High Heels

Although it may seem a bit random - lately I can’t seem to get something off my mind:

HIGH HEELS...

No, I am not harboring some sort of fetish (although I do love shoe shopping). There are actually a few reasons the epitome of feminine footwear has been a thought provoking topic. It started as I prepared to start my summer job. I have never had a job that required more than a t-shirt and jeans. I have only donned a suit when forced to (ahem, oral arguments) and worn dress shoes only for fun. I am not very comfortable in a business suit and even less comfortable at the thought of wearing heels all day. Granted I am entering week five of my summer employment and have grown more comfortable with both of these things - but it is all relative - I am still extremely uncomfortable.

First Women: Dorothy W. Nelson

It is an honor to participate in the “First Women Lawyers” series of Ms. JD. I am particularly happy to do so in the company of Professor Barbara Babcock, one of the most admired and distinguished members of our profession. She is a marvelous mentor to her female law students, many of whom I have hired as my law clerks. Like Professor Babcock, I was the first woman faculty member of the law school that hired me-the University of Southern California. At that time (1957), I decided to insert into the curriculum something that had not been taught but was part of my deeply held beliefs. This was contrary to the advice of my friends on the faculty who advised that as the first woman on the faculty, I shouldn’t “rock the boat”.

Appearances

My ex-boyfriend, getting ready for work every morning, pulling on his unfailingly neat pressed slacks and expensive Brooks Brothers suit, would always, without fail, complain about his height. As I lay quietly in bed in the early morning hours, still unbelieving that we were in this amazing apartment in midtown Manhattan, almost feeling like we had become our parents, I could not believe that Aaron could be complaining about anything.

Wanted for Judicial Clerkships: Women with More Law Review Credentials

My eldest daughter, Tiffany Smith, who is now a third year law student at the University of Utah, recently alerted me to the formation of Ms. JD and its mission. I write to share some of my recent personal experiences and to applaud your efforts.

I was confirmed by the United States Senate on May 16, 2006 as United States Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and took my oath of office on June 30, 2006.

The 50 Best Law Firms for Women

Click here to go straight to the list.

Flex-Time Lawyers and Working Mother Magazine have just released a ranking of "The 50 Best Law Firms for Women." It is the September cover story of WMM. You can download PDFs of the press release and two articles at Debbie Henry's website: Young, Gifted and Leaving, and Making Partner.

I wanted to get this news item posted for y'all ASAP, so I will be back to post some more when I have read through the methodology. Meanwhile, I have a couple of comments based on what Debbie has told me in the past few months.

This is a ranking of large firms with 100 50+ employees. As Susan Carter Liebel and Carolyn Elefant emphasize, please don't forget to consider the alternatives of putting up your own shingle in a solo practice or going to work at a smaller regional firm. That is another significant way to find a different quality of life as a lawyer in private practice.

[More after the jump]

Profile: Judge Kim Wardlaw

Wardlaw Cut a Fast Track to Center of 9th Circuit
By Amelia Hansen
Daily Journal Staff Writer

February 08, 2007

PASADENA - A turn of turtles inhabits Kim Wardlaw's chambers.

Sparkling and vibrant, the small figurines appear on the judge's bookshelf and desk. They are unlikely visitors in a world filled with legal documents and books.

"They remind me to slow down, to be thoughtful," Wardlaw said. "They remind me that everything doesn't have to be done today."

Dean of Yale Law School condemns 'despicable' sexist attacks on students

On March 7, The Washington Post ran a story about several of our students who have been personally targeted on an internet message board. While this message board purports to be about law school and law school admissions, it contains numerous sexist, racist, homophobic and other derogatory comments by anonymous posters. Some of these comments include the names and personal information of our students and other individuals, along with many false and hurtful assertions.

Balancing Work and Family

An acquaintance stopped me one afternoon last week, as I was picking my three-year-old son, Coby, from camp.

“Great piece in the Post last Sunday,” he enthused. “I thought you did a really smart job on that one.” Almost as an afterthought, he added: “Imagine what your career would look like if you didn’t have small kids!”

I must have looked stricken because he added, “I just mean, you know, you spend so many hours with them. If you were a sixty year old man . . . with nothing to do all day but write . . . .you’d have so much more time . . . .” He trailed off. Perhaps because my jaw had slipped off its hinges as he spoke.

First Women: Barbara Babcock

I am honored to be the first of the first women to speak in this space. My major first was professor at Stanford Law School—which has led in turn to associate firsts (to gain tenure, hold an endowed chair, be an Emerita).

We first women are a vanishing breed in the legal profession –soon all the first spots will be occupied. Soon too in legal time (though not in my lifetime), we will reach nirvana when the sex of the person who wrote the brief, ran the agency, argued the case or taught the class is no longer a matter of notice or comment.

Dean Elena Kagan: Status Report on Women in the Legal Profession

Greetings—and congratulations to all—on the launch of Ms. JD! A little over a year ago, I prepared a sort of “status report” on women and the legal profession for a talk I had the honor of delivering at the Association of the Bar of the City of New York. It was a terrific opportunity to reflect on both the tremendous strides already made and the great way still to go. In hopes that some may find these thoughts of interest, I’m delighted to share them here.