Nebraska...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending April 24, 2009
Posted on April 24, 2009The Black Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles Foundation Hosts its Thirty-Fourth Annual Scholarship and Awards Luncheon Sandra Robinson Honored as "Queen of Malpractice" Women Lawyers in India Take On Akilesh Das Jacksonville Women Lawyers Association Elects a New Board How To Attract and Keep Talented Lawyers in this Downturn read more
How to Become a Law Professor -- The Move from Big Law to Academia
Posted on April 23, 2009Professor William B. Rubenstein of Harvard Law School will be conducting a half-day seminar on June 20, 2009 in New York City to help those who are interested in making the transition from private practice to legal academia. Visit http://billrubenstein...
In This Economic Downturn, Now Is the Time to Prioritize Diversity and Mentorship
Posted on April 22, 2009In a recent article written by Carl Cooper, for 'The Complete Lawyer,' Cooper argues that law firms are really missing the point in this economic downturn if they are focusing solely on increasing profits. "If law firms were ever serious about retention, now is the time to prove it...
Supply and Demand
Posted on April 22, 2009I spend a fair amount of time considering why it is that women are so under represented in the partnerships of large law firms. I do this as a semi-professional endeavor but also due to my own self-interest as a junior associate who (1) intends to make partner in a few years and some day be involved in the management of my current firm and (2) wonders if there is something that I am not anticipating that will drive me from practice as has happened to so many partnership tracked women ahead of me...
'Diverse' Analyzes Female Leadership in America's Leading Law Schools
Posted on April 21, 2009Diverse, a forum dealing with issues in higher education across America, has released an article dealing with female leadership in law schools. According to Diverse, as of the 2006-2007 academic year, "47 out of the 200 American Bar Association-approved U...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending April 17, 2009
Posted on April 17, 2009Law Firms and Women Attorneys of Color - Obstacles and Successes Blind Lawyer Says Claire Huxtable Was Role Model Will a Second Woman Join the High Court? Lawyer Angela Winfield Excels Despite Disability Fulbright Names Linda L. Addison Partner-In-Charge of New York Office Bobbie Pichini Named to Best Lawyers in America 2009 read more
SuperWomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Diana Mercer of Los Angeles, CA
Posted on April 16, 2009This Week's Superwoman JD Diana Mercer: Diana Mercer, Esq. is an Attorney-Mediator and the founder of Peace Talks Mediation Services in Los Angeles, California (http://www.peace-talks.com). A veteran litigator, she now devotes her practice solely to mediation...
Ms. JD 2009 Summer Scholarship
Posted on April 14, 2009Ms. JD is awarding two $500 scholarships to female law students entering their second or third year at an accredited U.S. law school and working the summer of 2009 at least 35 hours per week for a minimum of 8 weeks at a government agency or nonprofit organization...
Networking is hard
Posted on April 14, 2009Okay, so I'm the lawyer who has been writing the seven part series titled "A Junior Associate's Networking Plan". I know, I know, I owe Ms. JD a couple of installments of that series, which I promise to get to soon. Anyway, I recently found myself on the receiving end of a friend's networking efforts and it was hard for me...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending April 10, 2009
Posted on April 11, 2009Linda Addison Receives ABA's 2009 Margaret Brent Women Achievement Award Women Lawyers: It's Time for a Woman on Fifth DCA Law-moms Aim to Change Law Firms' Punishing Work Culture Law Student Misty Leigh Edwards Named Franke Scholarship Recipient ABA to Honor Five Women for Achievement Award Women Lawyers Meet in Fiji read more
Superwomen JDS and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Laverne Gaskins of Georgia
Posted on April 10, 2009This Week's Superwoman JD Laverne Gaskins: Laverne Lewis Gaskins is employed as the University Attorney for Valdosta State University. Ms. Gaskins earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology, (cum laude), from Valdosta State University, and thereafter received her Master of Education degree in Guidance and Counseling...
ABA to Honor Five Women for Achievement Award
Posted on April 09, 2009The American Bar Association has announced the five women it will be honoring with the 2009 Margaret Brent Women Lawyers of Achievement Award. These women are: Helaine Barnett - a veteran legal aid attorney; Loretta Tuell - a name partner at Andersen Tuell, which was one of the first D...
Legalized Rape? Opponents Speak Out About New Afghan Law
Posted on April 09, 2009Over much protest, last week Afghan President Hamid Karzai signed into law a bill codifying existing Islamic law which creates significant restrictions upon the times that women can leave their homes in Afghanistan. In addition, the law also requires that women meet the sexual needs of their husbands, stating in relevant part that "unless the wife is ill, the wife is bound to give a positive response to the sexual desires of her husband...
Superwomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Randa Hudome of Washington D.C.
Posted on April 04, 2009Bio for this Week's Superwoman JD, Randa Fahmy Hudome: Randa Fahmy Hudome has more than twenty years of experience in the international affairs arena, including service in both the executive and legislative branches of the U.S. Government. She is the President of Fahmy Hudome International (FHI), a strategic consulting firm that provides critical advice and counsel to Fortune 500 companies, foreign governments, media organizations, private sector entities, and educational institutions with an interest in international energy and foreign policy...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending April 3, 2009
Posted on April 03, 2009In-House Attorneys, Law Firms Spar Over Flex-Time, Part-Time Policies Collateral Damages: TV Series Report Chicago Attorney Accuses Playboy Executive of Sexual Harassment Litigator Stars in Career Double Feature as Movie Producer Jaqueline Harounian Honored by Long Island Women's Agenda read more
Interview with a Recruiter
Posted on April 01, 2009In the current economic climate, jobs are scarce and competition is fierce. How does this change the game when you are interviewing? I asked Kathleen Pearson, Director of Professional Recruiting with Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis, her thoughts on this subject, and here?s what she had to say...
Cracking the Glass Ceiling?
Posted on April 01, 2009In an article written by Sandra Rubin for the Globe and Mail, 'What will it take to crack the Glass Ceiling?", Rubin reports that according to Catalyst Canada, which surveys its law firm members on workplace diversity, women will not achieve parity with men at law firms until 2088...
Successful JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Holly Fujie of Los Angeles, CA
Posted on March 30, 2009Side Note from the author: As you may have noticed above the title has changed from the usual weekly feature. One of the first things Holly mentioned to me was that she didn?t like the title superwomen as she didn?t think you needed super human powers to be a successful attorney and over all female role model...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending March 27, 2009
Posted on March 27, 2009As a Young Lawyers, Senator Gillibrand Defended Big Tobacco Former WolfBlock Associate, Nancy O'Mara Ezold, Who Sued Firm Speaks Out 3rd Circuit: Partner Alyson J. Kirleis' Discrimination Lawsuit Can Proceed Against Law Firm A Lady Lawyer with Heart: Patricia Sullivan The Inaugural Pretty in Pinstripes Luncheon of 2009 read more
It's easier because of those who've gone before me
Posted on March 25, 2009Here I am, five weeks away from exams and the end of my 1L year. I?m having trouble getting motivated to do all of the work I know I should be doing. I?m behind on my outlines, and I haven?t done enough studying to prepare for the exams that will be here before I know it...
The best advice I?ve received so far: be pleasant & be organized.
Posted on March 24, 2009(Cross-posted at Young Lawyers Blog) The tricky thing about being a new corporate associate is that no matter how well you did in law school, you will still feel unprepared for the realities of corporate practice. Part of that stems from the fact that law school coursework is generally weighted in favor of litigation (case-in-point: my law school offered more legal writing classes on the nuances of appellate brief-writing than there were students, but only one contract drafting seminar per semester)...
Superwomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Susan Court of Washington, D.C.
Posted on March 22, 2009Bio for this week?s superwoman JD Susan Court: Susan J. Court was appointed by Chairman Joseph Kelliher in November 2005 to serve as Director of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's Office of Enforcement. Joining the Commission as an attorney-advisor in 1982, Ms...
Ask a Mom in Law School: Balancing Schedules, and Interviewing
Posted on March 22, 2009Cross-posted at (Formerly) Knocked Up (and in Law School): Spring Break has come to an end! I'm now seven weeks away from completing my JD, and I have a rambunctious toddler who will be reeking havoc at graduation. Life is good. So, I've been asked to impart more wisdom concerning being both a parent and a law student...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending March 20, 2009
Posted on March 20, 2009Law Firm Opens Door to Saudi Women Why So Few Women on the JNC? Women's History Month: Cracking the Glass Ceiling One Client At A Time Deborah Sterling Joins Spencer Crain Women Prove They Can Be Leaders, Too Legal Pioneer: Barbara Wolvovitz read more
Justice Ginsburg Visits New England Law Boston, Recounts Career Roadblocks
Posted on March 18, 2009Justice Ginsburg helped New England Law Boston celebrate its 100th year by speaking to a group of 180 law students last week. Ginsburg recelled some of the challenges she faced as a woman in the profession, reported The Boston Globe: Ginsburg said rising through the ranks in a legal profession that was almost the exclusive domain of men was challenging...
New York Law Journal Releases Issue 'Women in the Law: Taking the Lead'
Posted on March 17, 2009At the end of February, the New York Law Journal released a special issue entitled 'Women in the Law: Taking the Lead.' The issue includes articles such as 'Are Law Firms Gender Neutral?,' 'Listen To Me! Why Male Colleagues May Not Be Responding the Way You Would Like,' and 'Freedom From Stereotypes...
2009 Partner Class: Stagnant for Women Lawyers
Posted on March 17, 2009In a recent press release, The Project for Attorney Retention reported that Law firms' 2009 partner class shows little progress for women. The good news is that at 23 of the 100 firms surveyed by the Project for Attorney Retention, the new partner classes were at least 40% female...
SuperWomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Diane Russell of Silverdale, WA
Posted on March 15, 2009Bio for this week's Superwoman JD Diane Russell: Diane has practiced law since 1986, including six years with the Kitsap County Prosecuting Attorney's Office. She has been a trustee with the Kitsap County Bar Association, president and vice president of the Washington Women Lawyers, Kitsap County Chapter and a board member and president of the Silverdale Chamber of Commerce...
CNN Reporter Seeking Attorneys to Interview for Special Report
Posted on March 13, 2009A CNN reporter is looking for attorneys to interview for a special report. These attorneys should be either lawyers who have recently been laid off and who are moving into public interest law or young attorneys who are still on a firm's payroll but who have been offered the option to move into work in other areas for the year...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending March 13, 2009
Posted on March 13, 2009Secretary of State Hillary Clinton Announces 2009 International Women of Courage Awards Lack of Women on Federal Judicial Nominating Commission in Florida Outrages Some Broadening Britain's Judicial Ranks In-House Lawyers Feel Economic Pinch Fisher & Phillips Partner E...
First Woman Judge Kim McLane Wardlaw
Posted on March 11, 2009Ed. Note: The following post is a First Women series submission by Judge Kim Wardlaw. Judge Kim Wardlaw Biography: President William Jefferson Clinton nominated Judge Wardlaw to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on January 27, 1998. She was confirmed by the United States Senate on July 31, 1998, and appointed to the Court on August 3, 1998...
Work/Life Balance Seminar Sponsored by Shipman & Goodwin, Featuring U.S. District Judge Vanessa Bryant
Posted on March 08, 2009On Monday, March 30, 2009, from 6-8pm, Shipman & Goodwin, LLP will host ?An Evening With The Honorable Vanessa L. Bryant, U.S. District Judge, District of Connecticut and Tracy L. Rich, Executive Vice-President, General Counsel & Secretary, The Phoenix Companies, Inc...
Sandra Day O'Connor, First Female Justice on the Supreme Court, Hopes to Push for More Civics Classes in Schools
Posted on March 08, 2009"Only a third of Americans can name the three branches of government. That's scary," Sandra Day O'Connor told "Good Morning America" on Wednesday, March 4, 2009. "But 75 percent of kids can tell you 'American Idol' judges." Justice O'Connor believes that with the emphasis that schools have placed on math and science scores, and with the focus on the No Child Left Behind Act, that basic civics and social studies courses have, in fact, been left behind...
Superwomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Nicole Auerbach of Chicago, IL
Posted on March 04, 2009Bio for this week's Superwoman JD, Nicole Auerbach: Nicole Auerbach is a member of the recently formed Valorem Law Group. She focuses her practice on complex commercial litigation as well as representing clients in arbitrations, mediations and appellate work...
"Opt Out" or Pushed Out: Are Women Choosing to Leave the Legal Profession?
Posted on February 27, 2009Breaking the Glass Ceiling Abroad: Two Appointed as Palestine's First Female Judges
Posted on February 27, 2009Khuload Faqih and Asmahan Wuheidi made history this month when they were appointed as the first female Islamic judges in Palentine, according to an article released by the AP. Judge Faqih believes that she has "opened a door for [herself] and other women...
Superwomen JDs And What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Roberta Liebenberg of Philadelphia, PA
Posted on February 26, 2009Family vs. Law School
Posted on February 25, 2009OK, I have to somehow vent this stress I've been carrying around for the last several weeks. I work full time and go to law school at night. The stress of law school is enough by itself, but with family pressure, I'm feeling a little crushed. My husband is going to be away for a few hours this weekend...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending February 20, 2009
Posted on February 20, 2009Women Lawyers Brush Up on Business Etiquette ABA Journal: Why Lawyers Can Be Difficult Spouses YMCA Honors Women, including 'Super Lawyer' Anita Casey, During Achievement Awards Partners for Women and Justice Offers a Helping Hand with Legal Issues Raising the Bar to New Heights: Holly Fujie, a Woman of Influence in the Legal Profession, Embraces the Challenge of Being the Current President of the State Bar of California Yahoo Fights In-House Bias Claim Initiative Improves Iraqi Women's Quality of Life, including Helping 12 Women Lawyers to Open a Women's Center read more
SuperWomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Jan Macpherson of Washington, D.C.
Posted on February 19, 2009Bio for this week?s superwoman Jan Macpherson: Jan graduated from Georgetown University Law Center in 1978 and went to work in the Department of the Interior, where she worked primarily on surface mining regulation. In 1982, she came to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, where she has worked ever since, mostly on electric rate regulation...
"Stunning Disparity" in Women's Ability to Make Partner According to ABA Study
Posted on February 15, 2009According to the latest results from a recent ABA study, there is a "stunning disparity" in women's ability to make partner at firms both large and small. The study will track the careers of 4,160 lawyers who entered practice in 2000 over a 12 year span...
Is Now The Perfect Time To Start A Solo Practice?
Posted on February 14, 2009The short answer: Yes. I'm totally aware of the inner hysteria most people are feeling about our economy, needing to take a Valium before they open their 401k statement this month. Watching your property taxes increase while your home value drops like an elevator with broken cables...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending February 13, 2009
Posted on February 13, 2009National Association of Women Lawyers Reaches Agreement to Offer Important New Programs for Women Women Lawyers Stand on Ginsburg's Shoulders The Art of Flexibility Ginsburg Has Surgery for Pancreatic Cancer Kenyan Women Lawyers Root for Local Tribunal Lawyer Marianne Sorensen Elected to St...
SuperWomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Katherine B. Edwards of Alexandria, Virginia
Posted on February 13, 2009Bio for the author of the column: Noha Sidhom is a proud graduate of the University of Nebraska College of Law. Before attending law school, Noha interned on Capitol Hill for the Honorable Charles Timothy Hagel and went on to campaign for Senate candidate Peter Ricketts...
ABA Section of Business Law Jean Allard Glass Cutter Award
Posted on February 09, 2009The ABA Section of Business Law is currently soliciting nominees for the 2009 Jean Allard Glass Cutter Award. The Glass Cutter Award, named after the first woman chair of the Section, is presented to annually to a female business lawyer who has made significant contributions to the legal profession and to the ABA Section of Business Law...
Dean Search Committee Names Finalists: Four out of Five are Women
Posted on February 08, 2009Four out five of finalists to serve as the next Dean of the University of Maryland School of Law are women. The finalists include Wendy Collins Perdue, Phoebe A. Haddon, Linda S. Mullenix, Leah Ward Sears, and Mark A. Sargent. After 10 years of service, the Law School's current dean, Karen H...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending February 6, 2009
Posted on February 06, 2009Making a Strong Case for Women Lawyers Women Lawyers Are Happier Outside of BigLaw, Survey Says Women in Law: A New Mentoring Program in Calgary is Trying to Stem the Tide of Female Lawyers Leaving the Profession Silverdale Attorney Diane Russell New President of Women Lawyers Chapter Is the Work-Life Balance Tipping in Work's Favor? Flextime Adds Up in a Down Economy Woman's World: Making Law a More Woman-Friendly Career Choice read more
SuperWomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them: Featuring Penny Berger of Lincoln, Nebraska
Posted on February 05, 2009Ed. Note: The following post is the first post of a new series contributed to Ms. JD by attorney Noha Sidhom. The series is entitled 'SuperWomen JDs and What You Can Learn From Them.' Check back regularly for new posts in this series. Bio for the author of the column: Noha Sidhom is a proud graduate of the University of Nebraska College of Law...
The Wage Gap Puzzle in the Legal Profession
Posted on February 05, 2009The Glass Hammer has a piece on the wage gap for lawyers, The Wage Gap Puzzle in the Legal Profession: Why Women Lawyers Still Earn Less Than Men & What Can Be Done About It. Paying attention to the wage gaps for lawyers is useful because of the unique nature of the profession...
American Blogger Fired From Branch of UK Firm Over Racy Online Novel
Posted on February 04, 2009Online novelist Deidre Dare, author of Expat, a "racy" story about life in Moscow, was forbidden by her firm to continue to publish her blog on or about January 17, 2009, "due to company rules," states an article by the United Press International...
Women and Minorities Still Under-represented in Trial and Appellate Judicial Seats
Posted on February 02, 2009According to a recent article in the ABA Journal, women and minorities are still under-represented in the trial and appellate judiciary seats of Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Maryland, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Utah...
Yale Law Women Sponsors "Opt Out" or Pushed Out? Conference
Posted on February 01, 2009Yale Law Women will be sponsoring a two-day conference entitled "Opt out" or Pushed Out? on March 27-28, 2009. The conference will begin at 3:30pm on March 27th and end at 4:30pm on March 28th. ?Opt Out? or Pushed Out will address the controversial phenomenon described by some as ?opting out," the supposed trend of professional women leaving the workplace to devote their energies to family care-taking, full time...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending January 30, 2009
Posted on January 30, 2009Secretary of State Clinton Meets Afghan Women Lawyers President Obama Signs the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act into Law Female Lawyers Focus on Two Educational Events, One in Washington, D.C. Fair Pay Bill Eases Way for Gender Pay Suits Jones Day Hosts Women Afghan Lawyers and Judges New Madison County Associate Judge, Elizabeth Levy, Hopes to Specialize in Family Law GE, Former Attorney Lorene Schaefer Settle Discrimination Suit read more
Lilly Ledbetter Act Becomes Law; Brief Interview with Ms. Ledbetter
Posted on January 30, 2009Womenstake, the blog of the National Women's Law Center, had the opportunity to interview Lilly Ledbetter after the Senate's passing of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act on January 22, 2009. All four female Republican senators voted in the Ledbetter Act's favor...
Fashion Police Strike Again in BigLaw: 5th Year Associate Required to Undergo Makeover
Posted on January 28, 2009In a recent article republished by The ABA Journal, attorney Tracey Batt recalls being embarrassed by the firm's request that she undergo a fashion overhaul. An office encounter with several superiors one day was her first warning that she not only was being arrested by the fashion police but was being sent to a full-scale rehabilitation program...
Sloan Work & Family Top Ten
Posted on January 28, 2009The Sloan Work and Family Research Network listed their ten most widely read blog posts from 2008, many of which may be of interest to women lawyers. Here's the list: 1.) Action Plan for Working Parents Caring for Children with Disabilities 2.) Work-Family Issues for Employed Parents of Children with Disabilities 3...
Work-Life Advocate Joins First Lady's Office
Posted on January 28, 2009Michelle Obama recently announced that Jocelyn Frye will serve as Director of Policy and Projects for the First Lady. According to The Juggle, the selection of Ms. Frye suggests that Michelle Obama is "preparing to take an activist stance on such policy issues as family leave and flexible scheduling...
Selma Moidel Smith Law Student Writing Competition
Posted on January 27, 2009The National Association of Women Lawyers (NAWL) is currently soliciting entries for the Fourth Annual Selma Moidel Smith Law Student Writing Competition, which focuses on issues concerning women's rights or status of women in the law. The competition carries a $500 prize for the first place essay and the opportunity for the winning essay to be published in the summer edition of the Women Lawyers Journal...
Roberta S. Karmel: Reflections on My Career
Posted on January 25, 2009Life at the Center, a piece by Roberta S. Karmel in February's edition of Business Law Today, addresses, in large part, younger women lawyers: I am often asked how I managed to achieve so many career milestones as a woman, and yet have such a large family...
Freshfields Encourages Female Attorneys to "Embrace Femininity"
Posted on January 25, 2009A recent article in Marie Claire UK reports that Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP has suggested to its female attorneys that they "embrace their femininity" by wearing stiletto heels paired with skirts. This suggestion comes as a part an "image changing course" used in the firm's UK offices to advise staff on how to dress professionally...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending January 23, 2009
Posted on January 23, 2009Senate Passes Pay Discrimination Bill Speed Networking Lunch for Jacksonville Women Lawyers Association State Department, Private Organization to Host Afghan Women Lawyers Attorney Caroline Kennedy Drops Bid for Senate Seat, Citing Personal Reasons Kenyan Judge, Lady Justice Aluoch, Elected to Global Criminal Court Afghan Women Learn Here to Oversee Justice at Home read more
Gillibrand Slated for Clinton's Senate Seat
Posted on January 23, 2009Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand has been selected by Governor David Paterson to fill Hillary Clinton's vacant U.S. Senate seat. Ms. Gillibrand is largely unknown to New Yorkers statewide, but is considered an up-and-coming and forceful lawmaker in her district and has gained considerable attention from Democratic leaders in Washington...
U.S. State Department's Public-Private Partnership for Justice Reform in Afghanistan to Host Afghan Women Lawyers
Posted on January 22, 2009The U.S. Department of State's Public-Private Partnership for Justice Reform in Afghanistan will host a group of 14 Afghan women judges, prosecutors, and defense attorneys from January 9-24. The participants in this program will participate in a wide range of sessions, including intensive legal seminars, roundtable events, and consultations with senior governmental officials, including former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor...
Peggy Cooper Davis: Most Influential Woman in Legal Education
Posted on January 20, 2009The National Jurist Magazine named Peggy Cooper Davis one of The Most Influential People in Legal Education this month. Dean David Van Zandt and Professor Frederick Schauer joined Professor Davis in receiving the honor. Peggy Cooper Davis is a Professor of Lawyering and Ethics at New York University School of Law...
A Sisterhood of Infighting?
Posted on January 20, 2009A recent piece at the New York Times, A Sisterhood of Workplace Infighting, discusses the ways in which women undermine other women in the workplace. But while women have come a long way in removing workplace barriers, one of the last remaining obstacles is how they treat one another...
The House Votes to Pass Two Measures on Job Bias
Posted on January 19, 2009The House voted on January 9th to pass legislation that would counter sex discrimination by employers. This action indicates an initial intent by Congress to make a sharp shift away from the civil rights policies of the Bush Administration, according to the New York Times...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending January 16, 2009
Posted on January 16, 2009Women in eDiscovery and National Association for Women Lawyers Host Charity Event in New York City Being Uncomfortable, Milking Goats, and Making Partner Advice for the Lawlorn, by Ann Israel, the Legal Profession's Dear Abby Top Labor Lawyer, Cynthia Jacob, Takes an Artful Turn as Student and Teacher La...
Is the Profession in a Crisis? And, Can Better Work/Life Balance Ride in on the Coattails of Reform?
Posted on January 14, 2009There is an interesting article titled, Will a bad economy force more changes in the profession? by Diane Curtis on the front page of the California Bar Journal dated January 2009. It opens with: While some people hope the flagging economy will get law firms to rethink how they bill clients, others are warning that associates had better churn up the billable hours or face the prospect of losing their jobs...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending January 9, 2009
Posted on January 09, 2009Nexsen Pruet Attorney Molly Highes Cherry Named to SC Women Lawyers Association Board Fusty Image and Poor Pay Put Women Off Being Judges in the United Kingdom Los Angeles Superior Court's First Female Assistant Presiding Judge, Lee Edmon, Balances Work, Family, Civic Activities Spencer Crain Selected for Minority & Women-Owned Law Firm Honor German Women, Including Many Lawyers, Disappointed by Job Discrimination Act Working Mother Founder, Carol Evans, Looks Ahead, Discusses Michelle Obama as a Mother and Lawyer read more
Bringing Babies to Work?
Posted on January 09, 2009The New York Times recently chimed in on the topic of bringing babies to work: More companies are allowing women ? and some men, too ? to bring their babies to work. The advantages are clear: The women don?t lose money by taking maternity leave. They can breastfeed conveniently...
Jacqueline Harounian on Work-Life Balance
Posted on January 06, 2009Jacqueline Harounian, Esquire of Wisselman, Harounian & Associates, P.C. penned a great piece at The Glass Hammer. Her article, Raising the Bar: Balancing Professional and Personal Choices, includes some "inspirational anecdotes and advice related to the challenges of balancing professional and personal choices...
Dawn Johnson, Assistant Attorney General
Posted on January 05, 2009In addition to his nomination of Elena Kagan for the position of Solicitor General, Barack Obama recently tapped Dawn Johnsen to be an assistant attorney general in his administration. Johnsen is currently a Professor of Law and Ira C. Batman Faculty Fellow at the Indiana University School of Law?Bloomington...
Book Review: Lipstick Jungle
Posted on January 05, 2009As I've posted about before, I am a fan of the NBC series "Lipstick Jungle". Sadly, rumor has it that the series has been cancelled and this Friday's "Season Finale" is actually the end of the show forever. Looks like my lot in life is to have the network dramas that I really like get cancelled...
On a Tightrope
Posted on January 05, 2009In her New York Times piece, The Tightrope of Managing a Law Office, Anita J. Cicero discusses the challenges of being an office managing partner. Watching management issues unfold each week is like watching TV when someone else controls the remote...
Elena Kagan, Solicitor General
Posted on January 05, 2009President-elect Obama announced key Department of Justice posts today, including the nomination of Elena Kagan for Solictitor General. Currently the 11th Dean of Harvard Law School (and the first woman in that post), Kagan served in Bill Clinton's White House from 1995 to 1999...
5 Things I Wish I'd Known Before Becoming a Lawyer, Mother
Posted on January 03, 2009On the first day I reported to work as a summer associate, my employer handed me a copy of Maria Shriver's Ten Things I Wish I'd Known Before I Went Out into the Real World. I quickly gobbled up the pages, hoping to discover the secret sauce to success in the law and life lying somewhere in the pages; I figured it had to be there, after all, a seasoned big-firm veteran had handed it to me with explicit reading instructions...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending January 2, 2009
Posted on January 02, 2009Women Partners Weigh in on Chief Justice Controversy Memorial Service Scheduled for Attorney Pamela Dunn Salem Author Traces the Path of Women in Legal History Holly J. Fujie to Chair Judicial Selection Group for Senator Dianne Feinstein The Height of Feminism? Or do High Heels Demean Women as Sex Objects? read more
Justice Judith Kaye in the New Yorker: Special Kaye
Posted on December 30, 2008Jeffrey Toobin penned a piece for the New Yorker this month on Justice Judith Kaye. The "Talk of the Town" profile, Special Kaye, reflects on a variety of Kaye's accomplishments, from the renovations of Foley Square courthouse that she championed to her promotion of jury service...
Unity Dow, First Female Judge of Botswana's High Court, Also an Author
Posted on December 30, 2008Unity Dow, Botswana's first female High Court judge, "considers that in writing novels she is 'reclaiming the voice' to speak out on human rights and women's issues." Dow has published three novels to date: Far and Beyon', The Screaming of the Innocent, and Juggling Truths...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending December 26, 2008
Posted on December 26, 2008Indian President Patil Speaks About Women Empowerment at National Conference of Women Lawyers and Law Teachers on Justice for Women Ann Rieger Ready for Challenge of Leading Davis & Kuelthau SC Single Mother Latina Alston Perseveres to Earn Law Degree Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer to Female Lawyers: Wear High Heels, Embrace Your Femininity Study: Female Partners in D...
Will BigLaw Embrace Grade-Less, High-Pedigree JDs?
Posted on December 22, 2008p emEd. note: The following article comes to Ms. JD courtesy of author Michael Estrin and bitterlawyer.com. They interviewed a number of hiring partners at major U.S. law firms, who expressed concern about decisions by Harvard and Stanford law schools to switch to a pass/fail system...
Q & A with Managing Partner Brigid Higgins
Posted on December 22, 2008Brigid Higgins, Managing Shareholder, Gordon Silver, rose from associate to managing partner in less than ten years. In her interview with In Business Las Vegas, Higgins discusses what is like to be a female managing parter, how she balances her duties, and how she made such a rapid rise to the top...
Single Mother Perseveres to Earn Law Degree
Posted on December 22, 2008The Witchta Eagle rencently ran an inspriring story about a single mother who overcame adversity to become the eighth African-American member of the Wichita Bar Association. Latina Alston is not yet 30. She has three children out of wedlock with three fathers, two of whom have not helped much with the kids...
Equal Justice Works on Student Debt
Posted on December 22, 2008Ed. Note: The following post will be of interest to Ms. JD readers entering law school, attending law school, or those readers already working. Whether a student, an attorney at a private firm, or an attorney working for government or a public interest organization, the following links provide information to those readers about planning for student loan debt and the pay-back process...
Ex-Law Student Leads Landmark Battle Against Sexual Harassment in Egypt
Posted on December 18, 2008p quot;A recent study by the Egyptian Center for Women's Rights found that 83 percent of Egyptian women and 98 percent of foreign women experience public sexual harassment in [Egypt]..., including explicit comments, groping, men exposing themselves and assault,quot; reports the Los Angeles Times...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending December 19, 2008
Posted on December 18, 2008p a href=http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/business/story/0,28124,24816016-17044,00.htmlAustralian Lawyers Told to Explain Male Stranglehold Over Rank of Senior Counsel/a /p p a href=http://www.bizjournals.com/dayton/stories/2008/12/15/focus1.htmlWomen Partners Slowly Increasing/a /p p a href=http://au...
Event Announcement - Hit the Ground Running: Practical Skills You Need to Succeed
Posted on December 17, 2008p On February 7, 2008, the Law Student Project of the Women's Bar Association of D.C. Initiative on Advancement and Retention of Women is hosting a day-long practical skills session entitled a href=http://www.wbadc.org/cde.cfm?event=240139Hit the Ground Running: Practical Skills You Need to Succeed/a...
Does Looking Sexy Advance Your Career (and even if it does, should you care)?
Posted on December 13, 2008Bitter Lawyer has a post by a very modest writer known at least to herself as "Law Firm 10" (yes, her nom de plume should give you a sense of where the article is heading) entitled Erin Andrews, Esq. Erin Andrews, TV sports reporter, is, according to Law Firm 10, a "(reasonably) stylish, non-overweight, attractive woman," and consequently "men love her and, surprisingly, even respect her," which Law Firm 10 credits as the reason that Erin Andrews' "career is blowing up...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending December 12, 2008
Posted on December 12, 2008Parting Advice from New York's Top Judge, Chief Judge Kaye, but No Mention of Controversy Over Successor Nigeria: Female Lawyers Condemn Violence Against Women More Women Than Men Face Retrenchment in Legal Firms Daddy Daycare: Growing Number of Men Become Househusbands Excerpt from 'Michelle: A Biography' Chief Judge Kaye Says Goodbye at Brooklyn Bar Association's Annual Dinner read more
Columbia Law School Graduate Caroline Kennedy in the Senate?
Posted on December 10, 2008The ABA Journal has picked up on an ABC News' The Note blog report that New York Governor David Paterson wants Caroline Kennedy, a 1988 Columbia Law School graduate, to replace Senator Hillary Clinton. Earlier this week, Robert Kennedy Jr. apparently also told a New York Times reporter, Jonathon Hicks, that "Caroline Kennedy would be the perfect choice if she would agree to do it...
Part V in Series: A Junior Associate's Networking Plan
Posted on December 10, 2008Part V in my 7-part series is Pro Bono work. I, like most junior associates, took on a pro bono client early in my law-firm career. I took my first pro bono client/project based on typical factors: 1- a partner asked me to do it and 2- well, there is no second reason...
New York Governor David Paterson Rejects All-Male Judicial Appointment List of Candidates
Posted on December 08, 2008On Wednesday, December 3rd, New York Governor David Paterson held a press conference where he critized a list of candidates for chief judge of the state Court of Appeals. "I don't accept," he said, "that there wasn't a woman in this state that was qualified to serve on the Court of Appeals...
A false dicotomy: Husband-shopping vs. Serious Professional
Posted on December 08, 2008There is a post from last week on a blog called "Hiring Partner's Office" that seemingly gives sage advice about building your law firm reputation. The hypothetical is about two women associates. One is "pleasant, cheerful" and career focused...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending December 5, 2008
Posted on December 05, 2008Lack of Women on List to Replace Retiring Chief Judge Judith Kaye Criticized Qatari Women Aspire to be Legal Eagles Travis' First Women Prosecutor, Edith Roberts, 76, Died Monday After a Pioneering Legal Career Hunton & Williams LLP Appoints Mary Nash Rusher Raleigh Office Managing Partner Lawyer M...
Celebrating the Career of Chief Judge Judith Kaye
Posted on December 03, 2008The New York Law Journal is celebrating Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye's career in a variety of posts over the next several weeks: Chief Judge Judith S. Kaye has written hundreds of opinions hewing closely to the state's legal traditions at the same time they seek to anticipate changes in society...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending November 28, 2008
Posted on November 28, 2008Firms Change Practices to Keep Female Lawyers Ajamie LLP's Ann Ryan Robertson Named One of 30 'Extraordinary Women in Texas Law' by Texas Lawyer Interview with Yvonne Brathwaite-Burke: USC Law School Graduate, First Black Women Elected to Congress from California, and First Member of Congress to Give Birth While in Office Lawyers' Committee Appoints Civil Rights Activist, MacArthur 'Genius' Fellow Lateefah Simon as New Executive Director Women Still a Minority Among High-Level Positiions read more
Ask a Mom in Law School: The Possibility of Pregnancy
Posted on November 26, 2008Cross-posted at (Formerly) Knocked Up (and in Law School): A new reader asks: I just found your blog after googling "taking the bar exam while pregnant." I'm not in law school, but I am in the dead middle of a PhD. What is your take on the possibility of being pregnant during a major exam (in my case my "orals")...
IP/Gender Call for Papers
Posted on November 26, 2008CALL FOR PAPERS American University Washington College of Law IP/Gender: Mapping the Connections 6th Annual Symposium April 24, 2009 Special Theme: Female Fan Cultures and Intellectual Property Sponsored by American University Washington College of Law?s Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property Women and the Law Program Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law In collaboration with American University?s Center for Social Media The Organization for Transformative Works Rebecca Tushnet, Georgetown University Francesca Coppa, Muhlenberg College Deadline for submission of abstracts: December 19, 2008 read more
NAWL?s 2008 National Survey on Retention and Promotion of Women in Law Firms, Part II
Posted on November 25, 2008Now for the second part of the NAWL survey that I found particularly interesting this year: the finding that "For both male and femail lawyers, moving (laterally moving between firms) is likely to be a better strategy than staying in the lawyer's original firm...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending November 21, 2008
Posted on November 21, 2008Minnesota Women Lawyers Create New Local Chapter National Association of Women Lawyers Releases Third Annual Survey: Groundbreaking Data Reveal Impact of Lateral Moves, Firm Structure on Women Tasers the Topic of Jacksonville Women Lawyers Association Luncheon Holland & Knight's Women Lawyers Buy Kitchen Gadgets, Benefit Charity In Equity Partner Ranks, Men Earn an Average of $87K More than Women Kenyan Federation of Women Lawyers Project to Give Women Easier Access to Legal Services read more
NAWL?s 2008 National Survey on Retention and Promotion of Women in Law Firms, Part I
Posted on November 18, 2008So, it is that time of year and NAWL released it's 2008 Survey report yesterday. Truthfully, there isn't much to write about this survey that you can't learn by reading the report and posts about it from last year. The numbers have not really changed...
The Jury Expert
Posted on November 17, 2008The American Society of Trial Consultants recently released a new trial skills journal, The Jury Expert. One of the feature articles, written by Elizabeth J. Parks-Stamm, discusses juror reactions to successful women. The article, Anticipate and Influence Juror Reactions to Successful Women, discusses "what happens when women jurors see successful women attorneys, plaintiffs or defendants and how you can mitigate the often negative judgment against successful women...
Women of the Missouri Court: First Event to feature the only four women who have served on the Missouri Supreme Court
Posted on November 17, 2008In all of Missouri?s history, only four women have served on the state Supreme Court. The Women?s Law Association (WLA) at the University of Missouri School of Law hosted the first event ever to feature and honor these four women. On Wednesday November 12, 2008 Judge Ann Covington, Judge Mary Russell, Judge Patricia Breckenridge, and current Justice Laura Stith sat on a panel together at the Law School to discuss the journey women have in the legal profession and future progress...
The Interview Suit
Posted on November 16, 2008The New York Times reports that classic suits are making a comeback in The Return of the Interview Suit. The unemployment rate is currently high in America, and so are suit sales: Companies like Men?s Wearhouse and Tahari are reporting an upswing in suit sales, particularly for those classic navy or gray pinstripe styles they classify as ?interview suits...
Hillary Clinton: The Trailblazer
Posted on November 16, 2008Dubbing her a "trailblazing political pioneer," Hillary Clinton was named a 2008 Woman of the Year by Glamour Magazine. Although she did not reach the White House, Kati Marton writes that Hillary "won while losing." She continues to be a huge force on every topic she cares about, and her stature remains undiminished throughout the world...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending November 14, 2008
Posted on November 14, 200811th Circuit Judge Phyllis A. Kravitch Blazed Path for Other Female Lawyers Wall Street Journal Names Marcia Goldstein of Weil Gotshal Among '50 Women to Watch' Kenyan Federation of Women Lawyers (Fida) Withdraws from Special Task Force Investigating Sexual Violence During the Post-Election Crisis Author Carol Evans Sees Brighter Future for Working Women Ackerman's Cecelia Bonifay and Theresa McLaughlin Named Two of Florida's 'Women of Influence' by Real Estate Florida Magazine Perk of the Moment: Flextime Holland and Knight's Top Chefettes read more
Balancing Life, Work, and Jury Duty
Posted on November 11, 2008Dakota Hankin, Sloan Network Graduate Research Assistant, writes about fulfilling our civic obligation while balancing work and personal life in her guest post, Family Friendly Jury Duty: I came across several articles as well as a blog entry discussing work and family issues that arise while fulfilling our responsibility as citizens to provide our peers with access to a fair trial...
Corporette Roundup
Posted on November 09, 2008Recent columns and polls at Corporette: Patterned Tights Dressing Professionally if You?re Busty Professional Women and Tattoos Knee-high Boots in a Professional Capacity? read more
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending November 7, 2008
Posted on November 07, 2008Australian Women in Legal Profession in a Rush to Work Part-Time New Solicitor General on Obama To-Do List: Woman To Be Nominated? Play Commemorates the Naming of the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law at Arizona State University The White House's Working Mom - Michelle Obama Lawyer Gina Rubel Named Philadephia Business Journal's Woman of Distinction Law Firms Reflect Greater Demand for Diverse Work Force Generation Y Takes on Work-Life Balance read more
Election Victories for Women Lawyers
Posted on November 06, 2008Contested seats go to women in Wake's district court: Three women -- Jacqueline Brewer, Christine Walczyk and Anna E. Worley -- earned spots on Wake County's District Court benches, beating out their male opponents in Tuesday's election. The three races at the District Court level were the only contested ones in the Wake County Courthouse, with most of the 11 District Court judges running unopposed for re-election...
First Female Solicitor General?
Posted on November 06, 2008The U.S. Solicitor General position has been held by many prominent lawyers--Thurgood Marshall and Robert Bork, to name two--but the position has yet to be filled by a woman. Several sources are reporting that "some women could be on Obama's short list for the spot", including Washington lawyer Beth Brinkmann, Stanford Law School professor and former dean Kathleen Sullivan, Harvard Law Dean Elena Kagan, former New York State solicitor general Preeta Bansal, and MetLife litigation counsel Teresa Wynn Roseborough...
Michelle Obama: Lawyer and First Lady
Posted on November 05, 2008Michelle Obama, lawyer and wife of President-Elect Barack Obama, is now about to assume the role of first lady. In honor of this event, Ms. JD offers this brief biography of Michelle Obama: Michelle Obama was born on the South Side of Chicago, and graduated with her undergraduate degree from Princeton University...
Power in the Ballot: Vote to Make History
Posted on November 04, 2008I am a week behind in my reading for Con Law, my laundry is piling up, I have grocery shopping to do, I have messages to return, and emails to send. But all this can wait while I go vote. I will cast my ballot, even if it means falling another day behind, even if it means waiting in line for hours, even if it means standing in the rain...
Margaret Brent Women of Achievement, Call for Nominations
Posted on November 02, 2008The ABA Commission on Women in the Profession is accepting nominations for the 18th Annual Margaret Brent Women Lawyers of Achievement Award. The award was established in 1991 to recognize and celebrate the accomplishments of women lawyers. Each year, this award honors five outstanding women lawyers who have achieved professional excellence within their area of specialty and have actively paved the way to success for other women lawyers...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending October 31, 2008
Posted on October 31, 2008Saratoga Attorney Lorraine Power Tharp Dies Mandeville Woman Trades Law Partnership for Writing Career Andrews Kurth Partner Highlighted Among Extraordinary Women in Texas Law Women Lawyers Go To Battle in Madonna/Ritchie Divorce Nigerian Women Lawyers Seek President Yar'Adua's Backing for FIDA Top Job Women Lawyers Meet for Success in Jacksonville read more
First Women: Joan Lukey
Posted on October 28, 2008At some point in virtually every working day, a thought passes through my mind -- sometimes grabbing hold and refusing to depart quickly -- about the women who have been my professional role models and about the impact that they have had upon my life...
Law Firm Hierarchy: Is Rank Unfeminine?
Posted on October 26, 2008I enjoyed a coversation recently with a male friend who inquired about my looming future career as a "big firm lawyer." I expressed some rational doubt and hesitancy about my future - anyone who thinks that gearing up from the luxurious gliding pace of 3L year to the 80 hour week grind is going to be easy is living in a wonderful dream world...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending October 24, 2008
Posted on October 24, 2008Are Women Lawyers 80 Years Away from Partnership Parity with Men? Tallahassee Women Lawyers Honor the Judiciary McManis Faulkner's Neda Mansoorian Elected to California Women Lawyers' Board Strategies for Transitioning Female Attorneys Women Lawyers Give Tribute to Those in Judicial Circles Zimbabwe Women Lawyers Association Urges Women to Speak with One Voice on Gender Based Issues read more
This Week at The Glass Hammer
Posted on October 23, 2008Two posts at The Glass Hammer caught my eye this week as being particularly pertinent to women in the legal profession. Elizabeth Harrin on Work/Life Balance in the Law: It?s not easy balancing work and a home life. Throw in clients who need you to be available at all hours, managers who don?t believe in vacations and court dates that change at the drop of a hat and you have to wonder why anyone chooses the legal profession at all...
Alternative Legal Jobs Clearing House and Legal Recruiter Calls: Really? In this Market?
Posted on October 23, 2008So, the market is in a downward spiral that seems to come up for air every so often but then turn-around and head right back down. A lot of law firm associates that I know are worried. They are worried about "stealth layoffs" and about head-count reductions and generally about the fact that work is REALLY slow these days...
Daddy Bonus, Mommy Penalty
Posted on October 20, 2008Neil H. Buchanan's recent paper, Why Do Women Lawyers Earn Less than Men? Parenthood and Gender in a Survey of Law School Graduates, reveals a correlation between parental status and salary. Using a dataset of survey responses from University of Michigan Law School graduates from the classes of 1970 through 1996, I find that fathers tend to receive higher salaries than non-fathers (a "daddy bonus")...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending October 17, 2008
Posted on October 17, 2008Women Lawyers will Battle It Out in Madonna Divorce Big St. Louis Law Firms Show Little Progress in Minority and Women Hires Women Break the Judicial Glass Ceiling in Britain Philadelphia Bar Association Celebrates Women Leaders With Annual Award and Panel Australian Jurisdiction NSW's Government Keeps Score on Women Barristers Used Law Society of Upper Canada Launches Cutting-Edge Think Tank to Retain and Advance Women in Legal Profession read more
Book Review: Play Like a Man Win Like a Woman: Gail Evans
Posted on October 17, 2008I recently heard Gail Evans talk and she was great. Her talk was inspiring and also very practical and prompted me to finally read her book, Play Like a Man Win Like a Woman. (It is currently only $10.17 on Amazon!). At the end of the book, Ms. Evans writes, "This book is about learning to make noise, and also, learning to make choices...
Anna Deavere Smith, Actor & Playwright, Writes One-Woman Play Celebrating Women in the Law
Posted on October 16, 2008To commemorate the 2006 naming of the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law at Arizona State University, actor and playwright Anna Deavere Smith wrote, and is now performing in, a one-woman play about women in the law. Smith, known for her role as Nancy McNally, the National Security Advisor on NBC's The West Wing, wanted to pay a living tribute to women in the law through this play...
Minority Women Partners: Some Cities Fare Better Than Others
Posted on October 16, 2008Recent analysis by NALP reports that minority women continue to be dramatically underrepresented at the partnership level, making up less than 2% of partners in the nation's major law firms. The findings also reveal that, nationally, women and minorities continue to be much better represented in associate and summer associate ranks than in the partnership ranks...
Ms. JD 2008 Fall Intern
Posted on October 14, 2008Ms. JD is seeking responsible and self-motivated law students to intern for the remainder of the fall semester. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis, so apply today! A stipend of $300 will be offered for 30 hours of work. read more
Part III in Series: A Junior Associate's Networking Plan
Posted on October 14, 2008Okay, so now to Part III: Law School Network and Alumni Groups. I have found that the typical advice, both formal and informal, to a junior associate trying to start building her professional network is that she shoud start with keeping in touch with law school classmates...
Survey: Flexing, Floundering or 'Just Fine Thanks': Work/Life Issues in America
Posted on October 10, 2008Life Meets Work is conducting a first annual survey: Flexing, Floundering, or 'Just Fine Thanks': Work/Life Issues in America. Seeking to capture the opinions of Americans regarding work/life challenges, the role of government, and flexible work programs, Life Meets Work invites you to share your views on Work/Life Issues in America...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending October 3, 2008
Posted on October 03, 2008Women Lawyers, Juries, - And Stress? Women Lawyers Move Towards the Top in Asia Stereotypes Blamed for Job Review Bias Against Women Report: Pay Gap is Closing - Slowly Family-Friendly Law Firms Attract Women Florida Association for Women Lawyers' Forms a University of Florida Chapter read more
When You Run Out of Steam...
Posted on September 30, 2008Remember the scene from "The Graduate" when Benjamin is rushing to the wedding in his spunky little convertible when ever...so...slowly...the...music...slows...down...until...he's out of gas? Have you ever been on the treadmill at the gym and thought, "Gosh, I would be so mortified if I couldn't keep up and fell off this thing!" ? This is how I'm feeling these days...
Building Relationships with Professors: Easier Advised than Done
Posted on September 30, 2008Fall is the time of year for Tips - hundreds of helpful lists of "Tips for Surviving-and-Thirving in Law School" are published across the internet, indoctrinating hopeful 1Ls into the rigors of outlining, the socratic method and "not getting too stressed out...
Do you hear that sound? It's the winds of change.
Posted on September 30, 2008On the way to a recruiting dinner recently, I had the pleasure of driving with a sixth-year and an eighth-year (up for partner) associate. Both are at the top of their game at my BigLaw firm. Both are highly professional, competent, and competitive...
Law Firms Turning to Family-Friendly Culture
Posted on September 29, 2008Citing handheld devices, home offices, part time schedules, on-site daycare, and longer maternity leaves, a Los Angeles Times article describes techniques that law firms are using to create a family-friendly culture that accommodates personal lives. In the article, Deborah Epstein Henry, founder of Flex-Time Lawyers LLC, comments on the female attrition rate at firms, pointing out that losing a second-year associate can cost a firm between $200,000 and $500,000...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending September 26, 2008
Posted on September 26, 2008Australian Judge Georgia McMaster Claims Women Barristers Treated Unfairly Legal Eagle Tan Hong Siang, Who Spent Her Lifetime Bucking the Norm, Died Last Week Gender Pay Gap Amongst Lawyers - A Potential Reason Catherine Murdock Dewey, a Legal Pioneer in Boston, Turns 100 Four Law Firms on Working Mother's List of 100 Best Companies Women in Law: Justice Jane Kelly Has the Pedigree for Spot on the Bench read more
Catherine Murdock Dewey, One of the First Female Lawyers in Boston, Turns 100
Posted on September 25, 2008Catherine Murdock Dewey, one of the first female lawyers in Boston, is celebrating her 100th birthday. She will be honored by the New England School of Law, in Boston, where retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, the first woman on the Supreme Court, will be present the keynote address...
Working Moms as Role Models: Part I -- Role models for our kids?
Posted on September 25, 2008A long while ago I wrote a post about the idea that working moms are role models for their children and about the judging that goes on between women including the battles being fought in the, so called, "mommy wars". Well, I have some updates and some additional insight on the issue that I'd like to share...
Call for Submissions: Gender Diversity: Have we solved the problem? If not, where do we go from here?
Posted on September 25, 2008The ABA Commission on Women in the Profession announced their 2008 Video/Essay Competition: Put your video and writing skills to work! Create a 3-minute YouTube video and/or craft a 6-page essay to tell us what you think about Gender Diversity: Have we solved the problem? If not, where do we go from here? Open to young lawyers and law students, winners will receive $500 and award winning entries will be posted on the Commission's website...
Working Moms as Role Models: Part II - Role models for other women?
Posted on September 25, 2008Intro to Part I: A long while ago I wrote a post about the idea that working moms are role models for their children and about the judging that goes on between women including the battles being fought in the, so called, "mommy wars". Well, I have some updates and some additional insight on the issue that I'd like to share...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending September 19, 2008
Posted on September 19, 20082008 Marks the Third Year for the Alabama Women's Caucus of the Alabama Association for Justice Brooks Kushman Law Firm Honored for Innovative Initiatives, Including its Flex-Time Program Women Still Left Behind in Top Jobs for Judges in Ireland Janice Holder Steps Into History on High Court as Chief Justice of the Tennessee Supreme Court Lorelei Graham, of Miller Thomson in Ontario, Canada, Wins One of Five 2008 Rainmaker of the Year Awards, From 'Originate!' Women in Law: Carol Hansell 'Top Lawyer in Canada' in her Field read more
Maximize Your Time in Law School
Posted on September 19, 2008A friend of mine just started law school, and she asked me what I wished I?d known when I was a 1L that could have changed my law school experience for the better. Here are the top three things I think you can do to maximize law school: 1. Invest time in making friends Business school students know that networking is just as important a part of their business school experience as their classes...
Table for Two
Posted on September 17, 2008The benefits of eating dinner together as a family are well documented, but a recent study indicates that the benefits of family dinner time apply to couples without children, too. [The researcher, David] Schramm said that while more couples are dining out, simply eating together may not be enough...
Business or Pleasure?
Posted on September 16, 2008A recent New York Times article, Business or Pleasure? More are Choosing Both, caught my eye today. Adding leisure time to buisness travel is something that my husband and I have done on many occasions. With one airfare and several days of hotel paid for, adding on an additional ticket and a few extra days at the hotel can be a cost-effective way to explore a new city...
Call for Papers: Applied Feminism: How Feminist Legal Theory is Changing the Law
Posted on September 16, 2008The University of Baltimore School of Law is hosting their Second Annual Feminist Legal Theory Conference in 2009. The conference, which will bring together law students, legal academics, practitioners and activists, "will look at discrete areas of the law and ask how feminist legal theory operates or could operate to expand existing law, create new law, or combat contractions in the law...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending September 12, 2008
Posted on September 12, 2008Law Firm Debevoise Selected as a Yale Law Women Top Ten Friendly Firm Being a Lawyer and Male Makes You a Top Earner, Census Report Shows Three History-Making Women Judicial Officers of L.A. Superior Court Are Now Joined by a Fourth Yale Law Women Names Top Ten Family-Friendly Firms Soaring Higher Than Ever, Women Legal Eagles Holde One in Five Top Jobs in UK Law Firms Lee S...
Part VI in Series: A Junior Associate's Networking Plan
Posted on September 11, 2008I am short on time and energy today so I am skipping to Part VI of my seven part networking series to share with you today, my Online Networking Plan. I'll have to admit upfront to be woefully behind the power curve on on-line networks. As a member of Gen X, I missed the boat that was MySpace and was a late joiner on other online networks as well...
Yale Law Women Top Ten Family Friendly Firms
Posted on September 08, 2008Here at Yale Law Women (YLW), Yale Law School?s resident women?s group, we have just completed our third annual review of family friendly policies at the nation?s top law firms. After surveying Vault?s Top 100 firms, we have analyzed the data to produce YLW?s Top Ten Family Friendly Firms List...
The World's Most Powerful Women
Posted on September 05, 2008Forbes magazine released its list of The World's 100 Most Powerful Women last week. The list includes several women with Juris Doctorates, including Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, ranked at #72, and Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, ranked at #28. Two female attorneys rank among the Top Ten, although both are now in executive roles--one is Chairman of the FDIC, the other is the CEO and President of WellPoint...
A Savvy Sacrifice?
Posted on September 04, 2008The Feminist Legal Theory Blog, organized by Professor Lisa Pruitt at UC Davis School of Law, directed me to this article in the ABA Journal's online edition. The article, based in part on a recent Time magazine feature, characterizes Michelle Obama's career choices as "savvy sacrifices": Working as an associate at a powerhouse international law firm based in Chicago, Michelle Obama had what many would have considered a dream job for a lawyer...
Alaska Governor Sarah Palin Named as McCain's Running Mate
Posted on August 31, 2008[Ed. Note: Ms. JD will be featuring the biographies of some of the professional women who have figured prominently in this year's presidential election. Some are Democrats, some are Republicans; some are lawyers, some are not; all have dealt with work-life balance issues throughout their careers...
Southern Ms. Part VI: Identifying Discrimination
Posted on August 31, 2008A few weeks ago I witnessed a female lawyer (hereinafter "Lady, Esq.") accuse a male lawyer (hereinafter "Gentleman, Esq.") of sexism and discrimination. It started with Gentleman, Esq. commenting on Lady, Esq. being rude and disrespectful to him...
A Book Review on a Great Find: "View from the Top: Q&A with Legal Women Leaders"
Posted on August 25, 2008I was in the firm's library the other day looking for a securities law practice guide when my eyes were drawn to the following title: View from the Top: Q&A with Legal Women Leaders. It is a book in the Vault Career Library and just happened to be on the shelf across the aisle from the corporate securities collection...
The Power of Storytelling in Your Legal Practice
Posted on August 20, 2008[Ed. Note: Paramjit Mahli, of the Sun Communications Group, and author of this article, is a former journalist who has worked with international news organizations including CNN Business News, and now helps small to mid-sized law firms get in front of their target markets effectively, efficiently, and expeditiously...
Choosy Moms choose what?
Posted on August 14, 2008I think I am jealous. I am jealous of all the mommies that knew they wanted to be a stay-at-home mom. I am also jealous of all the mommies who knew that they wanted to go back to work. I feel bad for the mommies who want to stay home, but have to work, and for the mommies who want to work, but have to stay at home...
The Law School Don'ts
Posted on August 13, 2008Ed Note: This summer, Ms. JD solicited advice from students across the country. Here are some of the law school ?don?ts.? Thinking about getting a pet? A student at the University of Oregon School of Law warns: Don?t do it! You will live in the law school your first year, moving only between your classes, the library, and your bed...
The 50 Best Law Firms for Women - 2008
Posted on August 12, 2008Click here to go straight to the list. Flex-Time Lawyers and Working Mother Magazine have just released their 2008 ranking of "The 50 Best Law Firms for Women." You can download a PDF of the press release from www.flextimelawyers.com. read more
Money Matters
Posted on August 11, 2008Ed Note: This summer, Ms. JD solicited myths and truths from law students across the country. Many students discussed student loans, budgeting, tuition payments, and other ?money matters.? A common theme? Create a law school budget?and then stick to it...
The Socratic Method Myth
Posted on August 09, 2008Ed. Note: This summer, Ms. JD solicited law school myths from law students across the country. Many students discussed the Socratic method, most agreeing that it isn?t as bad as the myths indicate. Aileen McGill, University of Pennsylvania Law School, writes: Before law school, I was certain the Socratic method had two functions: intimidation and embarrassment...
The Competition Myth
Posted on August 09, 2008Ed. Note: This summer, Ms. JD solicited law school myths from law students across the country. Many students weighed in on the subject of competition. Are law students really monsters that will tear pages from books, steal notebooks from lockers, and hide outlines? Sara Brucker, UC Davis School of Law, writes: Law students aren?t monsters...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending August 9, 2008
Posted on August 09, 2008Lawyer Mariane Spearman Cuts Up Stereotypes Nina Ashenafi Richardson Vies for Seat on the Leon County Court Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm Taps Flint Assistant Attorney Cathy Dowd New Judge for 68th District Court read more
Myth: Law School Leaves No Time for a Healthy Lifestyle
Posted on July 31, 2008Ed Note: This summer, Ms. JD solicited lessons learned from law students across the country. Several law students mentioned the importance of maintaining a healthy lifestyle while in law school, including weekly exercise, nutritious meals, and plenty of sleep...
Ms. JD Summer Book Series: The Young Lawyer's Jungle Book
Posted on June 16, 2008Ed. Note: KHernan881, a regular contributor to Ms. JD, has agreed to sub-in for the regular Ms. JD Summer Book Series writer this week with the following review of The Young Lawyer's Jungle Book. Ms. JD's regular series should be back next week...
Seeking A Just Balance: Law Students Weigh In On Work and Family
Posted on June 15, 2008A Better Balance: The Work & Family Legal Center is publishing a study, Seeking A Just Balance: Law Students Weigh In On Work and Family. The study is a survey of NYU law students and their expectations around work/life balance. Generation-Y lawyers ? American men and women born between 1978 and 1998 ? are extremely worried about these issues and are willing to trade money for time...
Why I decided to go on my first real diet while studying for the Bar.
Posted on June 10, 2008All advice I received for bar study strategy said that you eliminate all obligations, responsibilities, and distractions from your life before BarBri starts. Bar study, I was told, will demand every brain cell and every free minute of your life. On the first day of BarBri a rep from the company even told us that we shouldn?t take time to grocery shop or get hair cuts and that we should basically outsource every aspect of our lives to our personal support system of friends and family...
Ms. JD Summer Book Series: Sandra Day O'Connor, By: Joan Biskupic
Posted on June 08, 2008Sandra Day O'Connor: How the First Woman on the Supreme Court Became Its Most Influential Justice, By: Joan Biskupic In this biography of Sandra Day O'Connor, author Joan Biskupic takes the reader through the life of O'Connor, from her early days on the Lazy B Ranch through her time on the Supreme Court...
My Life at a Big Firm: The First Three Weeks
Posted on June 06, 2008My name is Laura, and I recently started at Bryan Cave LLP in St. Louis, Missouri. Bryan Cave has over 800 attorneys in 15 offices worldwide, the largest office being in St. Louis with around 275 attorneys. My summer class consists of 22 other summer associates from a variety of schools...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending June 6th, 2009
Posted on June 05, 2008Pakistani Female Lawyers Happy with Quota for Female Judges in Constitutional Package Bar Examines Dress Code Issue: Cocktail Shoes Appropriate? Thorp Reed & Armstrong Partner Kimberly A. Brown Receives 2008 Lynette Norton Award from the Pennsylvania Bar Association San Francisco Bar Association Seminar to Focus on Mentoring Women of Color Commentary: A Win-Win Alternative Work Policy ABA's Predatory Feminist Lawyers Poll: How Often do you Dryclean Suits? read more
Ms. JD Leadership Summit '08 - Video of Chief Judge Kaye
Posted on June 03, 2008At the Ms. JD Leadership Summit April 4-5 in New York City, attendees were delighted by Chief Judge Judith Kaye's opening remarks. Judge Kaye, who sits on the New York Court of Appeals, inspired the student delegates with reflections on the advancement of women in the legal profession and the challenges female lawyers still face...
Ms. JD Summer Book Series: The Lion, the Fox & the Eagle, by: Carol Off
Posted on June 02, 2008The Lion, the Fox & the Eagle, By: Carol Off After the failure of peacekeeping missions in both Sarajevo and Rwanda in the 1990s, Louise Arbour, a Canadian judge, was tasked with the mission of bringing the perpetrators of these international crimes to justice...
The Giggle Monster
Posted on June 02, 2008In my continual search to find the newest advice for professional women, I randomly came across this old post at On Phara entitled Channeling Barbie: Career Advice for Professional Women, and then immediately googled John McKee, the guy who is cited heavily in the post...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending May 30, 2008
Posted on May 30, 2008Leading N.Y. Women Partners Meet at the Kate Stoneman Project Power Breakfast Study Finds that Female Lawyers are More Likely to Practice in Firms and Less Likely to Make Partner Report on Retaining Women Lawyers Approved by the Ontario Law Society Commentary: Legal Profession Need to Evaluate and Overhaul Itself to Retain Women Andrews Kurth LLP Partner Kathleen J...
First Day of Work 5.26
Posted on May 27, 2008Today was my first day of work. Once again I didn?t really have expectactions, but I was nervous and excited to see what was in store for us. Our supervisor, TP had indicated to the other students that he would be taking Susan and I to court to get us oriented and to give us an experience as a sort of running start for the summer...
Ms. JD Summer Book Series: The Majesty of the Law, By: Sandra Day O'Connor
Posted on May 26, 2008The Majesty of the Law: Reflections of a Supreme Court Justice, By: Sandra Day O'Connor In this book, former Justice Sandra Day O'Connor employs anecdotes, personal advice and Supreme Court cases to analyze the evolution of the law, the functioning of the Court, and her life as a Justice...
First Couple of Days- Created 5/24
Posted on May 26, 2008I have now been in Durban for three days. I have yet to start working, so these first days have been my adjustment period. At first I was somewhat hesitant to put off en starting work, but I am glad that I took this time to get things figured out a little bit and get settled...
Are Women Judges The Meanest?
Posted on May 23, 2008The Las Vegas Review Journal's "Judging the Judges" survey asked lawyers who practiced before Clark County District Court judges to rate the judges' courtesy. Of the attorneys surveyed, two-thirds were male. The results ranked female judges as significantly less courteous than their male counterparts with even the highest-ranked female judge still scoring lower in courtesy than "all but two of the male judges...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending May 23, 2008
Posted on May 22, 2008London Times Reports that the Gender Pay Gap is Still a Huge Problem in the Legal Profession Are Successful Woman Avoiding Motherhood? General Mills' Roderick Palmore Brings GCs and Law Firms Together To Discuss Diversity and Retention of Women in the Workplace Lawyers Rate Female Jurists as Less Courteous Than Men Women's Bar Association Honors Justice Ginsburg and Mary Kennard Human Rights Lawyer Professor Catharine MacKinnon to Receive Honorary Doctorate from Hebrew University Gender Discrimination Lawsuit Against Alameda County District Attorney Tom Orloff Fails read more
Shoes, Clothes, and Law, Oh My
Posted on May 22, 2008The Wall Street Journal has joined the hoary conversation on women?s professional apparel with a trifeca of articles/blog posts: first, with a profile of Lehman Brother?s CFO Erin Callan; next, with a follow-up post on The Juggle blog that specifically commented on Callan?s choice of shoes in the photo accompanying the profile; and now on the Law Blog, which picked up on comments that split on whether female lawyers indeed need to wear uncomfortable professional outfits in the courtroom...
No formal vacation means, well, no formal vacation
Posted on May 20, 2008Recently, as I was contemplating taking a couple of days off work when the school year ends for my kids in June and I got to remembering when I first started as a biglaw associate. In a session on one of the first days, we met with junior associates who were supposed to answer all of our questions that we didn't want to ask in more formal sessions...
Clippings: Words of Wisdom from the Lady Lawyers Who Came Before Us
Posted on May 20, 2008I came across the ABA Commission on Women in the Profession's Oral Histories of Women Trailblazers in the Law and thought I'd share the link. The project "prepares the oral histories of women pioneers in the legal profession nationwide" and includes contributors to Ms...
05/19/08- Day Before Departure to Durban
Posted on May 19, 2008[Ed. comment: Over the course of the summer, Ms. JD will be featuring updates from a blogger's work with the Legal Aid Board of South Africa in Durban. This is the first post in a series of posts that will track this work.] So Susan and I leave for South Africa tomorrow...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending May 16, 2008
Posted on May 16, 2008Women in Small Firms are Leaving the Law Over Lack of Maternity Leave Nigerian Governor Peter Obi Tasks the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) to Assume More Responsibilities in the Present Effort to Change Society Work-Life Balance for Lawyers - Sullivan and Cromwell Achieves Top Adoption-Friendly Workplace Ranking Ethiopian Lawyer Meaza Ashenafi Builds Strong Foundation for Women's Rights Brunswick County Women's Bar Association Promotes Women Working for Women 250 Delegates Attend the Second World Meeting on Women, Gender and the Law in Havana read more
Explore Your Options, Be Happy
Posted on May 15, 2008Wendi Adelson serves as program director for the Human Rights and Immigration Law Project at the Center for the Advancement of Human Rights at Florida State University. Prior to joining FSU's faculty in 2007, Ms. Adelson was a Clinical Fellow and lecturer in clinical education and immigration and a staff attorney in the University of Miami School of Law's Children and Youth Law and Community Health Rights Education Clinics...
Reminder: Register for free NYC networking event by MAY 15 (the event will be on June 4th)
Posted on May 14, 2008If you'll be in New York next month and you haven't yet registered, consider attending the free networking reception & presentation at White & Case on June 4th with Debbie Epstein Henry talking about the Best Law Firms for Women ranking she undertook with Working Mother Magazine last year...
Coming Soon: Ms. JD's Summer Book Series
Posted on May 13, 2008Ms. JD is pleased to announce its Summer Book Series! The series will begin Monday, May 19th, and will continue weekly for the remainder of the summer. Visit Ms. JD every Monday to learn about books highlighting women in the law. Next Monday's Featured Book: Pinstripes and Pearls: The Women of the Harvard Law Class of '64 Who Forged an Old Girl Network and Paved the Way for Future, by: Judith Richards Hope.
Loving what you are doing
Posted on May 12, 2008I stumbled across a great little article about successful women attorneys today, here. (Okay, so I am a few weeks behind on my reading!). This article in New York Magazine is, for once, all about successful women lawyers and talks to many to find out their secret to success...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending May 9, 2008
Posted on May 08, 2008Retired San Diego Court Judge Patricia A. Yim Cowette Awarded the Joan Dempsey Klein Distinguished Jurist Award Secretary of the Employment Lawyers Association Reports that Employers Need to Implement Policies to Prevent Women Being Discriminated Against at Work Cindy Weber Named One of D...
Southern Ms. Part V: The Good Life
Posted on May 07, 2008So lately I've been thinking that this is a really good place to live. Good people, good work, good culture. Especially when you're a young professional and the cost of living is a fraction of what it is in New York or California. Lawyers here make six figure salaries but live like millionaires would in the bigger legal markets because the cost of housing is so low that they have much more disposible income...
NAWL's Ready to On-Ramp program, for those of us who haven't even graduated yet.
Posted on May 06, 2008I attended NAWL?s Ready to On-Ramp? program at Jenner & Block in Chicago, which was ?designed to help lawyers develop their own personal strategy to re-entering the workforce? after taking time off, usually for raising children. Not having graduated from law school yet (one more week!), I was the youngest person there...
Why Do We Need Women's Bar Associations?
Posted on May 02, 2008Elizabeth K. Peck is President and Co-Founder of the Finger Lakes Women?s Bar Association and the Director of Career Services at Cornell Law School in Ithaca, NY Why Do We Need Women?s Bar Associations? I asked myself this very question 18 months ago...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending May 2, 2008
Posted on May 01, 2008Iranian Rights Lawyer Defiant Despite Threats Bella Abzug, 1920-1998: Activist for Women?s Rights Was Known for Her Large Hats and Strong Opinions What if women ran things in Chicago? Nigeria: Akande, First Female Law Professor, Dies Brunswick County Women's Bar Association promotes women working for women Q and A with Follow the Women tour participant Colleen McGuireBuffalo lawyer named 2008 Athena Award winnerCedar Crest introduces new president read more
May 6th in Chicago: NAWL's 3rd Annual "Ready to On-Ramp?" program on re-entry
Posted on April 30, 2008Jenner & Block's Chicago offices host this year's NAWL program specifically designed to help lawyers develop their own personal strategy for re-entering the workforce. Looks like it will be a great program - especially for the bargain price of $30!
Trading SAHM for SWAT?
Posted on April 30, 2008There's a new article by Sue Shellenbarger in the Wall Street Journal that highlights an interesting trend: The decision among some highly educated women to stay home with children is sparking a countertrend: The rise of the mommy "SWAT team...
Bar Study Challenges for a Studier in a New Community
Posted on April 29, 2008Study challenges; what doesn?t kill you will make you stronger. I studied for and took the bar exam in a city other than where I went to law school. The local law school libraries were not all that convenient or close to my house and all three are private schools that I wasn?t familiar with...
Should you supplement CA BarBri with PMBR
Posted on April 29, 2008So, the first thing I want to point out is that this is not a paid advertisement and I don't have a relationship of any sort with Kaplan PMBR. Congratulations to all graduates. I think most around the country will graduate some time over the next three weeks or so (sorry, Chicago!)...
Work-Life Balance, not just a plea from us Ms. JD bloggers
Posted on April 29, 2008One of my favorite blogs, The Juggle, has a post today about young doctors that are looking for some work-life balance and steering clear of jobs where they would be expected to be on call at all times in the life. At the end of the post, Sara writes: Despite the downsides, this industry shift toward family-friendly solutions was probably hard to imagine just a few decades ago...
Number 63 and Abandoned: A Rant From the Forgotten Eighty Percent
Posted on April 27, 2008I?m not in the top twenty of my class. I?m not even in the top twenty percent of my class. In fact, by definition, the majority of my law school class is not in the top twenty percent of my class. Yet, we keep being forgotten by our professors, our deans, and perhaps most noticeably, our career services offices...
Advice on Passing the Bar Exam: Part IV
Posted on April 24, 2008Hey 3Ls - congrats on graduation!! For advice on what to do with the next three weeks before official bar preparation begins check out the forums. For my advice about what to do once studying begins ... I took the California Bar Exam in July 2007. I took it on a laptop in Los Angeles, CA...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending April 25, 2008
Posted on April 24, 2008A Lawyer of One's Own Nobel Prize winner Shirin Ebadi shares her passion for peace with Barnard O'Connor reflects on how law professor helped shape her life read more
Ms. JD Announces its Public Interest Law Scholarships!
Posted on April 22, 2008Ms. JD is pleased to be offering two $500 scholarships for female law students working in public interest this summer. Unpaid judicial externs also qualify for these scholarships. This year's essay topic asks applicants to discuss myths about being a law student...
Is Tattling On Yourself Admirable or Stupid?
Posted on April 19, 2008The other day, I made a mistake at work. It was the kind of mistake that my boss may or may not have ever noticed, the kind of mistake that doesn't have far-reaching consequences but is nonetheless wrong. Also important to note is that this was the kind of mistake that was already out there, and there was nothing anyone could do to change it or somehow make it less of an error...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending April 18, 2008
Posted on April 18, 2008Ashby Jones Asks Why There are So Few Women Atop the Law-Firm Pyramid The Globe and Mail Reports that Women Lawyers Face Unique Challenges in Sole Practices and Small Firms The Bangladesh National Woman Lawyers' Association Advocate for More Women to be Nominated in Elections With Only 8 Percent of Firm Head Positions Filled by Women, Female Law Firm Leaders Remain Sparse Report on Participation in the Women Rainmakes Roundtable - A Program to Help Successful Women Lawyers Become Successful Business Developers Attorney Anna Barbara "Bobbie" Hantz, a Partner at Nashua-based Gottesman & Hollis, P...
Gen Y and the Blame Game
Posted on April 17, 2008The New York Times? Lisa Belkin?she who graced us with the oversimplifying phrase ?opt-out??is a good writer, and she frequently touches on subjects that I find personally compelling. This is largely because she?s one of the few mainstream media writers writing about the working life struggles that I face or will face, and which I spend a lot of time thinking about...
Equal Pay Day: Student Scholarship on Advocacy and Equity
Posted on April 16, 2008Today, Friday, April 18, 2008 is Equal Pay Day. The National Women's Law Center is encouraging bloggers to voice their support for the Fair Pay Restoration Act. Lest you think the wage gap doesn't reach attorneys (after all those law firms have lock-step and hour-based associate salaries and partners are just paid according to their client base, right?) study after study has confirmed that gender pay equity continues to be a goal and not a reality in the legal profession as well...
Symposium on Lawyer Happiness
Posted on April 14, 2008Syracuse Law Review just published a symposium issue on Perspectives on Lawyer Happiness. Particularly worth noting is Theresa Beiner's Not All Lawyers Are Equal: Difficulties That Plague Women and Women of Color, 58 Syr. L. Rev. 317 (2008). read more
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending April 11, 2008
Posted on April 11, 2008Kenya's Federation of Women Lawyers Advocate for More Women to be Trained on Court Procedure so that They Can Represent Themselves in Court Susan Levy Becomes the First Woman to Run Jenner & Block - Only 8% of Managing Parnters at the Nation's Top 200 Firms are Now Women Clifford Chance Partner Kathy Honeywood Comments on Her Mission to Increase the Number of Women at the Top of Her Firm Academic Linda Duxbury Concludes that Law Firms are Generally the Worst-Practice Everywhere When it Comes to Work-Life Balance 6 out of 8 of Offshore Firm Appleby's New Partners This Year are Women - New Firm Record Helen A...
Clippings: Chief Judge Kaye Sues New York for a raise
Posted on April 10, 2008For over 10 years New York State's judges have gone without a raise. Since their salaries are not adjusted for inflation, they've actually experienced a devaluation in their compensation. Today, Court of Appeals Chief Judge Judith Kaye formally announced her plan to sue the state to change that...
Must Read: ABA Commission of Women - Oral Histories of Women Trailblazers in the Law
Posted on April 09, 2008The ABA Commission on Women has compiled the testimonials of 17 remarkable women, including Professor Barbara Babcock and Judge Dorothy Nelson - both Ms. JD contributors, and Judge Betty Weinberg Ellerin - one of this year's Honored Guests at Ms. JD's Student Leadership Summit closing banquet...
Demanding Balance by Rejecting the Blackberry?
Posted on April 09, 2008For 3 years the New York State Bar Association's Special Committee on Balanced Lives in the Law has been holding forums and collecting data on their members' work lives, expectations, and quality of life - essentially their ability to be anywhere but the office on the weekends...
Chat online with the man behind the US News & World Report law school rankings
Posted on April 09, 2008You may have seen this posted on other blogs, so here's just a quick reminder: this Friday from 3-4pm EST, the ABA Journal is hosting a live chat with the man behind U.S. News & World Report's law school rankings. Think the rankings should do more tracking of diversity (women, men, minorities, parent-students, etc...
My Mommy Still Wants to Be a Lawyer
Posted on April 07, 2008A little more than a year has passed since I posted my first story with Ms. JD. (see post here: http://ms-jd.org/my-mommy-wants-be-lawyer ) Despite the time lapse, I did not forget about Ms. JD and she was never very far from my thoughts. But I felt that I had contributed all that was worthy at that time and I needed to wait to accomplish something more profound or at least survive my first year of law school before I decided to wax more poetic about law school...
Ms. Stiletto, Meet Ms. Rubber-heel
Posted on April 07, 2008I understand the stereotypical female shoe fetish. I understand the draw to higher arches, slimmer heels, pointier toes, shinier patent leather. In a profession where office dress is often highly regulated, a woman's shoe is where she expresses both her power and her femininity...
Introducing Ms. JD's National Women Law Students' Organization (NWLSO)
Posted on April 06, 2008This past weekend, Ms. JD celebrated its first birthday by bringing together over 90 law students from 70 law schools in 33 states to create the Ms. JD National Women Law Students' Organization (NWLSO), a group that will bring together and represent the interests of women law students...
Congratulations to the winners of the Ms. JD & PAR essay contest!
Posted on April 02, 2008Ms. JD and the Project for Attorney Retention received fifty-four passionate, well-written arguments for better work/life balance in the legal profession. Our organizations co-sponsored the contest to generate dialogue between Baby Boomer partners and Millennials...
A quick update on some Ms. JD projects
Posted on March 31, 2008Busy week for Ms. JD! This is just a quick update--more later today. We'll be announcing the winners of our work/life balance essay contest this week, so check back. We've also begun interviewing prospective Ms. JD legal interns, so if you are interested, apply ASAP before the position is filled for this summer...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending March 28, 2008
Posted on March 27, 2008Chicago Firm Beermann Swerdlove Finds a Unique Approach to Schedules for Working Mothers Former U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno Addresses the Coastal Bend Women Lawyers Association with a Message that there must be a Balance between Ensuring the Country?s Safety while Keeping Basic Civil Liberties Intact As Women?s History Month draws to a close, Chronicle Careers Tracks Indicators of What Women Lawyers Really Want for Themselves in the Legal Profession The Association of Female Lawyers of Liberia Advocates for a Special Court to Deal with the Growing Number of Rape Cases and Other Forms of Violence Against Women Barbara Moss, an Attorney at Stiles & Harbison, PLLC, is the 2007 Recipient of the Nashville ATHENA Award, an Award that Celebrates the Contributions of Women to the Community Carrie Frank, an Attorney at the Personal Injury Practice of Beth Klein, P...
Is What Women Lawyers Want a Big Mystery?
Posted on March 26, 2008Bridget Crawford of Feminist Law Professors writes an interesting post, What Women Lawyers Want Is For You To Stop Asking What We Want (and Do Your Own Laundry). Responding to The Complete Lawyer article, What Do Women Lawyers Really Want?, Crawford contends that what women want isn't a huge mystery: "Women want family leave and flexible schedules...
Girls Being Girls: A Lot Less Steamy Than Boys Being Boys
Posted on March 24, 2008Julia Baird's article, Girls Will Be Girls. Or Not. Why aren't more powerful public women caught up in sex scandals?, explores an interesting side of the gender power imbalance: why "are so few women in politics embroiled in tabloid tales?" There are few obvious female counterparts to the Eliot Spitzers and Jim McGreeveys (aka "Luv Guvs") of the political world...
Women Blaming Women for Lack of Work/Life Balance
Posted on March 23, 2008I was shocked to read Monique Doyle Spencer's article in the Boston Globe, Working women, where did we go so wrong? The title should give you an uh-oh feeling, but I was completely unprepared for Doyle's topic sentence: "I think we women ruined the workplace...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending March 21, 2008
Posted on March 20, 2008Pioneering Attorney Fell in Love with the Law Pat Butler, the third woman to attend Emory University Law School, is praised by Janet Reno as ?a pioneer among women at the Department of Justice.? UC Davis professor: Working women cry more on job than men Kimberly Elsbach, a UC Davis professor, studies crying at work and discovers that women are more likely than men to shed tears and that "men don't have to spend as much energy working to hide or fight back tears on the job...
Is Long Hair Unprofessional?
Posted on March 19, 2008I'm not alone in wondering whether chopping your hair off is a prerequisite for a woman's success. From politicians like Hillary Clinton, Elizabeth Dole, and Nancy Pelosi to well-known litigators like Jamie Gorelich, Sheila Birnbaum, Amy Schulman, and Maureen Mahoney, short hair is the status quo...
Unintended Consequences and Using the All-Mighty Dollar as a Carrot
Posted on March 18, 2008There has been a lot of buzz in the blawg-o-sphere this week about Harvard Law School's announcement that it will waive 3L tuiton for those going to work for the government or public interest for the five years after law school. I think this news is great...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-Up: Week Ending March 14, 2008
Posted on March 13, 2008Evelyn Baker, Missouri's first black female circuit judge, plans to retire from the St. Louis court at the end of March. Profile: Pat Butler, the third woman to attend Emory University's School of Law, and pioneer in the Department of Justice, reflects on her legal career...
They just don't get it
Posted on March 13, 2008Somewhat tangentially related to my last disappointment in the older but wiser generation's lawyers and their attitudes about young-ish attorneys came this priceless nugget... In consulting with an "expert" about what a symposium on the issue of work-life balance should focus on, the expert's first piece of advice was that our speaker should tell people what work-life balance really is because "it is [his] experience that today's young attorneys don't really know what it is...
'Dear Sisters, Dear Daughters' - A New Mentorship Publication from the Multicultural Women Attorney Network
Posted on March 12, 2008The ABA's Multicultural Women Attorney Network has published an exciting and unique new work to address the limited mentoring opportunities between multicultural women. Entitled 'Dear Sisters, Dear Daughters: Words of Wisdom from Multicultural Women Attorneys Who've Been There and Done That,' this publication is a compilation of letters from multicultural women attorneys who graduated from law school more than a decade ago...
Does Sexism Still Exist?
Posted on March 10, 2008The word on the street seems to be that if you think you're the victim of sexism, you are either paranoid or looking for excuses for a non-gender-related failing. I myself am guilty of blaming sexism--when I blogged about a male colleague who changed one of my recommendations at work behind my back, I bitterly recounted the story to friends with the added conclusion: "he never would have done that if I were a male colleague...
Meet Penelope Andrews
Posted on March 10, 2008As a Visiting Professor of Law at Valparaiso University School of Law, Penelope Andrews focuses her teaching and research on a variety of topics including: anti-discrimination law and policy, international human rights law, gender and the law, and judicial enforcement of socio-economic rights...
Must Read: Judge Kaye & Anne Reddy on Women in Firms
Posted on March 09, 2008Twenty years ago Judith Kaye - now the Chief Judge of New York's Court of Appeals and a keynote speaker at Ms. JD's upcoming Student Leadership Summit - published a breakthrough study in the Fordham Law Review on the state of gender equity in law firms...
Does "Having it All" require "Settling"?
Posted on March 09, 2008Recently a friend alerted me to Lori Gottlieb's article in The Atlantic Monthly advising women in their twenties to "settle" when it comes to finding a mate: Don?t worry about passion or intense connection. Don?t nix a guy based on his annoying habit of yelling ?Bravo!? in movie theaters...
Blog Watch: Daily Kos Tallies Women in Top Elected Offices
Posted on March 07, 2008Daily Kos has tallied up the number of women in top elected positions in response to Hillary Clinton's comment about Iowa and Mississippi never electing any. Kos notes that a number of other states could be added to that pathetic list if you excluded the widows who succeeded their late-husbands and Lt...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-Up: Week Ending March 7, 2008
Posted on March 06, 2008Advancing Women in the Legal Profession Ten years after the initial report of New York City Bar?s Cyrus R. Vance Center for International Justice and Committee on Women in the Profession, the recommendations have received worldwide attention. Penn law grad countersues over Web posts about women law students Anthony Ciolli of AutoAdmit fame is countersuing two of the Yale Law students who sued him over the AutoAdmit scandal...
The Green Monster: When Your Significant Other Is a Lawyer
Posted on March 04, 2008The Washington Post has an interesting article on social psychologist Abraham Tesser's research on "how close friends and intimate partners who are engaged in similar work or activities compare themselves with one another." I can't even count all the couples I knew from law school who met in Torts, dated through Fed Courts, and were married (or engaged) by commencement...
New Report on How Firms Can Retain Women
Posted on March 04, 2008The Georgia Association for Women Lawyers released a report on retaining women attorneys entitled: IT'S ABOUT TIME II: Examining Flexible Work Arrangements from the Attorney's and the Firm's Perspectives -- A Study of Part-time Policies in Georgia Law Firms...
Work/life balance essay contest update
Posted on March 03, 2008Thanks to everybody who entered the Ms. JD essay contest on work/life balance. Many of the essays were fantastic! The submissions are now being judged anonymously by attorneys recruited by the Project for Attorney Retention. The $1,000 winner will be announced by the end of this month...
ACLU gains admission for women into private club [Clippings]
Posted on March 03, 2008Salon.com reports that the ACLU has successfully argued for the admission of women into Mystic, California's influential German Social Society Frohsinn, Inc., a social networking organization. This hardly spells the end of gender exclusive provate clubs...
Basic Psychology
Posted on March 03, 2008There is an very good article in last week's issue of Corporate Counsel magazine titled: Big-Firm Associates: Why They Go and How to Keep Them. I would recommend reading the entire article to anyone who, like me, is always thinking about the retention problem faced by big law firms...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending February 29
Posted on February 28, 2008Linda K. Lorimer Wins Sandra Day O'Connor Award Lorimer receives award that recognizes women lawyers who have served with distinction as independent directors of public companies and advanced diversity in board positions. Maternity Leaves Key to Retaining Women Paid maternity leaves and a pool of lawyers capable of filling in during the leaves are among proposals advanced by a working group that has been looking at how to stem an exodus of female lawyers from the profession...
Last Chance to Win $1,000 by THIS FRIDAY [Work/Life Essay Contest with No Minimum Essay Length]
Posted on February 27, 2008If you marked your calendar to write a few words about work/life balance, the clock is ticking... entries to win $1,000 are due this Friday, February 29th. Hey, "leap day" is an extra day in the month anyway, right? Take 10 minutes of it (or a bit more) to try for $1,000...
Paid legal internship available at Ms. JD [summer job search]
Posted on February 27, 2008Ms. JD is seeking responsible and self-motivated law students who have just finished their first or second years of law school to intern for at least ten weeks in the summer of 2008. A $3,500 stipend will be provided. Here is a complete job description...
Do Solo Practice Women Lawyers Charge Less Than Their Male Counterparts?
Posted on February 24, 2008In December of 2007, ALM Research released the results of its survey of 5,000 lawyers working in small and midsize firms and solo practices. The respondents were 78% male and 22% female, which could mean that fewer women work in smaller firms and solo practice; or that women were less inclined to participate; or that fewer women are "leader, manager, partner, shareholder, or owner" of these firms, since ALM reports that these were the majority of the people answering the survey...
Is there an issue with calling yourself an "esquire"?
Posted on February 23, 2008Are you, like me a few days ago, unaware of the debate raging on the proper use of the title Esquire? Among the issues: can you call yourself Esquire? can you use the title outside of a legal context? can the title even apply to women? My journey into these (mostly boring questions) started when I found this conversation on Google answers about potential issues with women lawyers putting "Esquire" after their names, with the question being whether there was something inherently male about the term...
A Girl Just Wants to Have Fun: Do I Have to Be Serious to Be Taken Seriously?
Posted on February 23, 2008I can be something of a girly-girl: I think I make a bubbly first impression, I can have a silly sense of humor, I spend a lot of time thinking about my shoes, and I waste time reading about celebrities. Basically I engage in some frivolity, and I like that about myself...
Would people respond better to what you say if you were a man?
Posted on February 23, 2008In an article on women's leadership styles, Nicholas Kristof references research that "women, compared with men, tend to excel in consensus-building and certain other skills useful in leadership." In explaining why women have not had more success in achieving positions in government despite these strengths, Kristof hypothesizes that "in the televsion age, female leaders also have to navigate public prejudices...
Judge Boone's Reprimand Also Demonstrates Progress
Posted on February 22, 2008When news broke that Maryland Judge W. Kennedy Boone was reprimanded in January for calling three African-American women lawyers ?the Supremes? and advising the defendant to ?get an experienced male attorney,? people were dismayed. How could this still be happening? It?s one thing when Imus does it, but a judge...
Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending February 22, 2008
Posted on February 22, 2008Closing the LSAT gender gap While 49% of those taking the LSAT in 2005-2006 were female, only 46.9% of those entering law schools were female, perhaps because, according to this author, men do better than women on the LSAT. Balancing the scales Ashley Meredith Lowe's firm, Baker Donelson, "launched an initiative in 2006 aimed at enhancing the role of women in the practice through a mentoring program, work-life balance seminars, and opportunities for continuing education, leadership development and networking...
Do Other Women Lawyers Prefer Working With Men or Women?
Posted on February 19, 2008The February 2008 issue of the ABA Journal Magazine features an article entitled What Women Lawyers Really Think of Each Other. The answer? The ABA Journal surveyed 1,400 people, of which 58% were indifferent about the gender of their co-workers. The other 42% had preferences one way or the other with female supervisors over the age of 40 preferring to work with women because women lawyers "take direction better" (80%), "take constructive criticism better" (59%), and "have more discretion" (79%)...
Choosing a Law School
Posted on February 18, 2008Law school is as much about receiving an education as it is about networking and making connections, both in the intellectual and in the career-building sense. Going to a brand-named law school will open doors by name alone. However, are these doors, traditionally ones that open and close for men on men?s terms (see any number of writings about the glass ceiling or pink ghetto), the doors that women want to travel through? In my own law school application process, I visited about ten schools prior to applying (ranging from top tier to bottom tier)...
Allison Wolf Gives Advice on Rainmaking for Young Women Attorneys
Posted on February 18, 2008Allison Wolf wrote an interesting piece on how to become a rainmaker as a young woman lawyer, even if you don?t view yourself as the conventional rainmaker. Wolf describes the stereotypical rainmaker as an extroverted man who ?likes to talk? and is ?a bit egotistical but keeps it in check? and "always out and about networking, attending events, and talking business...
Interviews: Do men and women have different experiences?
Posted on February 18, 2008Some people think that women and men are treated differently during interviews. In an attempt to discover these differences, I asked one married man and one married woman to describe their 2L summer interview experiences. As a small sampling, their responses are not meant to draw any widespread conclusions, but merely serve as a starting place to reflect...
How to Avoid Crying at Work [Part 1 of 3]
Posted on February 16, 2008Last week I linked to a lively discussion of crying in public. In a comment, CM asked how to prevent crying at inappropriate moments. Sintecho asked me the same thing a couple weeks back. So I've rounded up a bunch of bona fide face-savers plus a myth to debunk...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending February 15, 2008
Posted on February 14, 2008Gender gap remains for aspiring politicians A survey released by Kaplan Test Prep of students preparing for the LSAT finds that 52% of the men indicated they would "definitely or probably run for office," compared only 34% of the women. Commentary on this study along with quotes by Barbara Buckley, Nevada Assembly Speaker and woman lawyer, can be found here, and yet another commentary on Kaplan's study can be found here...
Hillary in the Media: the Couric Interview [Blogwatching]
Posted on February 12, 2008Via Shakesville: Katie Couric asks Senator Clinton about being a nerd and being labelled "Frigidaire" by boys in high school. These are only tough questions if you think high school girls shouldn't be studious and ambitous despite the attitudes of high school boys...
Southern Ms. Part IV: Lawyerettes
Posted on February 12, 2008I'm often hesitant to tell people I'm an attorney. Suffice it to say the achievement of graduating from law school and passing the bar is dampened by finding oneself the butt of many many jokes. But in Memphis, I find myself asserting my professional status more because otherwise I find folks assume I'm a secretary...
What Not to Wear (Or, What Not to Say?) [Blogwatching]
Posted on February 11, 2008I ignored this story as long as I could. Last week Christina Binkley published the article, "Law Without Suits: New Hires Flout Tradition." She subtitled it "Young Attorneys' Casual Attire Draws Criticism at Big Firms; A Crackdown on Ugg Boots...
Advice on Passing the Bar Exam: Part III
Posted on February 11, 2008Following up on sintecho and Jessie's recent posts giving advice for passing the bar, I have a couple of tips to add to the great information already provided on this site. I sat for (and passed) the July 2007 Bar Exam in California. The two tips that I will share here relate to the written portion of the test and I think now is the perfect time to share them as the February test is just weeks away! Both of these tips relate to matching how you study to how you will test...
Something to brighten your weekend: feeling grateful for U.S. women's opportunities for legal education and careers [Clippings]
Posted on February 11, 2008University of Chicago 3L (and Mom-in-Law-School) Lag Live meditates on a New York Times article about the Middle East's "Education City." [W]hat struck me the most was a section on the second page titled "Opportunities for Women." To quote some of the article: "Education City represents broad opportunities for women, in a nation where many families do not allow their daughters to travel overseas for higher education or to mix casually with men...
Weekly MILS Roundup (Moms in Law School)
Posted on February 10, 2008The Moms in Law School Roundup posts on Sundays, alternating between blogs by PT-law mom and A Little Fish in Law School (a/k/a butterflyfish). This week is MILS #32, hosted by PT-law mom. It's an easy way to keep up with (and join) a virtual neighborhood of moms in law school! Thanks to butterflyfish for the tip in the comments [on our previous article about MILS]...
Solo by Choice: How to Be the Lawyer You Always Wanted to Be [Clippings]
Posted on February 09, 2008Sometime Ms. JD blogger and ever-faithful friend of the solo practitioner Carolyn Elefant has written a new book, Solo by Choice: How to Be the Lawyer You Always Wanted to Be. As a solo practitioner and a regular contributor to law.com, she is an expert on the subject and a woman successfully forging her own path in the legal profession...
Five Tips for Commuting While Pregnant (and Afterward)
Posted on February 09, 2008If you missed it, on Friday the Wall Street Journal Juggle blog asked readers to comment on commuting while pregnant. What resulted was a long, long thread of horror stories (from pregnant women forced to stand for long subway rides while fellow passengers feigned sleep) punctuated with a few friendlier tales and lot of people admonishing each other to be more courteous...
A Measure of Progress: Media Held Accountable for Sexist Remarks About Hillary Clinton
Posted on February 09, 2008Feministe, the blog of law student (and sometime Ms. JD blogger) Jill Filipovic, has a spot-on summary of recent Hillary-related events. Declaring that "A Bad Day for Sexism is a Good Day for Women," Feministe recaps: David Shuster at MSNBC asked if Chelsea Clinton was being "pimped out" because she?s making calls on behalf of her mother?s campaign, something that adult children of politicians do to support their fathers? campaigns with regularity...
How Men and Women Can Work Together at Law Firms [Clippings]
Posted on February 09, 2008Jennifer Bluestein, director of professional development for the Chicago office of Baker & McKenzie, observes that most training to remedy gender inequalities at firms is geared toward women. Presentations teach female associates how to climb upward...
Just in time for Valentine's Day, dating & relationship expert declares, "profession-wise, women lawyers are the worst"
Posted on February 09, 2008Maine newspaper syndicate SeacoastOnline publishes one of those ubiquitous dating/relationship columns that sets people up then reports on their dates. In that spirit, the paper's (female) food critic submitted to a "dating quotient" evaluation by columnist Steve Penner...
Do you cry because you're sad, or because you're angry? [Clippings]
Posted on February 08, 2008About a week ago, we had a discussion (prompted by coverage of Hillary Clinton) about attorneys showing emotion, either tearing up or outright crying. Jezebel has a related post up, asking their (mostly female) readership: do you cry because you're angry, or because you're sad? The comments thread is interesting--and supportive, if you're one of many women who tears up more easily than she would like...
Ruminations of a law school mama
Posted on February 07, 2008I?m so proud of myself ? I earned a place on the Dean?s list! While I don?t like to admit it, this is my first time on the Dean?s list and to be so highly ranked since High School. I have finally remembered how to work and study. Anyway, my academic accomplishment has generated another round of comments from fellow students, calling me crazy for trying to be a law student as a single mama...
Should we pay lawyers to mentor their successors?
Posted on February 07, 2008Woke up this morning to an article claiming that "Senior Partners Press Firms to Pay Them to Train Their Successors." Details in the article suggest that this is mainly an issue of client retention (about the time it takes to smoothly hand over ongoing work)...
Minority enrollment in law schools falters [Clippings]
Posted on February 07, 2008Law.com reports that "Minority Enrollment at Law Schools Is Faltering." Leigh Jones of the National Law Journal speculates that "rankings pressure and anti-affirmative action may fuel the problem." Arizona, Colorado, Missouri, Nebraska and Oklahoma all have initiatives under way to place questions on November ballots that would end programs that increase minority and female numbers in education and in government...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending February 8, 2008
Posted on February 07, 2008Alvarez revels in upset After defeating five men to become the Democratic nominee for CookCounty state attorney, Anita Alvarez is committed to changing the "good ol' boy mentality" in the prosecutor's office, where "so many times we think of the prosecutor as this stereotypical man, a male white for that matter ...
Can you be likable and still get ahead?
Posted on February 06, 2008I read Are You Living Your Life Like You're Planning to Fail on Ms. JD the other day and thought of it immediately when I read this article in the New York Times on the imposter phenomenon. The imposter phenomenon was coined by two therapists in the 1970s "to describe the internal experience of a group of high-achieving women who had a secret sense they were not as capable as others thought...
7 Truths that Every Working Woman Should Know Before Having a Child -- Part VI
Posted on February 06, 2008Okay, the time has come for me to write about my six myth in this series and that is that grandparents (your parents/in-laws) will come to the rescue. The truth is, the promise to post about this has been hanging over my very busy head for weeks now as I've tried to think of something witty, funny, sincere or even surprising to write about this topic...
Advice on Passing the Bar Exam: Part II
Posted on February 06, 2008"A word about panic: I took the California exam and my computer failed..." Though my heart just stopped on her behalf, Jessie passed the bar anyway. How did she do it? Read on! --Ed. For those prepping for the February sitting, a word about panic: I took the California exam and my computer failed in the middle of the second essay day...
Social networking for women NGO activists and their clients
Posted on February 05, 2008PulseWire is in beta testing, open for women who are working in the fields of human trafficking, HIV/AIDS, and water sustainability. Could that be you? read more
Five Big Law firms ranked in Fortune's 100 best companies to work for
Posted on February 04, 2008Five of the biggest Big Law firms are ranked in Fortune magazine's 2008 ranking of the 100 best companies to work for. The issue hits newsstands today, February 4th. Arnold & Porter comes in at #19, Alston & Bird at #31, Bingham McCutchen at #41, Perkins Coie at #55, and Nixon Peabody at #66...
Advice for Passing the Bar Exam
Posted on February 03, 2008I know the February bar is fast approaching, so I thought I?d share the preparation advice I jotted down for my younger law school friends after taking the New York bar this past July. I wrote this when it was still fresh in my head (and before I knew that I passed), and I added some notes on thoughts I have now that I know I passed...
Must Read: The Counselors by Elizabeth Vrato
Posted on February 03, 2008In 1991, Hillary Rodham Clinton in her capacity as President of the ABA's Commission on Women in the Profession established the Margaret Brent Award "to recognize some of the women who were crashing through the glass ceiling and changing the world...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending February 1, 2008
Posted on January 31, 2008Majority Ownership of Toledo Law Firm is Women At the Toledo firm of Cooper and Walinski, women are the majority of both the firm's 39 lawyers and the firm's shareholders. Leaving Big Law to Start Your Own Firm Erica Leathem talks about starting her own law firm...
Are You Living Your Life Like You're Planning to Fail?
Posted on January 28, 2008I think many of us introduce ourselves, our ideas, and our work with any number of disclaimers: "maybe this is a stupid question, but..."; "I don't know that much about this, but..."; "I'm probably wrong, but..." I think I couch my viewpoints as a way to avoid appearing confrontational or as a way to mitigate the perception of error - that is, if my substantive contribution is correct, then great, but if not, then at least I predicted that and got something right...
Clippings: NYT on Law Firms' Changing Attitudes towards Work/Life Balance
Posted on January 24, 2008Lisa Belkin interviews Deborah Epstein Henry and details the recent and rapid transformation of many law firms' policies in today's New York Times article, Who's Cuddly Now? Law Firms. Among other signs of change, Belkin noted this touching vignette: A harbinger of changing times might well be the brief filed by the hard-driving white-shoe firm of Weil Gotshal & Manges of New York, asking a judge to reschedule hearings set for Dec...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending January 25
Posted on January 24, 2008Bravo! Rural women solving cases faster than judiciary Though not technically lawyers, women in rural India have devised Nari Adalats, or women's courts created by women for women, where cases of rape, molestation, divorce, and domestic violence are handled...
A Note on the Democratic In-Fighting and the Image of Corporate Counsel
Posted on January 23, 2008So in the scuffle that was the Democratic Presidential Debate last night Clinton and Obama exchanged a number of accusations including that Clinton served on the board of directors of Wal-Mart; Obama worked for a law firm that represented an inner-city slumlord...
Open invitation to Debbie Epstein Henry talk & networking reception in DC @ White and Case (RSVP required)
Posted on January 22, 2008Kelly Hoey (White and Case) & Anna MacCormack (NYU Law School) have very nicely extended an invitation to Ms. JD readers in the DC area to attend a free networking reception & presentation on Feb. 4th with Debbie Epstein Henry (another of our favorite women in law) talking about the Best Law Firms for Women ranking she undertook with Working Mother Magazine last year...
Ms. JD and Project on Att'y Retention are sponsoring a $1,000 essay contest on work/life balance
Posted on January 18, 2008Ms. JD and The Project for Attorney Retention are sponsoring a $1,000 essay contest to answer the question, how do we close the gap between Baby Boomers and Millennials on work/life balance? The maximum length is 1500 words--so that's potentially, like, a dollar a word...
Ms. JD Weekly Round-up: Week Ending January 18, 2008
Posted on January 17, 2008Supreme Court First: A Female Special Master Kristin Linsley Myles, a Justice Scalia's former law clerk, becomes the first woman to hold the position of Supreme Court special master. The Coming American Matriarchy According to projections by the National Center for Education Statistics, there is a "new educational gender gap ...
Who Will Listen?
Posted on January 17, 2008Okay, so yesterday I posted a little about how it is foolish to not give young women attorney's a seat at the table of discussion about work/life balance. Perhaps I could've made it clearer but I just don't get why law firm decision makers would listen to scholars, "experts" and other partners about what it is that the current generation is looking for in life and exclude the opinions of the very people they are trying to recruit and retain...
Does earning a biglaw salary mean that there is no room for my voice in the discussion on work/life balance?
Posted on January 17, 2008I had the chance today to engage some law firm partners and others in a discussion about worklife balance. The focus of the discussion was whether or not law firm management should listen to the concerns of law students and young associates when determining business practices and trying to attract and retain women attorneys...
Advice from the Author of "Ending the Gauntlet"
Posted on January 16, 2008Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly published an interesting interview with Lauren Stiller Rikleen, the author of Ending the Gauntlet: Removing Barriers to Women's Success in the Law. There's an interesting review of the book on Ms. JD here. To research her book, Rikleen, through interviews and research, identified many "misconceptions women have about work...
#1 Online Legal Resource
On 08-28 at 21:13PM
Ten months later, Fed must reveal names of emergency lending recipients #FOIA
On 08-25 at 19:02PM
Squeaky Fromme, would-be Ford assassin and Manson devotee, released from prison
On 08-14 at 15:19PM
Likely unintended consequence of cash-for-clunkers stimulus is dampening of 2010 spending
On 08-14 at 14:34PM
Palm seeks to halt Palm Pre Android theme on copyright and trademark ground
On 08-12 at 17:30PM
Congressional investigation demonstrates Karl Rove lied about his active role in US attorney's firing
On 08-12 at 16:20PM
Family of New York City swine flu victim to sue city for failure to secure school #nyc #swineflu
On 08-12 at 12:59PM
Real Network's DVD copying software deemed to break DMCA's anti-circumvention provisions
On 08-12 at 12:57PM
Prepaid funeral operators indicted for $100 Million fraud
On 08-12 at 12:53PM
NY Jets join Cincinnati, Dallas, Green Bay, Houston & Seattle #NFL teams offering branded state lottery games
On 08-12 at 12:43PM
Are you the author of this blog? Adding USLaw.com to your Blogroll increases relevance. You qualify to display a USLaw Network badge.
Suggest changes to this blog's description or nominate another for inclusion. Register for updates.
 |
|
Contact Us | About Us | Celebrity Law Blog |
Our Partners | Disclaimer
| Law Blog Directory
| Law Jobs
| Law Tweets
| GoDaddy Hosting
All original material © 1999-2009 by USLaw.com. |