I Support Your Path

(Written by Desiree Nordstrom.)

The arrival of my daughter just under four years ago, began a process of transition in my life.  Up to that point, my focus primarily was on my husband and my career.  Although I knew I wanted be a mother someday, I figured until that happened, I would continue to better myself through building my career.  

When motherhood came, so did the "baptism by fire" that many new mothers experience.  I was not fully prepared for what it would mean, and I have to wonder if any first time mother ever is, especially if she is a working mom. There is just so much in life that we cannot know until we experience it. I find myself giving unsolicited advice to a new mom-to-be regaling her with my list of "what I wish I would have known," but in the end, she truly will not understand until she becomes a mother. 

Life is full of transitions.  At such times we may yearn to get back to "normal," but that never happens, so we move into a new "normal" letting the old slip away into fond memories.  

Much like the transition from non-mother to mother, I experienced another transition in my professional life.  It all occurred in the same time period as the birth of my little one.  I was a professional, then suddenly I was a professional who also was a mother, and now nearly four years later, I am a mother with a profession. 

My transition took me from being an attorney working more than full-time hours that required me to leave home before my baby was awake and return home after dark, to a stay-at-home mom with a profession, taking on contractual work that I could do at home.  Before becoming a freelance attorney, guilt became my constant companion.  I lived with guilt for not being at home with my baby, and when I did come home, I felt guilty that I was not using my education to its potential.  It was as if my mind was rarely in the same place as my body causing me to focus on what was NOT happening, instead of living in the moment, the precious NOW which is all we really have.

In the years that have passed, I have owned my story and my path. At first I was timid in introducing myself as a stay-at-home mom to those in the legal community, but now, I am proud of my path and find that it is supported and well received by many in the legal world. I have also met many who are walking the same path. 

There are so many paths available to women with a legal education. Let us all be proud of our path and support one another in our respective journey to find a fit for our lives. 

"Returnship" Opportunity

I just heard about a wonderful program that is designed to help women attorneys who have taken time off from the practice to more easily return. It is called On Ramp Fellowship.

Below is their description of the issue women lawyers face when trying to return to the practice:

The legal profession has a leaky pipeline.  Plenty of high-performing lawyers enter the legal profession. But many of these lawyers – women in particular – leave within a few years. In Am Law 200 firms, for instance, there is typically a 50/50 gender split at the entry-level, but only 16% of partners are women.

Why? Many leave to raise children or manage other family obligations. Others just aren’t a good fit for the area of law they chose early in their career.

Once these women lawyers exit the profession, it’s not easy to get back in.  Since law firms usually hire and advance lawyers based on tenure, it’s difficult for a returning lawyer and her potential employer to know where she fits into the traditional structure upon re-entry.  And, in most law firms, it is virtually impossible for an experienced lawyer to re-engineer her practice because of the rigid billable rate structure that is typically tied to years of experience. This structure forces skilled lawyers who are not a fit for their current practice area to change jobs or exit the profession for other opportunities.

Because of these re-entry and retooling challenges, there is an untapped pool of experienced high-performers who have a strong desire to return to and advance in the profession.  A 2010 study by the Center for Work-Life Policy found that 73 percent of women trying to return to the workforce after a voluntary timeout for childcare or other reasons have difficulty finding a job.

In a market that remains tremendously competitive for top talent, law firm leaders cannot afford to overlook this unique collection of highly-talented, diverse lawyers.  So, how do law firms identify and recapture this incredibly valuable asset?

This is their solution:

The Fellowship is a re-entry platform that matches experienced lawyers returning to the profession with law firms for a one-year, paid training contract. 

To learn more about the program or to apply, please go their website at: http://onrampfellowship.com/. The application deadline is March 7, 2014.

Good luck!

Worthy of Education

(Written by Desiree Nordstrom, a WIL Committee member.)

I recently came across an article titled, “O, Alma Mater” written by Anne-Marie Maginnis, a Princeton educated, stay-at-home mother.  It spoke to me and as such, I would like to share some excerpts from it.  Ms. Maginnis states,

As it turns out, a sizeable debate is raging regarding the growing numbers of Ivy League graduates choosing to stay home and raise their children. Several recent articles have questioned the value of this choice. One such thought-provoking piece was written by Kelly Goff of the U.K. Guardian, entitled “Female Ivy League Graduates Have a Duty to Stay in the Workforce.”

In that article, author Kelly Goff argues,

That degree could have gone to a woman who does want to spend her entire life using it to advance the cause of women—or others in need of advancement—not simply advancing the lives of her own family at home, which is a noble cause, but not one requiring an elite degree.

Ms. Maginnis did not agree with the view that any female with a higher education must stay in the workforce, otherwise, that education is a wasted opportunity.  Ms. Maginnis continues her article with four points that are evidence that this logic is incorrect. 

First, the author points out that following such logic is “regressive for women.” She asks that if that conclusion is correct, at “what point is a woman not worth educating at all?” 

Ms. Maginnis’ second point explains that if one believes higher education is pointless for stay-at-home mothers, it “overlooks the fact that many stay-at-home mothers resume their careers after their children are in school.”  And even if these women do not re-enter the workforce, they “see something of equal or greater value in staying home to raise their children.”

The author’s third point explains that educated stay-at-home mothers are often able to use their knowledge and degree in service of society including fundraising, mentoring, volunteering, speaking and writing.  “And while it may appear that anyone can do these things, it is far more difficult for a working mother to add these into an already packed schedule than it is for a stay-at-home mother.”

Ms. Maginnis’ fourth and final point includes:

[T]he most meaningful way in which stay-at-home moms use their elite degrees is by raising their children to be well-educated, confident leaders of the next generation. When a mother with an Ivy League education stays home to raise children, she is making it her full-time job to invest the best that she has received, including her education, into these children. She is choosing to form a few people in a profound way, rather than to affect a broader audience with a smaller per-person investment.

These mothers are not sacrificing pay, prestige, and a stimulating career without good reason. They feel they are giving their children something they could not otherwise give if they were out of the house all day. This is not to denigrate mothers who cannot afford to stay home; they obviously serve their family, often at great personal sacrifice. Nor is it to criticize working mothers who choose to share their talent with the larger world. It is merely to point out that highly educated women who choose to stay home with their children have a unique contribution to make as well.

“[W]hen a highly educated woman is home with her children day in and day out, she weaves the riches of her education into their lives in continuous, subtle, living ways. This is a priceless preparation for a lifetime of learning. This gift is the transmission of culture.” 

We would love to hear your thoughts on this subject.  You can find the entire article here:  http://verilymag.com/feature/o-alma-mater/

A Law Degree is a Leadership Degree

(Written by Nan Barker, WIL Committee chair, who is responsible for the blog focus group "using your law degree in your community and family".)

My dad, who had been ill for some time, passed away on June 1st. Even though we knew his passing was at hand, it has been a difficult and an emotional time.

I am the middle daughter--I have two sisters. My mother is still alive, but my parents were divorced when I was quite young.

After my dad's passing, I wanted my sisters and I to get together to plan his funeral service. I wanted the decisions to be made by us as a group. I asked them about their thoughts, feelings and desires. I wanted to make sure all of the decisions were a result of everyone's ideas and wishes.

I tried the above. Nothing happened. After a few days of trying the above, it finally dawned on me the above mentioned desired process wasn't going to happen. Something needed to be done. Decisions needed to be made.

It was then that my legal training kicked in. I have often heard people call a law degree a leadership degree. I experienced the truth of that statement this past week. The skills I learned and abilities I had enhanced in law school came into play. Skills related to organization, observation, mediation, listening, decision making, compromise, etc. were all used.

The funeral service was yesterday. It went well. My sisters were grateful everything was taken care of. As I was contemplating things today and looking back over the past couple of weeks, I realized the help my legal training provided. I am grateful I have the training I received in law school. It gave me the skills I needed to help my family at a difficult time.

Elder Dallin H. Oaks On Women in the Law

(Written by Nan Barker, the WIL Committee chair, who is responsible for the blog focus groups "on hiatus" and "using your law degree in your community and family".)

In a recent address, Unfolding in Time, which reviewed the founding and mission of the law school at BYU, Elder Dallin H. Oaks, of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, made several statements I found to be very interesting and informative. I thought a couple of them might be of particular interest to people who read this blog.

When referring to women attending law school he said,

I am persuaded that law is a very appropriate study for women, marrried or single... Among other characteristics, law is a professsion that can be practiced from home and on a part-time basis. That surely is not true of many occupations women might choose or be compelled to pursue for support in the world in which we live.

He also mentioned the value and versatility a law degree provides. In a comment which surely applies to all law school graduates who adhere to Gospel standards, he said,

[W]hether in the legal profession or elsewhere, [law school graduates] are using their law degrees and the critical and analytical skills they honed in law school in a multitude of ways that make us proud of their impact on the lives of their clients and families and on the legal and moral environment of their communities and in their areas of influence.

If you're interested in reading the entire article by Elder Oaks, it can be found in the Spring 2013 Clark Memorandum ( http://www.jrcls.org/publications/clark_memo/sections/s13/CMS13_Oaks.pdf).

(One of the goals of this blog is to address seven different focus groups:  full time practice; part time practice; on hiatus; practicing with children at home; students; using your law degree in your community and family; and, singles.  If you have any suggestions about topics you would like to see addressed in these areas, please let us know through the Comment section below.)

No Limitations

(Written by Nan Barker,  WIL Committee chair, who is responsible for the blog focus group "using your law degree in your community and family".)

A few weeks ago I was asked to participate on a panel for a church Young Women's group. The purpose of the panel was to broaden the young women's ideas about possible education paths they might follow.

The panelists were all women: in addition to me, an attorney, there was a medical doctor (an anesthesiologist), someone with a masters degree in microbiology, someone with an undergraduate degree in business and, an esthetician (someone skilled in giving beauty treatments).   We were each asked to take 3-4 minutes to describe the educational path we followed for our particular career and give a few thoughts about our area of expertise.

It was a wonderful, informative panel.  I think the young women enjoyed it.

One comment by the woman with the undergraduate degree in business caught my attention.  She stated that with an undergraduate business degree you were unlimited in what you could do--you could be anything you wanted to be--unlike the limitation a law or medical degree would impose.

I wanted to stand up, and, in an animated fashion, disagree with her view of limitations and opportunities.  I didn't.  I REALLY thought about it though.  However, my 4 minutes were up and after she took 20 minutes, there wasn't much time left for Q & A or "rebuttal".

I don't have any experience with medical degrees, but I do know that a law degree does not limit opportunities, but instead opens doors for them.

I thought about so many of you who are not practicing law, but are using the skills you learned in law school in other fields, in your communities and in your homes.

A couple of  years ago I was talking to the ASU student JRCLS chapter.  I asked them the following question: what skills are you learning in law school that will help you in all aspects of your lives, whether you practice law or not?  We came up with a list of 24 skills, some of which were being able to think logically, effectively represent yourself, respond to questions, read critically, organize, study, persuade, listen, etc.

A law degree does not limit a person's opportunities.  It creates them.

Oh...I thought of one more skill we learn in law school:   how to follow time limits!


(One of the goals of this blog is to address seven different focus groups:  full time practice; part time practice; on hiatus; practicing with children at home; students; using your law degree in your community and family; and, singles.  If you have any suggestions about topics you would like to see addressed in these areas, please let us know through the Comment section below.)

How to Return to the Practice of Law

I have been asked to write an article about how to return to the practice of law.  The problem I have in responding to that request is that I left, but have not returned to, the practice.  Many of you have left and returned. You know the steps, have probably experienced a few of the pitfalls, while (hopefully) having seen the upsides associated with that return.

Could you lend a hand and please share your advice, suggestions, and words of wisdom or warning?

Thanks!

Amberly gave us some suggestions. Here is her advice:

I worked full time at the attorney general's office for several years, but then stayed home to care for my little boys for the next six years. I recently returned to full-time work and have a few ideas of things that were helpful to me:

1) Continuing to work or volunteer in your practice or interest area. After my sons were born I taught classes at the local university, did contract legal work, gave legal help to friends, family, and church members, and volunteered for different legal causes I felt passionate about. It kept me engaged in the legal world, allowed me to make further professional contacts, and let me keep my resume active.

2) Maintain your legal contacts. It was important that I continued to touch base with all the wonderful people that I knew through law school and professionally. They were able to act as references for jobs and the bar exam application even though I hadn't been working full time.

3) Have confidence in what you did during the time you were not practicing law full-time. I let my current employer know that I had been balancing caring for my children full-time with working on a contract basis and volunteering in my community. When I saw that they considered this an asset and not a deficit, I knew that this would be a good work environment for me. It is has been an engaging and flexible place to work, and I feel lucky to have found such a job.

Good luck to anyone who is making this transition! 

Thank you so much, Amberly.  If anyone else has some suggestions, we would appreciate you sharing them.

Using Your Law Degree in Your Community and Family: Gifts of a Law Degree

At a WIL recruitment lunch for female students, held on March 12, 2012, Mehrsa Baradaran gave an address entitled, "Education Multipliers".

Mehrsa researches and writes on banking regulation and administrative law.  She taught classes in banking regulation, property, secured transactions and administrative law at BYU Law School from 2009-2011.

She has a wonderful story to tell about her grandmother, who was born and raised in Iran, and the impact this grandmother's thirst for knowledge had upon the generations that followed.  I encourage you to read her entire address which can be found in the Fall 2012 Clark Memorandum or online at www.jrcls.org/publications/clark_memo/.

Toward the end of her remarks Mehrsa makes the following statement, "I will tell you that you will never regret your education".  She then goes on to pose this question: why law?   Her remarkable answer and insights were these:

My first year of law school was the most mind-expanding time of my life. Studying the law teaches you how to think critically, analyze problems, and articulate your viewpoints. Learning law is really a chance to peek at the wizard behind the curtain. It demystifies what is so elusive to so much of the world. It puts you in a position of power—true power—to lift burdens. 

No matter what you do with your life, the skills you learn in law school will help you. A law degree is the most flexible advanced degree. I have friends with law degrees who work in government, business, and law firms. Some do public service work and others stay home with their children and use their law degree to teach their children about the world. 

If you are trained well and are good at what you do, you can do a variety of meaningful part-time and contract work without working full-time. And even in those seasons of life in which you are not working at all, you can still be useful to family, friends, and your community by participating on boards, giving advice, and lending a hand to the disadvantaged or marginalized...

When you go to law school you not only learn during those three years, but those three years lay the groundwork for learning for the rest of your life...What a blessing you and I have to learn and be educated. I hope that as women we seek those opportunities, show gratitude for them, and become education multipliers. 

Thank you, Mehrsa.


(One of the goals of this bog is to address seven different focus groups:  full time practice; part time practice; on hiatus; practicing with children at home; students; using your law degree in your community and family; and, singles.  If you have any suggestions about topics you would like to see addressed in these areas, please let us know through the Comment section below.)