While not a Millennial himself, Ben Gold '06 has had ample opportunity to study lawyers in that category. After receiving his J.D., Gold worked in the legal departments of two city housing authorities -- in New Haven and then Danbury, Conn., and is now executive director of North Central Massachusetts Housing Authorities in Leominster, Mass. Talking with some lawyer friends in 2017, he was struck…
Type: Story
Rachel Feiden ’19 was sitting in a business law class in high school when she first realized that she wanted to be lawyer. “I was totally enthralled by [the idea],” Feiden recalls. However, that was 2011, and the aftermath of the Great Recession was hurting the legal profession just as badly as the finance industry. “Everyone at that point told me going to law school would be the worst decision I…, Story courtesy of Lawyer Stories .
Type: Story
Though long accepted as a cornerstone of the criminal justice system in the United States, the tradition of cash bail in fact perpetuates injustice and inequity. This was the message of Robin Steinberg, CEO of The Bail Project – a national nonprofit revolving bail fund that she founded in 2017 – when she delivered Roger Williams University School of Law's 15th Annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King,…, ‘Decarceration Strategy’, The Bail Project was born one night over Chinese takeout in New York City, Steinberg said. She was venting to her husband David over this frustrating state of affairs when he suggested, “Why don’t we just raise a bunch of money and create a fund, and then we can start bailing clients out? Why not?” The idea was straightforward enough: money would be placed into “a sustainable, revolving bail fund…, ‘The Larger Edifice’, Community Release with Support involves three elements, Steinberg explained: (1) effective court reminders, (2) transportation assistance, (“one of the biggest obstacles around the country,” she noted), and (3) individualized needs assessments to determine what voluntary services or community-based programs a client might need (“whether it is housing, food, drug treatment, or mental health…, ‘The Wind is at Our Backs’, The ultimate goal, however, is not an infinite expansion of the Bail Project – but rather, a step-by-step effort to be rid of the bail system altogether. “If we want to end mass incarceration and create a justice system that works for all, eliminating our current cash bail system is a necessary first step,” Steinberg said. However, such a change is “not going to be easy. Systems and ideologies…
Type: Article
Gillian Lester , dean of Columbia Law School, advised and inspired on Tuesday evening as guest speaker for the Inaugural Women in Law Leadership Lecture at Roger Williams University School of Law, urging women lawyers and law students to claim "a place at the table." Conversing in a relaxed “fireside chat” format before a sizeable audience in the Honorable Bruce M. Selya Appellate Courtroom,…, I’m, the interim dean!’ I started thinking about the gender dynamics at work there, and that was part of what spurred me to throw my hat in.” Still, it wasn't an easy decision. “I felt a lot of trepidation,” Lester said. “In my own mind, I didn’t fit the profile of a dean. I had a lot of fears about both my skills and abilities as well as the stakes of taking on a role like that. I worried about my…, this, room! – I slow down, shoulders back, and I take a deep breath. So I really think mentors are critically important, particularly for women, who sometimes need that tap on the shoulder and that piece of encouragement.” From her powerful position today, Lester said, she still tries to encourage young women lawyers and law students in the same way. “You receive it and you pay it forward,” she said. “…, Family Issues, Returning to the question of work-family balance, Sack asked about Lester’s approach during her deanship. “I was pretty clear from the beginning that I had children,” Lester said. “And I committed – though I know that not everybody can do this – to trying, not, to go out for evening events more than two nights a week, wanting to be home at the dinner table for the rest of the week.” She also lists parental and other familial obligations on her calendar. “Once you become a dean, everybody sees your calendar,” she said. “So when I had a parent-teacher meeting or some kind of school-related thing, I asked that we call it what it is – rather than just…, Lessons in Leadership, Lester is particularly interested in leadership education, particularly for women and underrepresented groups. Sack asked about her activities in that area. “So many lawyers go into positions of leadership,” Lester replied. “Yet for a long time, law schools didn’t specifically teach leadership. So now we have [at Columbia Law] a marquee course as well as a number of experiential laboratory…, all, its forms." Lester continued, "A vision can be articulated quietly as well as loudly. Inspiration, encouragement and mentorship can be delivered in ways that don’t necessarily involve an iconic person standing alone at the front of the room. I think some of the most powerful kinds of leadership involve a quiet assist – through listening, deep collaboration, give and take. Qualities that are…, Addressing a New Reality, Asked about ways in which women can improve their position in the legal profession, Lester made a few impromptu suggestions:, Adapt the partnership track., “People go to law school a little bit later in life now. So often the time when women are talking with their partners about whether or not to have a child is now exactly the time when [law firm] partnership decisions are being made. So extending the partnership track – the duration of the period of being an associate – a little bit longer has been found to be a way of helping women get through…, Act collectively., A pressing question for women lawyers, Lester said, is: “How do I fulfill my obligations in the workplace as well as my obligations at home?” The best way to answer that question is by “working collectively, talking through and sharing your stories, and then finding mentors and sponsors – people you can cultivate to be advisors and coaches to you.” When Lester was a young, untenured…, Guard against implicit bias., “There are a lot of ways that implicit bias can creep into the process of assessing men’s performance versus women’s performance. The kinds of descriptions that are used for men are often things like ‘fire in the belly.’ The descriptions that more frequently come up for women who’ve been performing well include things like ‘well-organized.’” The problem is, “while people might say about the woman…, everybody, is responsible for, all, of those things. And if you don’t perform on any of those qualities, then it’s weighted equally. Or if you, do, perform well on any of those qualities, that’s also weighted equally.”, Be confident., “It’s really about confidence," Lester said. "What I wish for the next generation is that they have a deep belief that when they walk into a room, they have a place at the table. That they have the confidence to know they don’t need to sit in the back row.” The Inaugural Women in Law Leadership Lecture was made possible by RWU Law’s Presenting Sponsor, Adler Pollock & Sheehan PC , along with…
Type: Article
Law students and lawyers spend countless hours drafting, writing, editing, and rewriting papers. But this does not necessarily mean that their work-product is the highest quality. In many cases, having a second set of eyes to review and make suggestions can help attune writers to style and grammar habits that they wouldn’t otherwise notice. Professor Kishbaugh , for example, spends countless…
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This week the Legal Beagle is doing some serious journalism by interviewing Professor Raposa. Below is a transcript of our conversation: 1. What is the best piece of advice anyone ever gave you? To not let anyone else impact your happiness, and similarly, to not care about what anyone says or thinks about you. This is all easier said than done, but it’s advice I constantly remind myself of. 2.…
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Type: Photo Gallery
To celebrate the close of Black History Month, 14 members of the Black Law Student Association (BLSA), alumni and supporters dressed in all black and stood together on the marble steps of the Rhode Island State House and posed for a photo. The shoot was organized by BLSA President Bre'Anna Metts-Nixon, a 3L at the RWU School of Law and a 2013 RWU alum. Metts-Nixon planned the shoot as a…
Type: Article
Roger Williams University recognizes that some current members of the campus community may prefer to identify themselves by a first name other than their legal first name. For this reason, the University provides students and employees with an opportunity to use a “Chosen Name” where possible in the course of University business and education. Under Roger Williams University’s Chosen Name Policy…
Type: Basic Page
Recent years have seen much passionate debate over the introduction of gender-preference and gender-neutral (, they, them, theirs, ) pronouns in public life, as alternatives to the “he” and “she” traditionally used in offices, schools and institutions. But is it way too soon to introduce such changes into the nation’s supreme legal document – the Constitution of the United States? Not according to RWU Law 2L Nicole Day, who recently began circulating a Change.org petition to change the exclusive use of the pronoun "he" in…, The U.S. Constitution uses the pronoun “he” when referring to the President of the United States. Considering that the Constitution was ratified in 1787, when women could not vote, it makes sense that “she” or “they” were not used., However, it is 2020 now. We have several women candidates running in this election, several who have run in the past, and one who won the popular vote. It is time for our country’s highest legal authority to acknowledge a woman’s ability to become president., By signing this petition, you will help me pique the interest of my local congressman, David Cicilline [D-R.I.], to have him bring the issue before the House of Representatives., In a time of acute political and social crisis, doesn’t arguing over pronouns seem like a somewhat frivolous indulgence? Absolutely not, says Day. “It’s not just a matter of semantics,” she explains. “There is a history of gender inequality in this country, particularly when it comes to politics. Young girls see women candidates running today, but when they take a government class, they see that…, 'Harder Than I Thought', The seed of Day’s petition was, in fact, her Constitutional Law class, in which Professor Jonathan Gutoff typically used gender-inclusive language in discussing the Constitution. “He is a really nice, wonderful man,” Day recalls. “I noticed that when he referred to parts of the Constitution concerning the presidency, he would always make it a point to say ‘he –, or, she,’ and sometimes he would just use the pronoun ‘she.’ When he did that, I thought, ‘Yeah, it actually, is, kind of weird that it still says ‘he.’” Day knows how to make an impression: the University of Colorado graduate came to RWU Law after a decade spent in Los Angeles working in the entertainment industry – producing, directing and acting in film, television and on stage. However, initial reactions to her petition weren’t the enthusiastic, non-partisan, “Of course! Obviously!” sort of endorsement…
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