Women Bar Leaders news & updates |
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April 29, 2021 | March & April 2021 Issue |
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Upcoming NCWBA Membership Events |
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GOOD Guys: Corporate Edition |
GOOD Guys is a program created by the National Conference of Women’s Bar Associations for male leaders (and their women allies) who want more information and concrete steps to take for diversity, equity, and inclusion. Male leaders have the power, relationships, and influence to drive change, and the GOOD Guys program informs and inspires GOOD Guys to ensure they are reaping all the rewards, financial and otherwise, of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Men in the Mix is a program of the ABA Commission on Women which has developed tools for engaging and sustaining male leadership in these efforts. Members of the Woman Advocate Committee and our cosponsors are encouraged to not only attend, but also INVITE their male leader connections, including those who are already GOOD Guys, and those want to learn more. Join us with your colleagues to build allyship and create a more inclusive profession.
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Fascinators, Juleps, and Feeding Your Community! Join the NCWBA on May 1, 2021 for a conversation on the Kentucky Derby and find out ways to bring “Food From the Bar” to your women’s bar association. Please see the flyer below for more information and to register.
We hope that you will share this event with your members. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to our Executive Director, Christina Simpson at info@ncwba.org or Kathleen McDowell at kathleen.mcdowell@mto.com.
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SAVE THE DATE:
NCWBA Annual Women Bar Leaders Summit
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Please save the date for our Annual Virtual Women's Bar Leadership Summit. This year's theme is "What's your Why?" and will feature a series of programs over multiple days (August 5 through 12, 2021) focusing on prominent issues that women attorneys face, especially in light of this past year's pandemic. Not only that, but it will serve as much needed time to network and get to know more about the NCWBA and it's member organizations.
Look out for more information and registration details, which will be available shortly. In the meantime, please take some time to read an article written by one of our board members, Lindsey Savage, " What’s Your Why? Women’s Bar Groups And Mother Attorneys" . This article is particularly relevant because Lindsey focuses on how essential being involved in a women's bar group can be for a woman lawyer navigating her personal and professional development. The article can be found here.
If you have any questions regarding Summit, please feel free to reach out to our Executive Director, Christina Simpson, via email at info@ncwba.org.
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Remembering Peggy LeBlanc (1950-2021)
By Katherine H. O’Neil
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When Peggy LeBlanc graduated from Louisiana State University School of Law in 1976, she was on the leading edge of the tsunami of women entering the law. When she set up a solo family law practice in New Orleans a solo woman lawyer was still an oddity. Peggy was a critical, focused and devoted pioneer in channeling the energy of that tsunami of women lawyers into women’s bar associations, in her city, her state and finally nationally.
Peggy was a founding member of the New Orleans Association of Women Lawyers (AWA) serving multiple terms as its president (1982-84, 1997). She was president of the Louisiana Association of Women Attorneys for two terms (1979-1981). She was a founding board member and secretary of the National Conference of Women’s Bar Associations (1983-1984) and then served two terms as vice president (1984-1986).
Those were shaky days for women’s bar associations as women fought for equal status in the profession burdened by overt hostility and discrimination. Peggy saw the great value to women of organizing into associations and was willing to serve consecutive leadership terms to insure that a women’s bar would not founder.
In a sense, Peggy never left the NCWBA. Through her AWA colleagues who followed her on the NCWBA board and especially Mary Ann Coffey who served as executive director from 1988 to 1996, Peggy was a de facto consultant to the board. Her interest and support never faltered. NCWBA board meetings in New Orleans included either a dinner at Peggy’s home or Peggy joining a board social event.
In appearance and manner, Peggy was a conventional Uptown New Orleans matron. But in her heart and in her work with women’s bars, she was a focused feminist. Perhaps the roots of her feminism were in St. Joseph’s Academy, the private girls Catholic high school in New Orleans, that Peggy attended. This dedicated and effective feminist left a legacy of vibrant bar associations which sustain women lawyers to this day. The Sisters of St. Joseph would be proud.
About the author: Katherine Huff O’Neil, a native of New Orleans, was the founding president of Oregon Women Lawyers and the 1993-94 president of the National Conference of Women’s Bar Associations.
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Congratulations Robbin M. Coulon, Esq.! |
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Black Lives Matter: Anti-Racism Resources |
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During such a time of uncertainty, where racial tensions continue to rise and it is a constant battle for the Black community against the still existent racism in America, it is important to acknowledge that many of us are being affected in unimaginable ways. The National Conference of Women's Bar Associations has issued a statement of solidarity with the Black community. Click here for the NCWBA's statement.
Additionally, the NCWBA has compiled a list of Anti-Racism Resources, as well as links to statements from our member organizations. Click here for that list.
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Coronavirus has thrown us all into a whirlwind of uncertainty, whether it comes to your job, personal lives and/or even mental state. During this time, one thing's for sure: everyone is trying to figure out what works and what does not from a virtual and remote perspective. It's particularly hard as bar associations try to maintain their connections with their members as they try to figure out which communication tools and methods are most effective.
We've decided to put together some resources that you can use in your transition to new ways of providing services and value to members. Click here for resources for your members and ideas from other groups. And please do share your ideas, either by emailing us or by posting to the womenbarleaders@ncwba.org listserv. (If you are not already a member of this list, please email us to request to be added.)
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Remember to check Women Lawyers News for articles and unique tools to make practicing law just that much easier.
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NCWBA Member Organizations |
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Alabama
Birmingham Bar Association, Women Lawyers Section
Mobile Bar Association Women Lawyers
Alaska
Anchorage Association of Women Lawyers
Arizona
Arizona Women Lawyers Association
California
California Women Lawyers
Lawyers Club of San Diego
Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles
Colorado
Colorado Women's Bar Association
DC
Women's Bar Association of the District of Columbia
Florida
Florida Association of Women Lawyers
Georgia
Georgia Association of Black Women Attorneys
Illinois
Women's Bar Association of Illinois
Kansas
Association for Women Lawyers of Greater Kansas City
Kansas Women Attorneys Association
Washburn Law School Women's Legal Forum
Women Attorneys Association of Topeka
Massachusetts
Women's Bar Association of Massachusetts
Michigan
Women Lawyers Association of Michigan
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North Carolina
North Carolina Association of Women Attorneys
New Hampshire
New Hampshire Women's Bar Association
New York
Nassau County Women's Bar Association
New York Women's Bar Association
Women's Bar Association of the State of New York
Oregon
Oregon Women Lawyers
Oregon Women Lawyers Foundation
Rhode Island
Rhode Island Women’s Bar Association
South Carolina
South Carolina Women’s Bar Association
Tennessee
Lawyers Association for Women–Marion Griffin Chapter
Texas
Dallas Women Lawyers Association
Texas Women Lawyers
Utah
Women Lawyers of Utah
Washington
Washington Women Lawyers
Wisconsin
Association for Women Lawyers (Wisconsin)
National
Military Spouse JD Network
Ms. JD
Women Lawyers on Guard Action Network
MothersEsquire
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