The Washington State Bar Association is committed to diversity and inclusion in the legal profession.  Read the full announcement here.

The Statewide Minority Bar Association has completed some preliminary work in preparation for the 2013 Statewide Diversity conference that WAMBAC (http://www.wambac.org/) has put on for the last 5 years. The conference was postponed for 2012. There is currently a need for two individuals who would be interested in co-chairing the conference and who would also complete the planning committee. If you or anyone you know may be interested in serving, please forward their names to me or have them email me at kimtran@microsoft.comkimtran@microsoft.com>.

The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law is looking for applicants from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds for the second installment of its Judicial Diversity Program.  The program will pair qualified attorneys interested in pursuing a career on the bench with judges who will mentor them for a year.  Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until March 4, 2013.  Attached is our announcement for the program and the handbook.

Margaret E. Fisher, court program analyst with the Washington State Administrative Office of the Courts and Distinguished Practitioner in Residence at the Seattle University School of Law, has been named the 2012-2013 recipient of the Sandra Day O'Connor Award for the Advancement of Civics Education by the National Center for State Courts (NCSC). The award honors an organization, court, or individual who has promoted, inspired, improved, or led an innovation or accomplishment in the field of civics education related to the justice system.  For more information about Ms. Fisher and her prestigous award, please click here 

Seattle University is hosting the ABA Law Student Division Client Counseling Competition on Saturday, February 9th, 2013. This year’s topic is employment law and we expect 12 teams to compete.

We are looking for attorneys, judges, and counselors to judge the preliminary rounds of the competition on Saturday from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm and the semifinal round 12:30 pm to 3:00 pm. Your help would greatly contribute to the success of this competition.

The Client Counseling Competition promotes greater knowledge and interest among law students in the preventive law and counseling functions of law practice and encourages students to develop interviewing, planning, and analytical skills in the lawyer-client relationship in the law office. The competition simulates a law office consultation in which student lawyers conduct an interview with a “client.” Following the interview, the student lawyers explain how they would proceed further in the hypothetical situation.

If you are interested and available to judge the Client Counseling Competition, please let me know with the times and rounds for which you are available. CLE credits will be provided.

Breakfast and lunch will be served at the competition.
As the competition nears, we will send judges additional information and instructions.

Thank you for your time and cooperation. We could not run a successful competition without your help!

Vanessa Nicole Jimenez
Seattle University School of Law, JD Candidate 2013 BA, Chapman University | Legal Studies
(951)733-8205
jimenezv@seattleu.edu

Sarah Redfield, a professor at the University of New Hampshire School of Law, is asking women attorneys to share their stories of implicit bias (a bias that we hold without our conscious knowledge). She hopes to use this research in an exploration of how implicit bias and micro-messaging have changed for women. To contribute to this important task, please add your experience as a comment on the website, www.edlaw.org or, if you prefer, send Ms. Redfield a personal email to sarah.redfield@gmail.com (please indicate if you prefer your experience to be kept confidential). To learn more about implicit bias and micro-messaging, please read Ms. Redfield’s piece for the American Bar Association Section of Litigation Woman Advocate Committee entitled The Courage to Pay Heed: Knowing and Responding to Implicit Bias.

MAMA's Invites you to attend our next monthly brown bag lunch:

Relationships:  How to keep your romantic partnership strong even after adding kids to the mix
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When:
Tuesday, February 5th, 2013, from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Where: 
Davis Wright Tremaine LLP, 1201 Third Ave., Floor 22, Seattle, WA 98101

**NEW EASTSIDE LOCATION FOR GROUP CALL IN AND NETWORKING**
Hanson Baker Ludlow Drumheller P.S., 2229 - 112th Avenue NE, Suite 200, Bellevue, Washington 98004-2936

RSVP:  Through Big Tent (preferred if you are a MAMAS member) or by email to heathercoldwell@dwt.com.  Please identify if you will attend in person in Seattle or Eastside or if you will participate by phone.

Come hear suggestions on how to keep your relationships healthy while managing a career, a home and a family. Get great advice on re-igniting the spark even when you are sleep-deprived!

Our guest speaker, Michael Rediger, LICSW, specializes in couples counseling. He has been in practice for 16 years and is a Certified Gottman Therapist and Certified Gottman Workshop Leader. He has been married for 11 years to MAMAS member Shawn Rediger and has two daughters aged 8 and 6. Michael will discuss John Gottman's research, specifically, the “4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse” (which are the four ways of interacting that predict the dissolution relationships) and their antidotes. He will also present an overview of a theory called the Sound Relationship House, which he describes as a recipe for success in relationships.

We encourage you to attend our brown bag meeting in person to facilitate both networking and a lively discussion. 

Please bring your lunch and join us for this presentation, and meet fellow MAMAS members!  Cookies will be provided. 

For those who cannot attend in person, we offer the option to participate by phone.
Call in #: 888-757-0729;  Passcode: 1396142354#

When attending via telephone, please do not place the call on hold.  Some firms have hold music, which is disruptive to the presentation.  If you need to leave the call briefly, please hang up and call back in when you are able.

MAMAS would also like to thank our

Platinum sponsors:
Garvey Schubert Barer
Navigant Consulting, Inc.
Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP

and Gold sponsors:
Davis Wright Tremaine LLP
Dorsey & Whitney LLP
K&L Gates LLP
Microsoft Corporation
Schwabe Williamson & Wyatt
Susman Godfrey L.L.P.

 

 

www.MAMASeattle.org

 

 

Ms. JD and Kirkland & Ellis cordially invite you to attend Building Her Power Base: A Conversation with ABA President Laurel Bellows on Leadership & Entrepreneurship.

Laurel Bellows will be speaking on Leadership and Entrepreneurship and will be answering questions from young women attorneys and law students nationwide. When Ms. JD thinks Entrepreneurship and Leadership, Laurel is one of the first women that comes to mind. She is the Principal of her own law firm, The Bellows Law Group, P.C., she is the president of the ABA, she was the second woman president of the 22,000 member Chicago Bar Association, she was listed among Working Mother Magazine's 25 Most Influential Working Mothers in the country, and the list continues. Laurel's presentation is an unsurpassed opportunity for law students and junior attorneys to get tips and tricks for tackling leadership and entrepreneurship in the law!

The event will be held on January 31, 2013 live in Chicago at Kirkland & Ellis and will be broadcasted to the following locations:

Seattle - Foster Pepper

Seattle: January 31, 2013 Foster Pepper, PLLC - 1111 Third Avenue, Suite 3400, Seattle, WA 10:00am Pacific, Viewing Party and Breakfast  

Meals will be served in many locations and registration is limited. Please register here

For more information, click here

Ms. JD is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to empowering and supporting women law students and young lawyers. In addition to their daily blog, Ms. JD is home of the National Women Law Students Organization (NWLSO) which boasts affiliations with women's organizations at 90 campuses nationwide. For more information about Ms. JD go towww.ms-jd.org.

PRACTICE OF LAW BOARD

STATE OF WASHINGTON

1325 Fourth Avenue, Suite 600, Seattle, WA 98101-2539

(206) 727-8252 § Fax (206) 727-8314

Opportunity for Service on the Practice of Law Board

The Practice of Law Board has two openings on its Board effective immediately. We’re looking for thoughtful and hard-working people committed to the Board’s mission of serving the public. The Washington Supreme Court established the Board and described its purpose in General Rule 25(a):

• · Promote expanded access to affordable and reliable legal and law-related services;
• · Expand public confidence in the administration of justice;
• · Make recommendations regarding the circumstances under which nonlawyers may be involved in the delivery of certain types of legal and law-related services;
• · Enforce rules prohibiting individuals and organizations from engaging in unauthorized legal and law-related services that pose a threat to the general public; and
• · Ensure that those engaged in the delivery of legal services in the state of Washington have the requisite skills and competencies necessary to serve the public.

The Board has 13 members, at least four of whom must be non-lawyers. The Board represents the public interest in the delivery of legal and law-related services and should reflect the broad range of diversity of individuals who use or are part of the justice system in Washington State.

Responsibilities:

• · Attend 8-10 Board meetings each year (most in Seattle, half by phone, usually on Fridays)
• · Attend a day-long annual retreat (usually in Seattle)
• · Participate in Board initiatives or committees

The term of service is three years. Board members are eligible for reappointment for a second term.

Board members are not compensated for their service, but are reimbursed for travel and other necessary expenses under the reimbursement policies of the Washington State Bar Association.

How to Apply:

The application deadline is February 28, 2013. Please send us a résumé and letter describing your background, qualifications, commitment, experience, and interest in service to:

Practice of Law Board

1325 Fourth Avenue, Suite 600

Seattle, WA 98101-2539

Additional information is available at www.WSBA.org/PracticeOfLawBoard. If you have any questions, contact Practice of Law Board Administrator Julie Shankland at JulieS@WSBA.org or at (206) 727-8280.

The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law seeks enthusiastic applicants from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds for the second installment of its Judicial Diversity Program. Applicants should be interested in pursuing a career on the bench in Washington State. Judicial diversity is essential to helping our judiciary deliver equal justice, countering perceptions of systemic bias, and fostering the public’s faith in the legal system.
The need for good mentors is important when one enters the legal profession, and it becomes even more important as one seeks a judgeship. The Judicial Diversity Program will pair selected lawyers with an active or retired Washington State judge. Judges will assist mentees in:

1. Demystifying the judicial appointment and election process
2. Providing professional guidance and support
3. Increasing awareness regarding what it is like to serve as a judge
4. Increasing mentee’s understanding and knowledge of the judicial system

In addition, throughout the Judicial Diversity Program, quarterly workshops and panels will be organized to enrich participants’ understanding of the judicial process.

The Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, was formed fifty years ago at the request of President John F. Kennedy to involve the private bar in providing legal services to address racial discrimination. The principal mission of the Lawyers' Committee is to secure, through the rule of law, equal justice under law.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE
The ideal candidate will have many of the following professional experiences and personal characteristics:
 Applicants must have at least 2 years of experience as a licensed attorney.
 Display an interest in seeking a career in the judiciary.
 A passionate, demonstrated commitment to civil rights and equal justice.
 An ability to navigate opinions and suggestions with grace and humility.

TO APPLY:
Please send in one mailing: a completed application, statement of interest, and a résumé. The application can be found at: http://www.lawyerscommittee.org/admin/site/issues_documents/files/Judicial-Diversity-Program-Mentee-Application-Fillable.pdf. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until February 18, 2013. The program commences on March 15, 2013 and runs through December 2013.

Please send via mail or email to:

Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
1401 New York Avenue, N.W.
Suite 400
Washington, D.C. 20005
Fax: (202) 783-0857
JudicialDiversity@lawyerscommittee.org
Please visit our website for more information: http://www.lawyerscommittee.org/issues?id=0008