Mary Ellen Kleiman is the Senior Vice President of Legal Affairs and General Counsel for Disability:IN, a leading nonprofit resource for business disability inclusion worldwide. Prior to joining the Disability:IN team, she served as Senior Counsel for the National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) and advised its related charitable foundation.
She also serves as the current President of the Women’s Bar Association Foundation.
Before joining NACDS, she was an associate in the Washington, DC office of Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer, & Feld, L.L.P. She graduated from Northwestern University and the Columbus School of Law of the Catholic University of America. Mary Ellen is a very proud military spouse and parent, proud (grown) sons’ parent, and soon-to-be proud grandmother. She is also Kali’s devoted puppy parent.
When did you join the WBA?
2018
Why did you join the WBA?
I came to the WBA late in my career, having been introduced to it through Bridget Bailey Lipscomb, former WBA/WBAF president. I was thrilled to find a community for women lawyers in DC that was focused on our professional development and personal goals, devoted to helping us maximize our potential and minimize any barriers we may face. I loved having found a space in which to learn and develop along with my women legal peers, based in the community in which we all jointly live and work. Now entering my 30th year of practice, I wish I had known about it much earlier in my professional life!
What benefits do you get from being a part of the WBA and why do you think others should join?
The power of the benefits of WBA membership is that they build exponentially, over time, providing an increasing return. These benefits include access to tremendous resources, opportunities for professional business and skill development, programs to help balance the ever-increasing demands of life as women lawyers, and meaningful networks, both professional and personal. Just today, I received an email from a WBA colleague thanking several of us in the WBA community for our support, both emotional and practical, during a recent healthcare challenge!
I think other lawyers should join to be lifted up and to lift up others in our profession in a way that is uniquely possible when women, and men in affinity with women, join together to empower one another through connections and community. It is such good stuff! Don’t be late to the show like I was, missing out on years of the benefits of WBA membership. 🙂
How has being a parent enhanced your career?
The parallel jobs of lawyer and parent can be a real challenge at times, but when you look for it, your experience in one role can be used to bolster you in the other. My legal career has been enhanced as a parent through improved time management skills, on-the-spot problem-solving, patience in the face of unexpected developments, honed argument skills, and management of prickly personalities (those teen years do have a silver lining!).
But also, being a lawyer has helped me as a parent. Indeed, at times, I sat down with one of my sons and negotiated contract-based resolutions to impactful, tension-filled issues, empowering him, making him a part of the solution, and giving him ownership of the outcome. For example, we negotiated contracts to get him out of the house on time for middle school and to help him get launched after college, which proved surprisingly effective. In those situations, it no longer became me telling him what to do; rather, he had to meet the obligations to which he had agreed, a much easier sell!
Do you have a mentor/hero? Please describe her/his impact on your professional and/or personal life
One of the partners at Akin that I worked with early in my career was a very impactful mentor. He was pretty unflappable, smart, down-to-earth, demanding, and hardworking. My years working with him left me with two very important takeaways that I still rely on routinely in my professional and personal life.
The first, mistakes happen, but don’t get lost in them; rather, fix what you can and move on. I recall making a pretty big litigation-related mistake on a case we were working on, and about which I was dreading telling him. When I reported to him on my oversight and its negative impact, I anticipated a stern lecture about my failure. However, what he merely said to me was, “So, how are you going to fix it?” Second, he taught me the benefit of never being afraid to ask for what you want or need, and even to be a squeaky wheel, if necessary. Working with him, I learned that if you are insistent and persistent, more often than not, you get a response, and sometimes even THE response you are seeking.
What words of advice do you have for women new to the profession?
Here are my words of advice for any new lawyer – you have to be a strong advocate for yourself, professionally and personally. No one will care more about your professional development and personal well-being than you. It is just a fact. And it is not, as a default, because senior associates, or junior partners, or managers, or mentors don’t care about you; it is just that everyone is caught up in their own lives, dealing with their own stuff. So do not expect them to read your mind regarding what you are thinking or feeling, how overloaded you are, what assignments you like or don’t like, what opportunities you are desperately seeking, or what teams you are an ill-fit for, even if you think they should know. They don’t. As a result, it is on you to ADVOCATE FOR YOURSELF! Treat yourself as your first, most important client.
What other organizations are you involved in (professional, civic, etc.)?
I currently proudly serve as President of the Women’s Bar Association Foundation. The Foundation is the charitable affiliate of the WBA, founded over 40 years ago. Its mission is to provide grants to nonprofits serving the legal and related needs of women and girls in the DC Metropolitan area by leveraging the generosity of the legal community, in particular the WBA and its membership, and its allies. You can learn more about the Foundation and how to support it here: https://www.wbadcfoundation.org/, and can directly donate to the Foundation here: https://wbaf.kindful.com/. I have been on the Foundation Board almost as long as I have been a WBA member.
The Foundation’s close affiliation with the WBA gives it a unique relationship in which the WBA and its members offer financial support to the Foundation and in-kind support to its grantees. The Foundation provides WBA members with opportunities for philanthropic engagement and development by sponsoring or registering and attending its fundraising events, serving on its board committees, or even through board service. The mutual bond between the WBA and the Foundation is a powerful one that only grows stronger over time.