The Red Velvet Lawyer

The June 2013 issue of the ABA Magazine features women who have ascended to the heights of law firm management.  It profiles seven women who currently operate as the managing partner in medium to ubber-large law firms.  Most of the women are in their late 40’s or early 50s, and they talk about the choices they made to get these positions in their firms.  I want to share some of their comments: Most importantly: Ask to take on the management responsibilities as your skills and credibility expand.  Don’t wait to be asked!  “Lean in.”  Do it consistently over a long period of time.  Actively create the future you want for yourself. Avoid any distractions from your top priorities.  Develop laser focus on your goals. Establish your credibility by being a very good lawyer who works hard.  Have a “dogged” work ethic. Build a lucrative book of business that gives you economic power within the firm. Show you have a “business mind” as w...

Hal Abramson, the author of   Mediation Representation: Advocating in a Problem-Solving Process , suggests that the following types of disputes or circumstances make mediation less desirable: ·         The party needs to establish binding precedent; ·         The party needs to deter future claims by establishing a “hard-ball litigation – no settlement reputation” (aka the Walmart strategy); ·         The party seeks validation or vindication by a person in authority who declares that the client was blameless, but the other party was a low-down, dirty SOB; ·         The party wants or needs to go for a litigated “jackpot” damage award, no matter the statistical chance of winning that award; ·         The parties are embroiled in a value-based conflict on which they see no room for ...

I recently joined the ABA's Law Practice Management Section in an effort to support our graduates who will start solo practices because of the lack of opportunity in law firms and other traditional employers of lawyers in this recessionary economy.  I blogged about the day-long solo practice workshop the Appalachian School of Law offered this past spring  here .  I blogged about the employment prospects for new grads  here ,  here , and  here . This past week, I received the section's welcome packet and its May/June 2013 issue of the Law Practice Magazine.  The section focuses on the following four core areas: marketing, management, technology, and finance.  It provides section members with six issues of its "award-winning" hard-copy magazine, a monthly webzine, a bimonthly e-newsletter, and a legal technology blog.  It also focuses on the challenges women face as rainmakers and sells an impressive collection of books. The May/June issu...

Prior to the mediation, I circulate to the lawyers a confidential pre-mediation questionnaire modeled on a form developed by Richard Sher , a well-known St. Louis mediator.  This form helps the lawyer, the client, and me get ready for the mediation with a structured analysis of the case. It asks the lawyers to disclose the status of the case in the litigation process and whether any dispositive motions are pending.   It asks about the status of discovery and how much more discovery the parties need to do.   It asks about the facts of the case, the claims and defenses of the parties, the disputed issues of liability or damages, the amount and characterization of damages sought, the attorneys’ fees incurred to date, and the expected fees the client will incur getting the case to trial.    Next, it asks about the history of negotiations and why that lawyer believes the negotiations have failed so far.   It then asks for a candid assessment of ...

As I read Seth Godin's new book, The Icarus Deception , I kept asking myself: What is my art?  What do I create joyously, diligently, passionately, and with increasingly greater skill and insight? In the early 1970s, my high school  -- University City High -- had one of the most REMARKABLE art departments in all of St. Louis County.  Staffed by three teachers, the program taught painting, drawing, sculpture, ceramics, and fiber arts. Thirty years later, I still have pieces of art I created at that time: pencil drawings of my boyfriend and the male rhinoceros at the zoo; a bronze cast sculpture of a heavy-bottomed woman; a huge hookah pipe, made of coiled clay, I now use as a deck ornament; a silk screened T-shirt imprinted with an original design; and watercolor landscapes. The program also introduced me to many techniques and materials that I have used fearlessly throughout my life. The course made me a better problem-solver.  About a week ...