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Speaking Nanny

A recent New York Times piece, headlined How to Speak Nanny, discusses the communication breakdown that often occurs between overworked mothers and their nannies.

For as long as she has employed a nanny (almost 10 years now), Eileen Hershenov, a lawyer from Hastings-on-Hudson, N.Y., has had day jobs running the legal departments of large nonprofit groups. “I’m really used to having employees,” she said. “I’ve hired people, I’ve fired people. I’ve gone through on-the-job training and formal training on how to communicate with your reports.” But, she said, the corporate training “didn’t translate over” to talking with her nanny. “It’s never been easy,” Ms. Hershenov sighed. “It’s an employer-employee relationship, but it’s also in your home — and with someone who is taking care of your most cherished relations.”

Read the article here.

Ms. JD the Winner of the ABA Journal Blawg100 Career Category!

A huge thank you to everyone who voted for us and to the ABA Journal for this recognition. We are thrilled to have been selected for a third year in a row for the Blawg100 and to have earned top honors for a second time.  It was a a privilege to be included in such good company.

The other blogs in our category were: The Jobless Lawyer, Lawyerist, Law21, and The Shark. The winners in other categories included Above the Law, The Volokh Conspiracy, The Legal Satyricon, China Law Blog, TheCorporateCounsel.net blog, Mendelson's Musings,TalkLeft: The Politics of Crime, and Bitter Lawyer.

Young Women Lawyers' Mentoring Survey

Massachusetts School of Law at Andover professors Ursula Furi-Perry and Michael L. Coyne are seeking participants in their survey on the mentoring experiences of young female attorneys. Take the survey before February 28, 2010

The Harried Life of the Working Mother

The PEW Research Center released a report today, The Harried Life of the Working Mother, discussing the competing roles mothers play at work and home.

Women now make up almost half of the U.S. labor force, up from 38% in 1970. This nearly forty-year trend has been fueled by a broad public consensus about the changing role of women in society. A solid majority of Americans (75%) reject the idea that women should return to their traditional roles in society, and most believe that both husband and wife should contribute to the family income.

Networking Advice for Law Students Part III: Follow-Up (Even on Business Cards) No Matter How Awkward

Ahh, the awkward follow-up. We all dread it. That’s no excuse. Now as I’ve argued previously, this is easier if you’ve made a connection with someone that goes beyond a basic introduction and actually gotten into some shared interests. But even if you’ve got a business card in passing from someone you barely met, let no opportunity go underexploited. In fact use it to your advantage, i.e. “I wish we’d had more time to talk. I’m interested in your experience working as a trusts and estates associate at Lawyers 'R Us. Would you be willing to meet for coffee sometime and tell me a little bit more about how you’ve developed your practice?”

Of course the better option is to have something more. If I can I’ll jot down notes on the cards I get right after I get them. Like at the end of an evening I’ll make a note of something someone I met said that I thought was funny, interesting, etc. If you’re going to follow-up right away this may not be as important. But even one day after meeting someone I can have trouble remembering exactly what we talked about. You can assume that’s probably mutual and that the person you met might also have trouble remembering you. It’s nice to have something to trigger both your memories. For example, I was following up with someone I met at a panel presentation and included my favorite comment of hers from the discussion in my email to her after the event.

Keep reading for lessons from my dating history, a story about the spider goat, and more concrete tips.

Can Pumping a Bottle Get You Fired?

Sue Shellenbarger at The Juggle reports that "an Ohio Supreme Court decision allowing a breastfeeding mother to be fired from her job for taking breaks to pump milk has ignited an angry buzz among bloggers."

A closer look at the ruling reveals the court actually dodged the core question – whether breastfeeding mothers are protected by pregnancy-discrimination laws – and focused instead on the fact that Ms. Allen’s attorneys didn’t offer enough evidence up front that her employer was motivated by discrimination. One dissenting justice, J. Pfeifer, objected that the court should have ruled anyway on the core question of whether breastfeeding mothers can legally be fired for pumping at work. (He and two other justices believe they cannot, court papers show.) And legal experts warned employers not to assume they can deny breast-feeding mothers the breaks they need.

The breastfeeding mother in this case was a warehouse laborer who was scheduled a break after five hours of work, arguably a quite different environment than that of many women lawyers. Still, the issue of pumping at the office has popped up from time to time. 

Have any readers experienced difficulties finding the time or space to pump in the office?

Derailed by Pregnancy

I experienced a feminist lawyer's worst nightmare:  my big firm law career was derailed by pregnancy.

It was bizarre. I never dreamed that when I was supposed to be up for partner I would be waiting to see if I would need a heart transplant--because of a twin pregnancy.

I also never expected to be pregnant with twins after 15 years of infertility. I was creating embryos so my sister could be a surrogate when I surprisingly got pregnant with the extras. Really, really bizarre. It was ultra poor pregnancy timing. I never guessed I'd have an unplanned IVF pregnancy or heart failure because of it. I had no idea that pregnancy could even cause heart failure.

Heart failure at a pivotal point in my career was even more stunning because of the arduous road I'd traveled to get where I loved my job, my firm, and my life.

Yale Law Women Releases Top Ten Family Friendly Firms

Yale Law Women (YLW) has announced its fourth annual Top Ten Family Friendly Firms List.The 2009 Top Ten Firms, in alphabetical order, are:

• Arnold & Porter
• Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
• Covington & Burling
• Jenner & Block
• Katten Muchin Rosenman
• Mayer Brown
• Munger, Tolles & Olson
• Patton Boggs
• Sidley Austin
• WilmerHale

“The Top Ten List, and any discussion of family friendly policies, is even more salient in this recession than in previous years,” said Yale Law Women Chair, Noorain Khan. “We hope firms will take advantage of the current market shift to create new opportunities for flexible work arrangements and work-life balance."

“We congratulate these Top Ten Firms, which are taking the lead in this area, especially in tough economic times,” said Lauren Gerber, Top Ten List Co-Chair. “However, our survey demonstrated that a significant gender disparity remains in how family friendly policies are designed and used in practice.

Hidden Mindsets, Storytelling, and the Advancement of Women Lawyers

One reason that it’s so difficult for women lawyers to advance is the way the stories of their accomplishments are told.  I chose the word “tell” over the word “report” because everyone wears blinders when observing and forming judgments about the world. Even the most honest and objective reporter carries around hidden mindsets - lenses through which s/he sees and interprets experience.

Recently, I read a story and wondered why it wasn’t told differently.  The differences I will suggest may appear to be subtle to some, meaningless to others, and non-existent to a few; but, I am certain they are present and contribute to the difficulties women face in their attempts to advance professionally. So, here’s the way I tell the story that led me to wonder. 

On June 29, 2009, in the Eastern District of Texas, the trial team led by two extraordinary women, Dianne Elderkin and Barbara Mullin, of Woodcock Washburn, received a $1.6 billion verdict, the largest patent infringement award in U.S. history. Not only did the jury find infringement; it found willful infringement. I wonder how often lawyers persuade a jury to find willful infringement.   Ms. Elderkin was named AmLaw’s first woman litigator of the week in an article, which noted that “few women are leading the cases we cover at the Litigation Daily.” They have been picking litigators of the week for a little more than a year.  I’m curious about the number of women litigators and why so few are leading the cases, which receive Litigation Daily press coverage.

After the jump: how AmLaw told the story ...