Minnesota Lynx Event

The Professional Development committee and the Public Policy committee of Minnesota Women Lawyers are hosting an event at the Minnesota Lynx game on Wednesday, September 9.

The event is not limited to women who are lawyers--anyone is welcome. The game starts at 7 pm and is being played at the Target Center. The cost is $35 per person, and a portion of the proceeds will go to Civil Society's Human Trafficking Program. MWL is also hosting girls from the YWCA at the game.

Registration can be done here. Check out the Lynx's Wikipedia Site for more background on the team. They play the Detroit Shock that night--perhaps an apt name for when they are Detroit Shocked by what is sure to be the Lynx's awesome playing.

Group Status Update Continued: MWL

In the last few weeks, we have been updating everyone on the current status and plans of women lawyers groups in Minnesota. We have gone through most of MWL's recently-passed 2009-2012 Strategic Goals, with only one more to explore. (To see all the goal postings together, click on the "Strategic Plan" label at the bottom of this post).

STRATEGIC GOAL E: Develop and implement social action initiatives that advance MWL’s mission.

Strategies:

1. Evaluate the alignment of MWL’s judicial committees and their work as it relates to MWL’s mission and develop a plan of action to move forward.
2. Define MWL’s social action goals and guidelines and align MWL’s committees with them.

This goal is one that contemplates a broad reach for MWL, and puts some of the broader goals into more tangible terms. For example, the group will be working toward its mission of "advanc[ing] the success of women lawyers and striv[ing] for a just society" through finding some of the more definable policies and social initiatives that can help achieve this mission.

MWL Event Reminder

Tomorrow is the last chance to sign up for MWL's FREE event on "Job Hunting Stratgies for a Lousy Economy."

The Details:

• Monday, June 29, 2000
• 12:00 noon to 1:30 p.m.
• MWL Offices (600 Nicollet Mall, Suite 390B in Minneapolis; 3rd floor ofCity Center, inside the HCBA office area)
• FREE; feel free to bring your own lunch.
• 1.5 Professional Development CLE credits will be applied for.
• RSVP by tomorrow, June 26th, 2009 here

Roy S. Ginsburg, a local attorney coach, will be giving tips and stratgies on job searches. This seminar sounds helpful for both women looking for jobs and women unhappy with the jobs they have. Don't let a down economy keep you at a standstill if you want another career direction.

Group Status Update Continued: MWL

As we continue our trek through the lastest going-ons of the local women lawyer groups, we return to our exploration of the Strategic Plan and Goals of MWL that was approved last month.

Today....Strategic Goal D.

STRATEGIC GOAL D: Build the diversity of MWL membership.

Strategies:

1. Ensure MWL at all levels reflects the diversity of women in the profession.
2. Increase MWL’s membership among women lawyers in underdeveloped membership areas, including the corporate setting, public attorneys, academia, and those in non-traditional legal careers.
3. Increase MWL’s membership among women of color.
4. Evaluate MWL’s member services to ensure that we provide offerings that are of value and interest to the diversity of women in the profession (women of color, practice areas, practice types, etc).

Ensuring that proper diversity exists is an important goal for every group, as it allows different experiences and viewpoints to inform the membership, leadership, and actions of the group. MWL's goals rightly account for the many different forms of diversity that exist among women professionals: diversity in careers, diversity in ethnicity, diversity in locations, diversity in family situations. It appears this goal could be particularly furthered by women in these diverse groups letting MWL know what offerins would be of value and interest to them.

Infinity Project and MWL statement on Sotomayor

The Infinity Project and Minnesota Women Lawyers have released a joint statement on the confirmation process of Judge Sotomayor for the U.S. Supreme Court:

Minnesota Women Lawyers and The Infinity Project commend President Barack Obama for the nomination of a woman, Judge Sonia Sotomayor, to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The decision whether Judge Sotomayor should be confirmed should be based on a measured and civil confirmation process that fosters a thoughtful debate about Judge Sotomayor's credentials, not her gender or national origin. We believe the depth and quality of any nominee's legal experience is the proper subject of evaluation. In state elections, MWL asks voters to consider such qualities as legal education, experience, reputation for excellence and fairness and temperament. We urge the United States Senate to consider the same relevant factors in the conduct of Judge Sotomayor’s confirmation process.

It is also our hope and expectation that President Obama will continue to appoint women to the United States District Courts and Courts of Appeals, where women are currently underrepresented. While women make up 48 percent of law school graduates and over 30 percent of the legal profession overall, they are only 24 percent of federal district court judges, 25 percent of circuit court judges, and 11 percent of justices on the U.S. Supreme Court. Not only do we believe that the judiciary should more fairly reflect the composition of the profession, but we strive for a fair reflection of the public that our judiciary serves.

Contact Woman, Esq. at womanesq@gmail.com for further contact and reference information.

Group Status Update Continued: MWL

The endeavor to update everyone about the current status and priorities of women lawyer groups in Minnesota continues. Thus, we continue with our exploration of the recently implemented MWL strategic goals.

STRATEGIC GOAL C: Increase member access to MWL.

Strategies:

1. Research, develop and implement ways to leverage technology to effectively communicate with and serve MWL members.
2. Strengthen MWL’s presence throughout the state by supporting current chapters and working with members to create new chapters.
3. Hold MWL events and programs in a variety of geographic locations.

Individual group members may not have as active a role in furthering this goal, but hopefully will benefit from such prioritizing by MWL. It is a good reminder to everyone--including Women, Esq.--that work is being done by and on behalf of women in the profession all over the state, and we can look to support, and for support, from groups and individuals outside the Twin Cities. As technology makes our state, country, and world smaller and smaller, we can use that technology to make our groups and members, no matter in what location, more connected.

Group Status Update Continued: MWL

And the strategic goals continue...next up: proactively working to increase women's leadership opportunities in the profession.

STRATEGIC GOAL B: Increase the success and leadership of women in the law.

Strategies:

1. Position MWL as the best source for women lawyers at all career stages and in all types of careers, as it relates to their advancement in the profession.
2. Provide opportunities for effective networking to help women lawyers grow their professional connections.
3. Expand and enhance MWL’s mentoring programs.
4. Continue to develop seminars that advance the abilities of women lawyers (e.g. marketing, leadership, self-promotion, etc.) and offer CLE credit when appropriate.
5. Develop and implement strategies for women lawyers to secure positions on nonprofit and for profit boards of directors.

This goal brings back memories of earlier posts last month where Woman, Esq. discussed women as leaders in the workplace, and how the concept of "sisterhood" might not be as prevelant as people think. This goal serves as a great reminder not just to think about developing new relationships through these women lawyer groups, but also to enhance the relationships already formed. Many lawyers hate the term "networking," but people do it everyday by simply maintaining and nurturing professional and personal relationships. The next step is to take those relationships and work together to give women the opportunities to get the leadership positions in which they are interested.

Group Status Update Continued: MWL

MWL has also created five new strategic goals, with accompanying strategies, to work on for the next several years.

STRATEGIC GOAL A: Fundamentally elevate the status and position of women in the legal profession.

1. Be a resource for baseline information and research on the current position of women in the profession as well as the state of the legal profession for women. Use the information to advocate for positive change.


2. Create a President’s Leadership Circle comprised of top leaders in the legal profession to collaborate with MWL to advance our mission. Leverage this partnership to further impact the profession.


3. Promote MWL members as experts on timely and important issues to reinforce the image of women as leaders.


4. Position MWL as the best source on issues related to our mission for members of the community, (e.g. media, businesses, law faculty.)


5. Increase the visibility and influence of MWL within the national community of women lawyers.
   

This goal appears to center on positioning MWL and its members to be able to speak to gender issues in the profession, especially the issues as they relate to this state. Perhaps a good way to further this goal as individuals is to give a voice to those issues we are interested and knowlegable in. Whether that is contributing a blog post (hint), finding a way to advocate for an issue at your place of work, or even just doing the research for someone else to be an advocate, the success of this goal depends mostly on the willingness of individuals to spread the word.

Women Lawyer Groups Status Update: MWL

As the official start of summer quickly approaches, it seems like an appropriate time to start updating Woman, Esq. with what the women lawyer groups in Minnesota are working on and striving for this summer, and in the coming year.

We'll start with Minnesota Women Lawyers: the 2009-10 Board of Directors was just put in place, and the 2009-12 Strategic Plan has been approved.

First, the mission:

To advance the success of women lawyers and strive for a just society.

Next, the vision:

In the coming years, MWL will take deliberate action to elevate the status and position of women lawyers both individually and systematically. MWL will leverage its strengths and reputation to be the best authority on information and strategies to help women lawyers succeed. Core programs will continue to provide high quality quality mentoring, networking, and educational opportunities that increase the success of individual women lawyers. MWL will ensure that all activities and programs are focused on the work that will have the greatest mission impact for both individual women lawyers as well as the profession itself.

All of us, whether MWL members or not, should take note of the proactive nature of the mission and vision. The group calls itself and its members to "take deliberate action" and "leverage strengths." Right now might be the perfect time for everyone to focus on what they are currently doing to further women in the profession, and, if they would like to do more, focus on how their strengths could best contribute to these ambitions.

Check back tomorrow for further information on MWL's stratgic goals for the coming years.

Update: Michele Norris adds to her "legacy"

Michele Norris, host of NPR's All Things Considered, was named last week as the Journalist of the Year by the National Association of Black Journalists.

Norris was the keynote speaker at MWL's Winter Celebration in February. Both her speech to us and her reporting on the 2008 presidential race reflect a unique thoughtfulness about our current times. Norris uses that presidential election to reevaluate how people frame their experiences, and how that framing impacts both the future generations and our own memories.

"How much do we share with people to encourage them to go forward without weighing them down?" she asked in February. "How honest are we when we live history?"

Norris encouraged everyone to reflect on how much change people can have just by telling their stories. Interestingly, she drew attention to how much impact people have by purposefully keeping stories hidden.

Norris gave several examples of how stories of racial barriers that had been buried for decades have been flooding out of friends, family, and her since President Obama's election. "I think sometimes we believe that if we're honest with what we faced, people would leave."

These questions also extend to gender barriers--how are we shaping our legacy by how we frame stories of the past and present, and how much do we keep hidden? One thing can be said, though--Norris is truly shaping an important legacy through her excellence in revealing stories.