Women in the Law

Why Associates Leave is Clear, But What Would Lure Them to Stay?

Associates are leaving in ever-increasing numbers because of grueling hours, boring work and a poisonous law firm culture, experts say. But it isn’t as clear what can be done to lure many to stay on after their first four to five years in practice. In 2000, not quite 60 percent…

Apr 21, 2008 5:41 PM CDT

Would-Be Legal Secretary is Now Partner

Amy Walpole’s typing skills were not the greatest. But that’s no longer an issue for the would-be legal secretary. The United Kingdom law firm at which she initially sought a staff position after returning home to her native Norwich in 2002 has helped her to earn a law license and…

Apr 17, 2008 3:53 PM CDT

Big Law Firms Lose Female Managing Partners, Raising Pipeline Issues

A number of large law firms have recently lost their female managing partners, leading some to wonder whether women’s gains are slipping. A survey of large law firms released in November by the National Association of Women Lawyers found that only 8 percent of law firm leaders are women, the…

Apr 15, 2008 10:54 AM CDT

How Entertainment Law Star Got Her Start—and Kept On Running

When Lisa Bonner graduated from law school at New York University in 1997, she knew she didn’t want to practice at a BigLaw firm. So, actively avoiding the opportunities to do so that await an NYU grad, she focused on becoming an entertainment lawyer instead, reports the New York Law…

Apr 14, 2008 9:46 PM CDT

Lawyer Hated Securities Practice, But Loves Fox News

As a practicing lawyer, Megyn Kelly hated her long work days. But now, four years after pleading her way into a part-time gig as a legal affairs expert in Washington, D.C., the 37-year-old Fox News anchor loves her job, reports the Washington Post. “When I was practicing law and had…

Apr 14, 2008 9:31 PM CDT

Rocker’s Remarks Spurred O’Melveny Partner to Buy WNBA Team

A co-owner of the Los Angeles Sparks is a former Yale law grad and entertainment partner at O’Melveny & Myers. Lawyer Carla Christofferson credits a “defining moment” for spurring her idea to put together a group of investors to buy the women’s professional basketball team, the New York Times reports.…

Apr 14, 2008 4:35 PM CDT

Clifford Chance Launches New Women’s Network

In the midst of calls for more diversity at major London law firms and a lawsuit by a former female attorney claiming that she was merely window-dressing, a United Kingdom-based behemoth has launched a women’s network. Headed by corporate partner Kathy Honeywood and litigation partner Elizabeth Morony, the new Clifford…

Apr 9, 2008 3:31 PM CDT

Work/Life Balance Blog ‘Ms. JD’ Spawns Nat’l Law Student Org.

Some 90 women students from an impressive 70 law schools gathered in New York over the weekend to organize and work together to improve professional prospects for women after graduation. The Leadership Summit marked the one-year anniversary of the Ms. JD blog and the launch of a new group, the…

Apr 7, 2008 6:06 PM CDT

Jenner’s New Managing Partner to Pave a Path for Other Women

Jenner & Block had 12 female partners when Susan Levy joined the Chicago law firm in 1982, a number that was considered high at the time. Now Levy will become the managing partner, one of only 8 percent of females in such posts at the nation’s top law firms. Levy…

Apr 7, 2008 1:52 PM CDT

Fishnets at the Office? U.K. Firm’s Reported Ban Sets Off Great Debate

An unidentified law firm, thought to be in London, has reportedly banned fishnet stockings. A law firm employee posted news of the ban on legal.week.com, the Daily Mail reports. The employee said the firm banned the attire because it was too much of a distraction and projected an unprofessional image.…

Apr 7, 2008 11:36 AM CDT

Women Who Take Law Practice Breaks Get More Help Getting Re-Connected

Women lawyers who take time off from their practices to raise children or take care of family have long struggled to return to their careers. They’ve reported that they don’t feel confident or need refreshers to get back into the game. It’s looking more an more like the legal industry…

Apr 3, 2008 6:05 PM CDT

A Cowgirl Rides the Circuits

Retired Justice Sandra Day O’Connor puts her brand on federal appellate courts

Apr 1, 2008 4:07 PM CDT

Women Lawyers Have Higher Divorce Rates, Need Loving Husbands, Researcher Says

A researcher has found that young female lawyers and other women professionals have slightly higher divorce rates than their male counterparts. Law professor Robin Fretwell Wilson of Washington & Lee University is the author of the study. She says her study indicates that “women can’t have it all because there…

Apr 1, 2008 11:17 AM CDT

Ms. JD Holds Summit to Form National Law Student Sorority

The cyberspace coalition that is “Ms. JD” is leaving the safety of its virtual world to host a real-live program in New York. Thanks to some BigLaw underwriting, Ms. JD will host a blue-ribbon lineup of judges, practitioners and a journalist at its April 4-5 “Leadership Summit.” The summit will…

Mar 28, 2008 9:29 PM CDT

Associates Get Cut of New Biz at this Flex-Schedule Friendly Firm

Chicago lawyer Deane B. Brown set her sights on looking for a new firm, with more realistic expectations, after she gave birth in 1996. Nights, weekends away from home left her feeling cheated. So in 2002, she joined a smaller shop, Beermann Swerdlove, where she told Business Week recently, “We…

Mar 28, 2008 7:42 PM CDT