Law Students

Myths and Realities about Pre-Law Education

Posted on February 03, 2010
Many young women fresh into their undergraduate careers do not know what to study or how their educational goals in undergrad will mesh with their goals of going to law school. I have seen my colleagues stress about LSATs as freshmen when most of us are unsure of what major we will even have! Below are some myths about the undergraduate education I feel should be cleared up for any aspiring female law students out there (the "0L's," as I refer to them) who are stressing early on about their post-grad studies...

Announcing the 2010 Ms. JD Fellowship

Posted on February 02, 2010
Ms. JD is pleased to announce the Ms. JD Fellowship program, which will select 20 of the most promising second-year law students in the country and provide them with one-on-one career mentorship from the nation's most accomplished female attorneys. Who Are The Mentors? Fellowship mentors will be assigned to the Fellows from among the ABA Commission on Women in the Profession's alumnae of commissioners and Margaret Brent Award Winners...

My First Year... as a Federal Court of Appeals Law Clerk

Posted on February 01, 2010
This is the first post in a new series called "My First Year..." In this series, which will appear the first week of each month, we will feature interviews of women as they begin putting their JDs to work in a variety of fields all over the country...

Canada's First Woman Supreme Court Chief Justice, Beverley McLachlin, Celebrates Her Tenth Year as Top Judge

Posted on January 29, 2010
"I have always wanted to be known as a good jurist, as a serious jurist," said Canadian Supreme Court Chief Justice Beverley McLachlin in a recent interview with the Globe and Mail, marking her tenth year as top judge.  It appears that she has, without a doubt, succeeded...

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Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending January 29, 2010

Posted on January 29, 2010
A Leaking Pipeline: Undergraduate "Gender Gap" Favoring Women No Longer Growing Forbes: Family Care the Next Frontier of the Women's Movement - And Those Concerns Got a Mention in This Week's SOTU UT's Center for Women in Law Names Linda Chanow as Executive Director Women Take the Lead in India's Emerging Business and Financial Markets Ms...

The Good Wife: Weeks 11 & 12

Posted on January 28, 2010
A bit behind on our TGW updates here. But the last two weeks had two gems for discussion: 1. Female associates being relegated to clerical work.  I can't tell you how often I hear this.  The example I hear most often is from junior associates who become "experts" at handling the logistics of court filings (which are a pain in the butt by all accounts) and continue to be tasked with that tedious work even when more junior associates join a case because of this "expertise...

Anapata Student Scholarship

Posted on January 27, 2010
Ms. JD is pleased to announce its partnership with Anapata, the first diversity recruiting and networking platform for the legal profession. ?Ms. JD is the ideal partner for Anapata;  our two organizations not only share the same vision for advancing diversity, but also our strengths are highly complimentary, ? said Ooshma Garg, Anapata founder and CEO...

As 2009 Draws to a Close, Please Consider Making a Contribution to Ms. JD!

Posted on December 30, 2009
Ms. JD is a charitable 501(c)3, which means donations to Ms. JD are tax deductible. Contributions to Ms. JD fund our website, student scholarships, bias education and training, student chapters, conference and research on women in law. Ms. JD provides these services to law students and attorneys around the country without membership dues or registration fees...

The Good Wife: Week 10

Posted on December 29, 2009
This week on The Good Wife: the BigLaw v. Public Service debate. The twist: the choice is before PowerSuit, the firm's female rainmaker, not a graduating 3L.  And this is television so the handsome, young, liberal crusader is taking kickbacks from corrupt juvenile prison contractors and the corporate defense attorneys are seeking justice for young at-risk children...

Ms. JD at William & Mary: A Lunch with Justice O'Connor

Posted on December 28, 2009
Ed. note: This weekend Justice O'Connor participated in a round-table discussion with fifteen law students. Julie Silverbrook, Ms. JD's liaison to William & Mary's Women's Law Society had these reflections to share: Fifteen lucky students arrived for Saturday?s lunch with retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O?Connor with tickets in hand and questions on their minds...

Calling All Writers: Ms. JD's WIR & NAWL's Selma Moidel Smith Competition

Posted on December 27, 2009
Don't forget that this week is the last week to apply to be one of Ms. JD's monthly Writers in Residence. As soon as that's over there's another great opportunity for law student writers: The National Association of Women Lawyers (NAWL) has established the annual Selma Moidel Smith Law Student Writing Competition to encourage and reward original law student writing on issues concerning women and the law...

Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending December 18, 2009

Posted on December 18, 2009
Can Nice Girls Negotiate? Women Still Number Too Few in Partner Ranks Legal Careers - Most Lawyers Working Part-Time are Women - Overall Number of Lawyers Working Part-Time Remains Small The Look of Women in Politics Holliston Attorney Honored as 'Woman of Justice' Smith Moore Leatherwood Attorneys Tapped to Lead Women's Professional Forum read more

Hillary Clinton?s ?Tough Love? Diplomatic Style

Posted on December 18, 2009
The December issue of Vogue features an up-close-and-personal of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as she completed a twelve-day trip through Africa earlier this year.  Much of the article focuses on how being a woman influences her style of diplomacy and communication...

The Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Distinguished Lecture on Women and the Law

Posted on December 16, 2009
Last week, the New York City Bar Association hosted the Annual Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Distinguished Lecture on Women and the Law. The bar association founded the lecture series in 2000 to honor Justice Ginsburg's commitment to advancing women's rights...

'Tis the Season ... to Take Finals

Posted on December 14, 2009
This week many 1Ls are sitting for their first round of law school exams. First semester 1L exams take on mythic proportions in the job search: they help you get your 1L summer job and despite math that tells you otherwise they always manage to feel weighted to matter more than all the exams that follow...

E-mail Etiquette Tips

Posted on December 14, 2009
The New York State Bar Association November/December issue featured a great article on e-mail etiquette called ?E-Mail Netiquette for Lawyers.? It was written by Gerald Lebovits, judge of the New York City Civil Court, Housing Part, in Manhattan and an adjunct professor at St...

Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending December 11, 2009

Posted on December 11, 2009
Top Lawyer Wins Primary to Replace Kennedy Nigeria: Women, Female Lawyers Rally Against Wife Battering, Early Marriage Female Lawyers Stepping Up to the Bar Why Aren't Women Running for Office? Women Lawyers Riled Over Briefing Gap read more

Michele Coleman Mayes ? Questions I Wish I?d Asked?Things I Wish I?d Known

Posted on December 10, 2009
On November 20-21, Ms. JD?s Third Annual Conference on Women in Law ? Avenues to Advancement ? took place at Chicago?s Northwestern University School of Law.  The conference brought together highly accomplished legal luminaries and budding young attorneys hoping to gain valuable tools and insight as they prepared to enter a profession that, though continuing to provide a wealth of opportunities, has experienced significant layoffs in light of the nation?s economic downturn...

Top 10 Successful Interviewing Techniques

Posted on December 08, 2009
Editor's Note: Ms. JD's annual conference, Avenues to Advancement, was held November 20-21 in Chicago. These are notes from the "Successful Interviewing Techniques" panel.  At Ms. JD?s recent Avenues to Advancement Conference, held at Northwestern Law School, one of the panels, entitled ?Successful Interviewing Techniques,? brought together five people experienced in the world of interviews to dispense their advice on how to interview well: William Chamberlain, Assistant Dean, Northwestern Law School, and Moderator of the panel; Julie Bailey, Recruiting Manager, Latham & Watkins; Kristina Gajewicz, North American Recruiting Director, Baker & McKenzie; Elizabeth Jolliffe, Career Management and Business Development Coach, Your Benchmark Coach; Rachel Skaistis, Partner, Cravath, Swaine & Moore...

On-Ramps: Workforce Reentry

Posted on December 08, 2009
Editor's Note: Ms. JD's annual conference, Avenues to Advancement, was held November 20-21 in Chicago.  These are notes from the panel "On-Ramps: Workforce Reentry" It is possible to rejoin our profession after an extended absence, but it?s not easy...

Getting the Good Work: Breaking Down the Barriers to the Old Boys Club

Posted on December 08, 2009
Editor's Note: Ms. JD's annual conference, Avenues to Advancement, was held November 20-21 in Chicago.  These are some insights shared by the panelists during "Getting the Good Work: Breaking Down the Barriers to the Old Boys Club" Depending on your career goals, ?good work? will mean different things to different people...

Ms. JD Weekly Round: Week Ending December 4, 2009

Posted on December 04, 2009
Attorneys May Be "Debt Collectors" and "Debt Relief Agencies" [Ed. Note: This article was written by Ms. JD Board Member Keisha Stanford.] Avenues to Advancement: Ms. JD's 3rd Annual Women in Law Conference Special Report: Women in the Law Step by Step A To-Do For Legal Departments and Law Firms Bad Times Could Have Been Worse for Women read more

Looking for a job? Maybe things are looking up!

Posted on December 04, 2009
For what it's worth, this week has brought a bunch of anecdotal evidence that the job market is improving for attorneys. First news from a recruiting consultant that corporate departments are calling him looking to hire new folks. Then a bunch of great new job posts, including this one in my hometown of Los Angeles...

Vote for Ms. JD in the Blawg100!

Posted on December 01, 2009
For the third year in a row we've been nominated to the ABA's Blawg100. We're thrilled to have the recognition and we're counting on you to help us win in our category. Click here to vote (you must be registered with the ABA Journal to participate. Registration is free)...

The Good Wife: Week 9

Posted on November 30, 2009
This week TGW found herself asserting her authority over a more senior man. That made for a series of interesting moments. Meanwhile her husband's former lover was on tv calling her "frigid." Everyone's favorite adjective for professional women...

Working with Men to Advance Women in the Profession

Posted on November 30, 2009
Editor's Note: Ms. JD's annual conference, Avenues to Advancement, was held November 20-21 in Chicago. These are notes from the "Working with Men to Advance Women in the Profession" panel.   Michael Morkin, a partner at Baker & McKenzie, noted that when he told his children that he was coming to speak on this panel, his 13-year-old daughter didn't understand the need for a conference focused specifically on helping women advance in the profession, which led him to hope that perhaps for the next generation, gender won't play a role in advancement within the profession...

2010 Writers in Residence

Posted on November 29, 2009
Do you feel your creative spirit fading as you work tirelessly to perfect your legal writing skills?  Do you miss composing prose that is not in the passive voice or that does not require bluebooking?  Would you like to  share your experiences as women entering the legal profession? Ms...

Ms. JD Weekly Roundup: Week Ending November 27, 2009

Posted on November 27, 2009
Ghanan Women Lawyers Demand Early Passage of Property Rights of Spouses Bill Women in the Law Senate Confirms Reiss for Vt. Bench Saudi Women May Soon Practice Law Pawlenty Appoints MacDonald to First District Judgeship read more

Inroads to In-house

Posted on November 24, 2009
Editor's Note: Ms. JD's annual conference, Avenues to Advancement, was held November 20-21 in Chicago. These are notes from the ?Inroads to In-House? panel.   Since we often hear there are not a lot of entry-level in-house positions, law students and young attorneys may neglect to learn more about how to become the general counsel of a corporation...

Avenues to Public Interest

Posted on November 24, 2009
Editor's Note: Ms. JD's annual conference, Avenues to Advancement, was held November 20-21 in Chicago. These are five tips from the Avenues to Public Interest panel. 1. Don?t limit yourself geographically. Public interest offices are often located in areas near theclients they serve...

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