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Newsletter Editor Jacquelyn H. Saylor
2010-2011 Women in the Profession
Section Board of Directors
Chair
Amy J. Kolczak
Vice Chair/Chair-Elect Laura C. Zschach
Secretary Adriana R. Midence
Treasurer Melissa Reading
Immediate Past Chair Joan C. Grafstein
Members at Large Hon. Susan E. Edlein Nicole Iannarone Asha Jackson Sommer L. Matheny Rachel Platt Jacquelyn H. Saylor
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Upcoming Events | |
Mark your calendars for these upcoming Section events
Section Participation Party
Thursday, August 26, 2010 - 5:30 pm
Location: Loca Luna 550 Amsterdam Avenue
Come network and find ways to get involved in your Women in the Profession Section! Free drink and hors d'oeuvres and a chance to win a Shoe Gallery gift card!
Please register online or return the registration form
Section Breakfast Meeting
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
"Proposed Changes to the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct"
Speaker: Paula J. Frederick,General Counsel, Office of the General Counsel for the State Bar of Georgia Location: Maggianos Buckhead 3368 Peachtree Rd NE
1 CLE hour, including 1 Ethics hour available
Please register online or return the registration form Mark Your Calendars Now!
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Message from the Chair:
Have It All? Maybe. Do It All? Impossible.
by Amy Kolczak, Owen, Gleaton, Egan, Jones
& Sweeney, LLP | |

I like to think that attorneys can have it all. In fact, I like to think that I already have it all: love, friendship, and enough heartbreak to appreciate both - laughter, fulfillment, and enough challenges to keep things interesting. Doing it all, however, is impossible, and to think otherwise is to set oneself up for failure.
People will ask me from time to time, "How do you do it all?" I used to just laugh and insist that I didn't really do very much. However, I've come to realize that I'm doing a disservice to the inquirer when I respond in such a way - particularly when the question comes from a young attorney just starting out and trying to find her way in this maze that is the legal world. The real answer to the question of how I do it all: (1) I am a born multi-tasker who bores easily, (2) I have amazing people who support and assist me, (3) I outsource as much as possible, and (4) For everything I do, there's something that I don't do. In other words, I don't do it all, but I have lots of help and a natural desire to do a lot of different things.
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WIP's Partnership with Atlanta Legal Aid
by Amy Kolczak,
Owen, Gleaton, Egan, Jones
& Sweeney, LLP | |
The Women in the Profession Section first partnered with the Atlanta Legal Aid Society's Women's Cancer Project (f/k/a Breast Cancer Legal Project) in 2008. The project provides WIP members with the opportunity to assist low-income patients with breast, cervical, or ovarian cancer by providing advice on the legal issues that otherwise distract these patients from focusing on treatment and wellness. Dozens of WIP members have been trained to assist Atlanta Legal Aid with the screening and interviewing of potential clients at outreach sessions at the cancer centers of Grady Hospital and DeKalb Medical Center. Three times per month, WIP volunteers accompany an Atlanta Legal Aid attorney to the outreach locations to meet with cancer patients, survivors, and caregivers to discuss various civil legal issues that they are encountering. Additionally, WIP volunteers take on pro bono cases on behalf of the Cancer Project's clients as well as serve as consultants to Atlanta Legal Aid attorneys. This partnership between WIP and Atlanta Legal Aid has allowed for screening of more clients for legal services, increase in outreach at the target facilities, and additional expertise in specialized legal matters.
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Have a Nose for Wine? | |
In January 2011, our Section will hold a wine tasting with the Sole Practitioner/Small Firm Section. We need a couple of volunteer wine enthusiasts to lend their expertise to the event. So, if a few glasses doesn't impair your ability to detect hints of currant or notes of plum, please let us know.
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Anita Wallace Thomas Receives
Outstanding Woman in the Profession Achievement Award
by Joan Grafstein, JAMS | |
 Pictured from left to right are Section Immediate Past Chair Joan C. Grafstein, JAMS, Anita Wallace Thomas, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, LLP, Mary C. Gill, Alston & Bird and Section Chair Amy J. Kolczak, Owen, Gleaton, Egan, Jones & Sweeney, LLP. On June 8th at a festive luncheon at the Capital City Club, the Women in the Profession Section of the Atlanta Bar Association presented its annual Outstanding Woman in the Profession Achievement Award to Anita Wallace Thomas, a litigation partner at Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, LLP in Atlanta and a leader in the legal and civic communities.
This award is given to a lawyer who contributes significantly to further the interests of women in the legal profession, is involved in activities that assist women in metro Atlanta, is active in professional organizations that promote and empower women in the legal profession, and has significant professional achievements. Ms. Wallace Thomas serves as chair of her firm's diversity committee, and is a leader in numerous civic and legal organizations including the Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys where she has served as President, the National Association of Women Lawyers where she was on the Board, the Georgia Bar Association's Minority Diversity Program, the Board of Bar Examiners, Atlanta Youth Academy Board of Trustees, and the Atlanta Legal Aid Society Advisory Board, and many, many more.
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Sponsor Spotlights: Ballard Spahr and JAMS | |
Ballard Spahr, an
Am Law 100 firm with
more than 475 lawyers in 12 offices in the United States, provides a range of services in litigation, business and finance, real estate, intellectual property, and public finance. Our clients include Fortune 500 companies, financial institutions, life sciences and technology companies, health systems, investors and developers, government agencies and sponsored enterprises, educational institutions, and nonprofit organizations. Our goal at Ballard Spahr is to advance diversity in our firm and in the legal profession. View more information at www.ballardspahr.com.
JAMS is the largest private provider of mediation and arbitration services in the world. With its prestigious panel of neutrals, JAMS specializes in mediating and arbitrating complex, multi-party, business/ commercial cases-those in which the choice of neutral is crucial. For information and answers to any questions you may have about mediating or arbitrating at JAMS, please contact Ms. Veda Jablan, the Atlanta Business Manager, at 404-588-0900 or by email at vjablan@jamsadr.com or visit the JAMS website at www.jamsadr.com for biographies of the JAMS mediators and arbitrators and more information.
Thank you to our other 2010-2011
Section Sponsors
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The Women in the Profession Section congratulates these members for their recent accomplishments
C. Murray Saylor, Jr. was elected to Georgia Trend in the Tax, Estate and Trust Category.
Asha F. Jackson has been elected as a Georgia Super Lawyer Rising Star and was also appointed as a Pro Hac Judge in Recorder's Court, DeKalb County
Sponsor Owen, Gleaton, Egan, Jones & Sweeney, LLP moved into new office space at 1180 Peachtree Street, Suite 3000.
WIP thanks the following volunteers who have consulted on cases for or represented pro bono clients through our Cancer Legal Project:
Cecilia M. Andrews (Board Member 2009-2010) had a baby boy, Nicholas, on July 30th.
Congratulations to the WIP Section for winning the Small Section of the Year award for the second consecutive year. The award is based on the following criteria: number of Board meetings, breakfast meetings, luncheon meetings, evening meetings, CLE seminars, Social events, Pro Bono Activities, Community Service projects, Financial Contributions, printed and electronic newsletters, participation at Bar-wide events, Joint Activities with other Sections, membership growth, Articles published in The Atlanta Lawyer, Board Participation and Bar-wide meetings and retreats. Pictured above from left to right are Real Estate Section Chair Ricky B. Novak, Strategic 1031 Exchange Advisors, Women in the Profession Section Chair Amy J. Kolzcak, Owen, Gleaton, Egan, Jones & Sweeney, LLP and Estate Planning & Probate Section Immediate Past Chair J. Olen Earl, The Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta. Your Women in the Profession Section wants to congratulate its members for their recent accomplishments! Please send your news and kudos to Jackie Saylor.
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DirectWomen Board Institute | |
DirectWomen is the only program specifically designed to identify, develop, and support a select group of accomplished women attorneys to provide qualified directors needed by the boards of U.S. companies, while promoting the independence and diversity required for good corporate governance.
Approximately 20 women attorneys will be selected to attend the Fourth Annual DirectWomen Board Institute to be held February 9-11, 2011 at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City. The Institute faculty features leading experts on corporate governance and experienced directors. The program covers topics including the role and work of nominating and corporate governance committees, the evolving nature of shareholder relations, the strategic role of audit committees and the role of executive search firms in board searches. In addition, the Institute affords participants the opportunity to network with DirectWomen alumnae and honorees as well as top representatives of executive search firms.
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