Idaho Women Lawyers Idaho Women Lawyers working for the benefit of all under represented groups in Idaho

IWL is excited to announce that our very own Wendy Olson, one of the board of directors for IWL, was nominated today by President Obama to serve as United States Attorney for Idaho.  This was one of two nominations made by the President today for such a position.  To see more about this nomination and Wendy’s   Please click this link for more information: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/president-obama-nominates-justice-thomas-delahanty-ii-and-wendy-olson-be-united-sta. 

Congratulations Wendy!

For more than a year, Maria Shriver and the Center for American Progress spearheaded research about the way Americans live and work.  The resulting comprehensive Shriver Report, http://awomansnation.com, released earlier this month, found that for the first time in our nation’s history, women make up half of the workforce and mothers are the primary breadwinners or co-breadwinners in nearly two-thirds of American families.  The website showcasing the report boldly touts, “The battle of the sexes is over.  Men and women overwhelmingly agree on what they want in life, and how they view their roles in marriage, as parents, and in their jobs.”

Just a week after the Shriver Report’s release, Joanne Lipman reacted with a rather frank and insightful New York Times Op-Ed piece, “The Mismeasure of Woman”, http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/24/opinion/24lipman.html.  Ms. Lipman takes issue with the suggestion that we are now living in a woman’s world because, as she sees it, progress for women has stalled and even taken a step backward in recent years.  After citing a litany of examples (women still earn 77 cents for each dollar earned by a man, only 15 women run Fortune 500 companies, women make up almost half of all associates but only 18.3% of the partners in law firms), she explores why this has happened. 

Ms. Lipman traces the root of the decline to the aftermath of 9/11.  She contends that, as the “war in Iraq tore America apart” and the “Internet gave everyone a soapbox” in which the “louder, the more offensive the better”, the online and then mainstream conversation about women degenerated.  She backs up this accusation with several examples - examples which, admittedly, I am shocked by, now that I see them assembled in print, but which I very well wouldn’t have even noticed hearing them live.  What this all reveals, Ms. Lipman concludes, is that while the numbers might have improved, the attitudes have not.

Perhaps Ms. Lipman’s comments offer some new insight into the questions that IWL (along with numerous other organizations and commentators) has been exploring for the last several years.  Questions like, why are there so few women judges, equity partners, rainmakers, Bar Commissioners, etc.?  For decades, women attorneys have made up a significant portion of the legal workforce, yet they occupy a much smaller fraction of the positions at the top of the legal career path.

 A recent survey by the National Association of Women Lawyers confirms that little to no progress has been made in the last year: “Fourth Annual Survey on Retention and Promotion of Women in Law Firms” http://www.nawl.org/Assets/Documents/2009+Survey.pdf (survey);
http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS134533+26-Oct-2009+BW20091026 (article summarizing survey findings). The survey’s findings include:

• Women were much more likely to be affected by recent layoffs because they were more likely to hold part-time jobs;
• Pay disparity between men and women still exists at all levels;
• Few women are significant rainmakers;
• Women are still under-represented in the upper levels of law firms. (”For over 20 years women have graduated from law schools and started careers in private practice at roughly the same rate as men, yet women continue to be markedly under-represented in the leadership ranks of firms. Women constitute fewer than 16% of equity partners, only 6% of firm managing partners, and barely 15% of the members of a firm’s highest governing committee - percentages which have not changed from 2008 and have barely advanced since the Survey began exploring these data in 2006.”)

There are so many partial explanations for this phenomenon, and they all have some legitimacy:  the mommy track; the reluctance of women-versus men-to promote themselves; the catch 22 of too few women leader role models; remaining vestiges of overt discrimination; and others. 

I think we need to add to this list:  our own attitudes toward women.

Have we individually and as a society become numb to demeaning comments about women?  Do we laugh politely when we hear a gender-based criticism of opposing counsel?  Do we unwittingly attribute unfair stereotypes to women attorneys-like indecisive, flighty or bitchy?  Do we subconsciously start with the assumption, barring evidence to the contrary, that a man is more qualified than a woman to be a judge, or Attorney General, or managing partner? 

All of us-men and women-need to carefully examine our own prejudices and vigilantly guard against the casual intrusion of such prejudices (whether ours or others’) into our daily interactions.  This is essential to maintain the integrity of our legal profession.  And, it is essential to eliminate an unseen but ever-present impediment to women attorneys’ leadership track.

Submitted by Deborah Nelson
Member of the Board of Directors, Idaho Women Lawyers, Inc.
Partner, Givens Pursley LLP

Five employees of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Idaho, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Wendy Olson (IWL Board Member) and Traci Whelan, have been honored with the Attorney General’s Award for Excellence in Law Enforcement for their work on the Joseph Duncan case, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced today. All five were part of the Duncan prosecution team; in addition to the two attorneys, those honored included Paralegal Specialist Denise Price, Litigation Support Specialist Pam Rocca, and Victim-Witness Specialist Kristi Johnson. “It is my privilege to honor these recipients for their outstanding service and commitment to our country,” Holder said. “Their varied accomplishments have advanced the interests of justice on behalf of the American people, and I’m proud to call them my colleagues.”

Duncan was given three death sentences plus multiple life prison terms in federal court in Idaho for his 2005 attack on the Groene family in Coeur d’Alene, which left four family members dead and which just one 8-year-old child survived.

This article appeared in the Spokane Review “Eye on Boise” on Thursday, October 22nd.  See http://www.spokesman.com/blogs/boise/

Welcome to the re-designed Idaho Women Lawyers website! Our goal for this website is to make it your first resource. IWL has over 90 members and is growing every month. Our members include prominent attorneys practicing in all areas of the law, State Bar and government leaders, and educators. This is a great opportunity to connect with the talent of our membership and gain invaluable professional contacts and friendships across the state.

IWL offers many opportunities to get involved in statewide activities like our 2009 Annual Bar presentation on Title IX. Board member Wendy Olson is leading the project and she welcomes your contribution to the effort. Check out Wendy’s summary of the last meeting under the Events tab for details on how to get involved. Our past President, Deb Nelson, is also leading the yearly Legislative reception - an informal after work gathering to meet and talk with the women serving Idaho in the legislature - which we hope to schedule in February or March. This is a unique and enjoyable evening, offering you the opportunity to get to know these remarkable women. Stay tuned for the date and details which will be posted under the Events tab. IWL also holds a monthly luncheon presentation on a variety of topics. In February we’re planning to have a legislator from each political party join us and in April a financial specialist is coming to talk about planning in this troublesome economic environment. When the dates are set we’ll post them so check back.

Over the last couple of years, thanks to the hard work of Mary Huneycutt, the first IWL chapter was formed for those who live and practice on the eastern side of the state. Mary motivated and organized several women to form the chapter. Eastern IWL is putting together a curriculum for junior high and high school students encouraging young women to pursue legal careers. If you want to get involved with that effort, contact Mary whose email address can be found under the Leadership tab.

Please take advantage of this website. With your participation, we can make this an ongoing community conversation about life, work, and everything in between. We want you to share your wisdom, your stories, and your reflections. Post your articles and ideas. Express your opinions. Where the conversation goes is really up to each of us.

All the best,
Peg Dougherty
IWL President

Women, whether subtly or vociferously, have always been a tremendous power in the destiny of the world.
~Eleanor Roosevelt