Keeping Your Eyes on Both Profession and Family

Taking care of yourself, the welfare of your family, and also taking care of your clients and your team — it sound like a very heavy lift. And it can be. But it also is the smart thing to do to enhance your career and future prospects.

Check out this article to find out how one lawyer approaches all that lift. And then riff on it. Situations and circumstances differ, and approaches will differ as well. It is the goals that are consistent.

So if you are a woman lawyer — or a male lawyer with primary childcare responsibilities — and a profession to safeguard, develop your own plan and approach to taking care of business on both ends. Be the example you want to be to others on your team — both at home and at the office.

You CAN do this!

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Thought For The Week: “A genuinely happy person is one who has rendered others happy.” Daisaku Ikeda

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Women Lawyers and Big Law

The challenges for women lawyers in Big Law have been well chronicled across legal media cites for decades. The obstacles never seem to get significantly fewer, and some of the challenges are not likely to ever disappear. Women are the primary caretakers for their children and their elderly family members (no matter what you hear to the contrary), and women do not define themselves principally by their business accomplishments.

Everyone has an opinion, it seems. But opinions are one thing, and actual experience in the trenches are another. Bloomberg Law reporter Vivia Chen’s interview with Beth Wilkinson is straight from the trenches. Ms. Wilkinson is one of the most prominent litigators in the country today, and she has a lot to say.

Beth Wilkinson rose to fame for successfully prosecuting Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh, and recently she has served as an investigator of alleged sexual misconduct within a major NFL franchise (the Washington Commanders, formerly the Washington Redskins). In between, she was a partner at Latham & Watkins and general counsel of Fannie Mae. And most recently, she left a partnership at Paul Weiss to start her own DC-based firm.

In short, Beth Wilkinson is a force to be reckoned with, and she has impressive experience in many legal sectors. Most importantly for young women lawyers, she has some interesting perspectives on women in Big Law.

There is a lot to unpack in this interview. Enjoy.

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Thought For The Week: “Sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.” Marilyn Monroe

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Key Factors to Consider When Choosing a Law Firm

Many law students will be making decisions soon about where to hang their hats for post-graduate employment — or for summer associate positions. It can be very confusing, and you should get whatever help you can in making those decisions. Some law school placement offices are very helpful, but that should not be your only source of information.

This article identifies some of the important considerations in making those decisions and choosing a law firm. Subjects discussed there include:

Practice Area Focus: Identifying Firms with Strong Practice Groups;

Firm Size: Assessing the Work Environment and Opportunities;

Firm Culture: The Importance of Diversity, Inclusion, and Work-Life Balance;

Compensation and Benefits: Evaluating Competitive Law Firm Salaries

Professional Development and Mentorship: The Key to a Successful Legal Career; and

Partnership Prospects: Assessing Your Long-Term Career Trajectory.

Many of these factors are discussed in my recently released book New Lawyer Launch: The Handbook for Young Lawyers (Full Court Press, 2023). I know how important this kind of information is for you, and I am glad to see others sharing their valuable thoughts with you. My recent article on Law360 also addresses many of those subjects and explores how to find happiness in the law. I hope you have access to it.

Check out these sources to give yourself every advantage in fashioning a successful and satisfactory legal career.

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Thought For The Week: “I am still encouraged to go on. I wouldn’t know where else to go.” E.B. White

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Thought For The Week: “Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.” Albert Einstein

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