November 2015 Newsletter

We hope you will be able to join us in San Diego at the ABA Midyear Meeting on Friday, February 5 from 2:00 to 4:00 pm for a program which highlights and honors those men who support the effort to attain gender equality in the legal profession. The program is co-sponsored by the ABA Commission on Women in the Profession, California Women Lawyers and Lawyers Club of San Diego.

The program will begin with a presentation of recent research by Joan C. Williams, Distinguished Professor of Law and Hastings Foundation Chair at University of California, Hastings College of the Law. For too long, the focus has been on how to spot implicit bias. Williams will present a new approach that details how individuals can interrupt bias in real time, in simple low-key ways-and how organizations can do so.

Her presentation will be followed by a panel discussion featuring Alan Bryan, Senior Associate General Counsel of Legal Operations-Outside Counsel Management for WalMart Stores, Inc.; Bill Sailer, Senior Vice President and Legal Counsel for Qualcomm; Tom Sager, Partner at Ballard Spahr and former General Counsel of DuPont; and the Honorable Irma Gonzalez, retired Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California. The discussion will be moderated by Malissia Clinton, General Counsel for the Aerospace Corporation. Sheryl Axelrod, law firm owner and Co-Chair of the National Association of Minority and Women Owned Law Firms, will explain why diversity pays off on the bottom line for firms and corporations.

The program is intended to engage men in the advancement of women lawyers-a key factor required in order for true progress to be made. We hope this will be the first of many GOOD Guy programs around the country. A toolkit to assist in producing similar programs is currently being developed.

Women lawyers are encouraged to bring one or more male lawyers (current and former clients or colleagues) who have mentored, sponsored, or otherwise supported their careers. These men will be recognized during the program, and will be provided with the latest information on the value of diversity in the profession. We hope every woman lawyer will bring at least one Good Guy to honor.

Registration at no cost is requested for the ABA Midyear Meeting.

2016 Public Service and Outstanding Member Program Award Nominations Due January 22

Nominations are now being accepted for the 2016 Public Service and Outstanding Member Program Awards, to be presented at our Awards Luncheon at the City Club of San Francisco as part of the 2016 Women's Bar Leadership Summit. To learn more about the awards and how to nominate a program, click here.

Margaret Brent Women Lawyers of Achievement Awards Nominations Due on Friday, December 4

Just a few days left to finalize your nominations for the 26th annual Margaret Brent Women Lawyers of Achievement Award, to be presented in San Francisco on August 7. For more information, click here.

Need inspiration? Click here to view videos of the introduction and acceptance speeches of the 2015 honorees.

Monica Parham--A Star of the Bar !

We are so proud that Monica Parham, NCWBA's Vice President - Finance, has been honored as a "Star of the Bar" by the Women's Bar Association of the District of Columbia as one of seven women who exemplify "Advancing Together." Other honorees included Hon. Patricia Millett, Joanne Young, Kristin Campbell, Jenny Broder, Karen Barker Marcou, and Marla Spindel.

WBA of DC President Susan Kovarovics and
Monica Parham

It's Time to Send in Dues for 2016

Our membership year runs with the calendar year, which means that this is the right time to send in your organization's membership dues for 2016. Dues for 2016 have not increased, and are based on your organization's membership numbers. We rely on your membership dues and active participation in order to strengthen women's bar groups throughout North America. Click here to download a membership form to send in with your dues check. If you prefer to pay by credit card, please let us know.

Colored by Race: Bias in the Evaluation of Candidates of Color by Law Firm Hiring Committees, 2005-2015:

A 10 Year Research Update

Does unconscious or conscious bias still affect the evaluation of lawyers in large law firms? To read a comprehensive update of the 2005 study, click here. The lead researcher is Dr. Arin Reeves of Nextions, shown below at our 2015 Awards Luncheon.

Dr. Arin Reeves

NCWBA Listserves

The NCWBA maintains three separate listserves. Presidents and Presidents-Elect of our member associations are eligible for our Presidents Circle listserve. Executive Directors and those who take on primary administrative tasks for member organizations which do not have paid staff are eligible for our Executive Directors listserve. Anyone involved with women's bar associations as a leader or member may opt to join our NCWBA listserve on Yahoo Groups. This is an interactive list which is a great resource for referral requests, job announcements and other matters of interest to women's bar associations. To join this list, send us an e-mail with your name and the e-mail which you wish to use, describing your involvement in a women's bar association. Let us know if you know of people who wish to be added to any of our lists.

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Does Your Organization Have an Event to Share?

Member organizations are invited to have links to significant upcoming events on our "Members" page. Send us your links!

National Conference of Women's Bar Associations | info@ncwba.org | http://www.ncwba.org
PO Box 82366
Portland, OR 97282

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