Glass half full?

A recent list published in Working Mother magazine honors 50 law firms around the country for having “women-friendly” work policies. Celebratory toasts all ‘round!
Well, maybe not so fast. The survey was completed by the law firms themselves, leading some to question the validity of the findings. And, more fundamentally, the numbers themselves – particularly the low percentage of women equity partners – are just flat out disheartening.
In short, firms have a very long way to go before progress can be truly said to have arrived.
Nonetheless, some firms are making a genuine effort to accommodate the child care demands and job demands of their attorneys. Some individual success stories are out there, as we report in our page one story.
What does this mean for in-house attorneys? Hiring decisions related to law firms may partly hinge on how supportive they are of female attorneys, akin to how some companies are demanding progress related to hiring and retention of minority attorneys as a condition of getting legal work.
And, on a more personal level, those in-house lawyers eyeing a return to private practice may want to know what’s in the cards when weighing a work-family balance.
Speaking of whether the glass is half full, it appears Congress is moving toward some sort of significant patent reform legislation. Whether a law will be adopted remains to be seen, but the glass seems half full, if not brimming at the moment.
And whether you like or loathe what Congress comes up with will depend on the final language. Right now, large high-tech companies like what they see, while the pharmaceutical industry and small inventors aren’t as enthusiastic.
To find out the details on what’s happening with this important piece of legislation, we have you covered in our page one story.
One last note: We are accepting nominations for the April 2008 In-House Leaders in the Law event. I urge you to submit nominations of those in-house lawyers you think are head and shoulders above the crowd in the way they conduct themselves on the job and in the community. We want to honor them, and at the same time celebrate all the hard work in-house counsel do for companies here in New England.
Please visit our home page at www.newenglandbizlawupdate.com and click on the link at our Leaders in the Law promotional ad for access to the nomination form.

Paul D. Boynton
Publisher
[email protected]