Career Toolkit: Lawyer Moms & Working Parents
| Type of Resource | Resource | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Webinar | Mothers in the Law: Confronting the Challenges and Celebrating the Victories | In summer 2021, an ABA Journal article caused an uproar when its author suggested that once women lawyers become mothers, they fail to pay attention to their career trajectories and lose focus on professional success. This panel discusses the institutional challenges, societal expectations and unconscious biases faced by lawyer moms, as well as the steps that can be taken to succeed as both a lawyer and a mom. |
| Video | Work Life Balance for Lawyer Moms | Wonder what it’s like to be a mom lawyer? Working as a lawyer is tough in and of itself, but being a district attorney working mom or in-house counsel working mom adds an entire new level of complication and commitment. In this video, Sarah Brubaker, full-time lawyer, mom of two, and host of the Mom Brief Podcast, discusses what it’s like to be a lawyer with kids. Hear her stories of lawyer life and motherhood, and dive into her working mom life hacks! |
| Center | The Center for WorkLife Law | The Center for WorkLife Law is an advocacy and research organization at UC Hastings Law that seeks to advance racial, gender, and class equity by strengthening legal rights for pregnant people and family caregivers. WorkLife Law addresses inequality at a structural level by developing and implementing concrete, evidence-based interventions in schools and workplaces and changing public policy at the state and national levels. |
| Blog | DC Urban Moms and Dads | A forum to connect working parents in the DC area. |
| Website | Pregnant at Work | This online resource center provides tools and educational materials for pregnant and breastfeeding workers, the healthcare professionals who treat them, and the attorneys who represent them. It also has useful materials for companies, human resources professionals, and management attorneys that can assist in navigating the many legal and practical considerations around pregnancy and breastfeeding accommodations. |
| Website | It’s Working Project | Founded by Julia Beck, It’s Working Project’s purpose and passion is to actively support the American workforce and the private sector to develop strategies for supporting working families, keeping them engaged at work and at home with ease, as a matter of course and with a sense of pride. |
| Center | Center for Parental Leave Leadership | The Center for Parental Leave Leadership is the first consulting and coaching company devoted exclusively to helping our nation’s families, employees, employers, and companies improve their parental leave policy and practice. |
| Website | FairyGodBoss | A network of working mothers, including jobs, advice, connections, and resources. |
| Website | A Better Balance | A Better Balance, a national nonprofit advocacy organization, uses the power of the law to advance justice for workers, so they can care for themselves and their loved ones without jeopardizing their economic security. Through legislative advocacy, direct legal services and strategic litigation, and public education, the expert legal team combats discrimination against pregnant workers and caregivers and advances supportive policies like paid sick time, paid family and medical leave, fair scheduling, and accessible, quality childcare and eldercare. |
| Website | MothersEsquire | MothersEsquire’s Mission is to achieve gender equity in the legal profession by improving promotion and retention rates of women in the law, along with championing equal pay and transparency regarding compensation practices in the legal profession. |
| Blog | Chaos & Quiet | Chaos & Quiet was created to help busy families simplify and organize their chaotic lives. Its goal is to provide you with top-notch information, advice, and support – to help create that village that so many of us are lacking. It is written by a lawyer mom. |
| Report | ABA’s Commission on Women in the Profession: Legal Careers of Parents and Child Caregivers | This 2023 ABA report sheds light on how parenting impacts the legal careers of parents and child caregivers. The report, based on survey responses from more than 8,000 lawyers nationwide in various work settings and a dozen focus group interviews, reveals that many parents feel having children had a negative impact on their careers and more than half of working mothers felt they were perceived as less committed and less competent by their employers. The data reveals that this is not just a law firm problem but a legal profession problem that is impacting caregivers of children in all work settings. The report outlines best practices and policies with the hope that they will disrupt the paradigm and help create a level playing field for women with children in all practice settings. |
The Committee welcomes feedback from the WBA membership about the Toolkit at careertoolkit@wbadc.org. If you have suggestions for resources to include, please use “TOOLKIT RESOURCES” in your email subject line.