At the 2016 Women's Bar Leadership Summit on August 5, we had the opportunity to honor and learn more about projects of member organizations which are well worth emulating.

2016 Public Service Award is Presented to Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys

Click here to read about the Saving Our Families Series which addresses how lawyers can use our collective thought and voice to advocate for and empower the communities in which we live.

Lawyers Club of San Diego Receives Honorable Mention in the Public Service Category

Click here to read about the Human Trafficking Task Force.

California Women Lawyers Accepts the 2016 Outstanding Program Award

Click here to read about Elect to Run.

Honorable Mention Outstanding Member Program

Military Spouse JD Network Receives Honorable Mention in the Outstanding Member Program Category

Click here to read about Justice for Military Families.

How to Tame Your Inner "Mean Girl"

This is a hard time of year--How did summer speed by so quickly? We regret missing yet another chance to experience the summer of our dreams. Was there even one afternoon with a cool drink in a hammock? What happened to our plans for long walks on the beach? With the increased pace of fall, we feel mounting pressure. It's important to take at least a bit of time for self care. One of the messages we heard from both Wichita Women Attorneys Association and Queen's Bench Bar Association of the Bay Area during the Best Practices segments of our Women's Bar Leadership Summit was the idea of incorporating a spa night into your group's networking activities. Even if that doesn't work for your association, take a few minutes to reflect on your own inner "mean girl."

What Women's Bar Group Has the Most Grit?

We hear a lot about the importance of "grit" this days. What is grit? Click here to read a brief blog post about how to develop grit to succeed. Whether it is the ABA Commission on Women in the Profession's Grit Project and Toolkit or part of the title of 2006 Margaret Brent Women Lawyer of Achievement recipient Betty Robert's memoirs, we know that grit is an essential element for success as women lawyers. Surely South Carolina Women Lawyers Association (SCWLA) must win this year's grit award. Attendees of the 2016 Women's Bar Summit were surprised and delighted to receive a package of stone-ground grits as a gift from SCWLA. Click here for a letter regarding the gift. Staff for our Summit host, the Bar Association of San Francisco, confirmed that it was the most unique swag they'd ever encountered at a bar event. Thank you SCWLA!

Thank You 2016 Summit Sponsors

We are profoundly grateful to the sponsors that made our 2016 Women's Bar Leadership Summit possible:

Platinum

US Army JAG

Gold

Polsinelli

Silver

Alexander Law, PA

Diversity Lab

Law Offices of Robin Bresky

Littler Mendelson PC

Munger Tolles & Olson LLP

Bronze
Anonymous
Crowell & Moring LLP
Misty Blair of Kaneka
Elizabeth A. Bryson
Jeanne Marie Clavere
Garan Lucow Miller PC
Law Office of Patricia M. Jarzobski, PC
Scaglia Law Firm LLC
US Navy JAG
Zimmerman & Zimmerman PA
In-Kind Sponsors
Suzanne Prysak of Jenner & Block
Sedgwick LLP

Building A Diverse Court: Help for States

by Kate Berry, Counsel, Brennan Center for Justice

The Brennan Center for Justice recently released new guidance on how states can more effectively diversify their courts. The new resource, Building a Diverse Bench: A Guide for Judicial Nominating Commissioners, provides nominating commissioners with the concrete steps they can take at every stage of the process - from recruitment, to interviews, to the final vote. While aimed at state courts -- 36 states and Washington, D.C., select judges with the help of a nominating commission -- many of the best practices provided in the manual are also applicable to the selection of federal judges.

Diversity as defined in the manual reflects a person's professional and personal background. It encompasses gender, race, ethnicity, national origin, sexual orientation, parental status, physical ability, religious affiliation or lack thereof, socio-economic background, and geography, as well as legal experience across all areas of the law and representing clients along the socio-economic spectrum.

Achieving such diversity reaps many important benefits, but unfortunately remains lacking across the country. No state has a bench that comes close to reflecting the demographics of its population or the diversity of the legal profession. Nominating commissioners, as the gatekeepers for appointed judges, can play a vital role in changing this trend. By actively recruiting candidates from across the legal profession and taking steps to ensure the fair evaluation of all candidates, commissioners can help build an even stronger judiciary.

Toolkit for Your Women's Bar

Need a program idea for including men in diversity and inclusion efforts in law firms and corporate legal departments? Take a look at NCWBA's GOOD Guys Toolkit.

Women Lawyers News

Remember to check Women Lawyers News for articles and unique tools to make practicing law just that much easier.

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.

____________________________________________________

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

Text | Link