CJA PANEL & MENTOR PROGRAM - Information session 9/28/21 at noon.  See below.

The conflict panel for the Federal Public Defender for the Western District of Washington, better known as the CJA Panel, is currently accepting applications. Successful applicants will be seasoned criminal defense attorneys with substantial federal defense experience, excellent oral and written advocacy skills, and a demonstrated commitment to representing people who cannot afford to pay for a lawyer.

In addition, we are seeking applicants to our mentor program, which provides instruction and paid second-chair opportunities to experienced attorneys who need more exposure to federal criminal cases before being accepted to the panel.

The  CJA Panel and Mentor Program Combined Application is available at https://waw.fd.org/node/2795.

We are hosting an open house for prospective applicants to learn more about the CJA Panel and Mentor Program on September 28 at noon. Here is the Zoom information:

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89344186207

Passcode: 737738

Applications are due October 15, 2021. Questions may be submitted to jennifer_kaplan@fd.org.

The Washington State Supreme Court Gender and Justice Commission releases the results of its extensive study of gender, race, and other disparities in Washington State’s court and carceral systems. The report covers topics ranging from youth to adults, from civil to criminal, and from one’s ability to access the courts to one’s legal, financial, family, and health impacts of conviction and incarceration at the end of a case. The report also provides recommendations on how to address the problems identified.

For additional information, please see the attached press release and Fact Sheet, and access the 2021 Gender Justice Study Final Report, Executive Summary, and five pilot project reports on the Gender and Justice Commission webpage.

We invite you to share this report widely. Please email commissions@courts.wa.gov with ideas for how we can increase the reach of this important new research, for speaking engagements, and to partner with us to accomplish the report’s recommendations.

Thank you for your support,

Justice Sheryl Gordon McCloud and Dr. Dana Raigrodski, Co-Chairs

2021 Gender Justice Study

What Would Marcus Garvey Do: Community Policing in the Black Lives Matter Era

Developed in partnership with the WSBA Civil Rights Law Section

Reverend Harriett G. Walden, Founder of Mothers for Police Accountability, National Director of the Silent War Campaign, 2020 WSBA Frances B. North Civic Leader Award and commissioner on the Community Police Commission (create by a federal consent decree in 2012 regarding unlawful use of force), will address the intersections of poverty, race, and education in our era's civil rights movement.

Reverend Walden has been appointed to and served on numerous task forces and commissions that involve efforts to improve and heal community-police relations and to achieve greater transparency and accountability in the criminal justice system.  Reverend Walden will lecture on how structural classism challenges current civil rights work and provide an analysis on the Seattle Community Police Commission, formed by federal consent decree in 2012 in response to unlawful use of force.  Lawyers should walk away with knowledge of the laws of community policing, community police advisory boards, and how to start asking the right questions about community health and safety.

It is an absolute honor for the Civil Rights Law Section to host a CLE for all of our members to listen in, strengthen critical analysis necessary for civil rights work, and stay up-to-date on local policy, police reform and accountability measures.

FACULTY
Reverend Harriett Walden

SCHEDULE
5:00 p.m. Webinar Login Opens
5:30 p.m. Webinar Begins
6:30 p.m. Adjourn
6:30 - 7:00 p.m. Post-Seminar Social

American Experience’s new film, Sandra Day O'Connor: The First, premieres Monday, September 13 at 9/8c on PBS. 

About the film: When Ronald Reagan nominated Sandra Day O’Connor as the Supreme Court’s first female justice in 1981, the announcement dominated the news. Time Magazine’s cover proclaimed “Justice At Last,” and she received unanimous Senate approval. But the road was not easy. After graduating near the top of her class at Stanford Law School, O'Connor could not convince a single law firm to interview her, so she turned to volunteer work and public service. A Republican, she served two terms in the Arizona state senate, then became a judge on the state court of appeals. During her 25 years on the Supreme Court, O’Connor was the critical swing vote on cases involving some of the 20th century’s most controversial issues, including race, gender and reproductive rights — and she was the tiebreaker on Bush v. Gore. Forty years after her confirmation, this biography recounts the life of a pioneering woman who both reflected and shaped an era.

Extended Teaser - a two-minute trailer setting up the story of Sandra Day O'Connor.

Sisters in Law - A look at the relationship between Sandra Day O'Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Justices who found common ground despite their differences.

International Association of Woman Judges is

creating a fundraising campaign in support of our efforts. According to IAWJ: We will use the funds to provide direct aid to our Afghan members in desperate need and will be working on safe and fair ways to apply the funds. We will also use the funds to support the work of the IAWJ Afghan Women Judges’ Aid Committee, chaired by the IAWJ President, Justice Susan Glazebrook. For the Committee’s work, we need financial support for the translation, interpretation, logistical and administrative support needed to provide direct aid to our members and their families in Afghanistan. Our interpreters and our IAWJ staff have offered their time and expertise to meet this urgent need and we would like to compensate them through unrestricted funds. If we collect excess funds we will use these to support women judges globally who find themselves in need. Donations can be made through check (the IAWJ mailing address is below); through wire transfer; or through the 'Donate' page on the IAWJ website. When donating, please be sure to indicate Afghan Women Judges’ Aid Committee in the memo of your donation. If you have questions about donating or for the wire transfer information, please contact Executive Director, Christie Jones, at executivedirector@iawj.org. International Association of Women Judges 2000 M Street, NW Suite 750 C Washington, DC 20036 Network and Expertise Support The Afghan Women Judges’ Aid Committee is gathering a list of resources and contacts that could assist with ensuring the safety of our Afghan members. We welcome the names and emails of any contacts you might have that might be of assistance as well as any immigration or refugee process information for your country that you are able to share. We are also aware of several members who would like to offer housing for those women judges and their families who are able to be resettled. If you have resources to share and housing to offer, please contact IAWJ Board Secretary/Treasurer Robyn Tupman at rtupman@courts.nsw.gov.au. Letters of Support Earlier this week, each of our member associations received an email calling for them to write letters condemning the situation in Afghanistan and in support of our members. We encourage each association to write these letters and share with the appropriate government officials and media outlets in your country. Please also be sure to share these letters with the IAWJ directly at office@iawj.org as we are collecting them. Donate

Register Here

We invite you to our next mentorship event on August 18, 12:00 pm PT:

GRIT program: Developing a growth mindset - Join us for an interactive session on the grit and growth mindset.  Discuss hypothetical scenarios with mentors, classmates, and colleagues, and gain insights on how best to address the challenges we will face in law school and the workplace, and how to turn those challenges and defeats into opportunities for growth.  This is a GREAT opportunity for mentors and mentees to jointly attend, as the hypotheticals can be the starting point for future conversations.  Co-hosted by SABAW and ABA IP Section.  Presentation by ABA Member Katie Larkin Wong followed by multiple break-out room discussions.   Event is free and open to everyone.

Register here: Meeting Registration - Zoom

 Starbucks Corporation Law & Corporate Affairs Department 2021-2022 Diversity Mentorship Program The Starbucks Law & Corporate Affairs Department is pleased to invite mentee participants for our Starbucks Diversity Mentorship Program. This program will connect Starbucks in-house lawyers with junior attorneys from diverse backgrounds in one-to-one mentorship relationships. The Starbucks legal department boasts one of the most experienced and diverse groups of attorneys in the region, and our lawyers are excited to share their insights into learning the practice of law, their advice in navigating legal work environments, and for those who are interested, strategies for future career development.

Following a virtual kick-off reception for incoming mentees and their mentors, this program will foster direct, informal interactions over a one-year period to help diverse junior attorneys connect and network in the local community of legal professionals and business leaders. The program is open to all lawyers in private practice in their first four years as an attorney, and who are members of one or more minority bar associations or diversity affinity groups.

If you are interested in applying, please submit a cover letter and resume to committee member Heather Stutz at hstutz@starbucks.com by Friday, August 20, 2021. In your cover letter, please identify your current area of practice (and your desired area, if different), your general interest in receiving mentoring, and the minority bar association(s) or affinity group(s) to which you belong.

If you have any questions, please direct them to Heather, and one of our committee members will follow up with you. Sincerely, The Starbucks L&CA Diversity Mentorship Committee 

Please join the NCWBA for its 2021 Annual Women's Bar Leadership Summit: What's Your Why?, which will be held virtually August 5-12, 2021. This year's programming, which will be hosted over the course of several days, is designed to challenge women in leadership positions within their bar organizations to identify the motivators for the work they do and to develop strategies for harnessing the energy from those motivators to grow and lead their organizations.  It will feature programming on practical skills, networking opportunities, and ways for member organizations to learn to best use the community of support that the NCWBA provides.  

If you would like more information on this year's Summit, please email our Executive Director, Christina Simpson (info@ncwba.org). To register, please click here.

Please see below for a summary of the Summit events:

• Kick off and Keynote Speaker on August 5, 2021 @ 1:00pm ET. Keynoting the event is Michelle Silverthorn, Diversity Speaker, Culture Change Expert, Founder of Inclusion Nation, and Author. Ms. Silverthorn “encourage[s] people to live authentically in diverse communities grounded in honesty, courage and leadership.” Her TedX talk can be viewed at michellesilverthorn.com/tedx-talk.  Followed by guided discussion.

• Swearing In Ceremony and Opening Remarks on August 6, 2021 @ 1:00pm ET. Please join us for an introduction from our outgoing president, Nicolette S. Zachary, the swearing in of our new board year by Judge Hilda Tagle, Senior United States District Judge for the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas. Closing out this portion of programming will be remarks by our incoming president, Shiloh Theberge. Followed by Awards Ceremony, Trivia, and Networking.  

• What’s Your Why: Why Representation Matters on August 9, 2021 @ 3:00pm ET. This program will feature a panel representing diverse career paths within the legal field, who are also women of color with diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. The discussion will focus on the hurdles the panelists have faced in their careers, how they have overcome those hurdles and why having women, in particular BIPOC women, represented across our profession matters.

• What’s Your Why: Mindfulness for the Legal Mind on August 10, 2021 @ 1pm ET. Join us for an interactive workshop on strategies for leveraging mindfulness to help you thrive. Mindfulness for the Legal Mind is a blend of classical mindfulness, contemplative neuroscience, and practical tools designed specifically for legal professionals who want to better understand the (legal) mind and learn ways to cultivate states of mind that support greater effectiveness and wellbeing. In this program, Judi Cohen, Founder of Warrior One and Lecturer at Berkeley Law, will provide an overview of mindfulness, share tips for using mindfulness to reduce stress and improve your overall performance, and lead you through guided mindfulness exercises.

• Overcoming Leadership Obstacles: Panel Discussion and Workshop on August 10, 2021 @ 3pm ET: This session begins with a brief panel discussion by women lawyers with extensive backgrounds in in the worlds of public diplomacy, the military, corporations, and academia. They’ll talk about leadership challenges they’ve faced and the advice they wish they’d had earlier in their career. Then you’ll team up with them in small groups to problem solve real-life leadership challenges facing lawyers in their office or their bar association, in the areas of board governance, social media, and staff interactions. office challenges. This is a session for any leader who has ever asked “Why did this have to happen on my watch?”

• What’s Your Why: Leveraging Energy into Action on August 11 @ 1pm ET. An inspirational conversation with women lawyers who have leveraged the energy behind their "why" into tangible action to make waves in their community.

• What’s Your Why: Member Best Practices on August 11 @ 3pm ET. Interactive session for Summit participants to present and share their organizations’ innovative programs, initiatives, services, and solutions for issues facing their bar associations and women in the profession.

• GOOD Guys: Young Lawyers Edition on August 12, 2021 @2 - 4pm ET.  This GOOD Guys program is the third of four planned joint programs with the Commission on Women in the Profession. This program is a brief presentation about the GOOD Guys program and includes a panel of young lawyers who are successful in their fields to discuss why they are GOOD Guys, why other male leaders should be GOOD Guys, and how male leaders can lead change for the benefit of all.