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How fully remote work has enabled me to thrive in the face of adversity

My daughter was diagnosed with cancer on Nov. 2, 2020. She had just turned 3 months old. I was visiting my family in Idaho while on maternity leave from my BigLaw job in Washington, D.C., when we got the news. Devastated and confused, we took her to St. Luke’s Children’s Cancer Institute in Boise and barely emerged for months.

Colleen R. Smith

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What 'Wolf Hall' taught me about practicing law

Every practicing attorney is familiar with the prelaw literary canon—that list of books every law student should read. A Civil Action, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Buffalo Creek Disaster. These books are meant to inspire a love of justice, hard work and a desire to fight for society’s underdogs.

Cindy Hong

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Program provides senior lawyers opportunities to teach law students abroad

Do you have an interest in sharing your experience and expertise as a practicing lawyer by teaching for a few weeks at a law school in Eastern Europe, Asia or Africa? The Senior Lawyer Visiting Professors Program might be for you.

John Erlick, Diane Fener, Richard A. Rosen, Julia Sullivan and David Zarski

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The ABA Well-Being Pledge Turns 5: Progress made, progress needed

Mark Twain once said "action speaks louder than words but not nearly as often." While that general sentiment applies in almost limitless contexts, one centrally relevant to the legal profession is the push to improve mental health and well-being among lawyers and law students.

Patrick R. Krill

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Candor: You know it when you don't see it

Probably to his regret, the late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart is best remembered for his famous nondefinition of obscenity: “I know it when I see it,” in Jacobellis v. Ohio, 378 U.S. 184 (1964).

Norm Tabler

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On Better Terms: What should we do with 'nonlawyer'?

"Nonlawyer" means someone who isn’t a lawyer. But for years, many have found the word objectionable.

Kenneth A. Adams

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My career approach could have killed me

In 1982, as a healthy 29-year-old with a brand-new JD, I joined a Washington, D.C., law firm handling class action tort litigation. Workdays there were fast and furious. Sixty-hour work weeks were the norm, but I was young and hungry, the work was stimulating and I leaned in.

Andrea “Lee” Negroni

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Three Scary Letters: Big. Law. ALS.

It’s strange how three little letters can cause so much angst, even if you know nothing about them. As a veteran aviator, I pride myself on my resiliency, flexibility and confidence. But it would be untruthful to say transitioning from over a decade of active duty flying to a legal…


Nick Warack

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Creating Space at the Table: Succeeding as a female in the still-male-dominated field of law

Growing up far from the big city in Delmar, New York, I did not know many lawyers, and I certainly knew of no lawyers to emulate. Back then I would have never dreamt of becoming a managing partner in a successful law firm. But here I am, thanks to the sound advice from mentors who saw my potential and helped me forge my way.

Sarah Thomas

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Identifying and eliminating implicit bias toward psychiatric disabilities in the legal profession

“Don’t let it happen again.” When I heard the statement, my body melted into my chair as I sat staring toward the screen in our Zoom meeting. Shock spread through my body for several moments—no words came. I was petrified and let waves of shame and disbelief flow through my body.

Lindsey Rogers-Seitz

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