Grit and Growth: ABA-IPL's Women in IP Action Group (WIP)

• Pages: 7-7

Section Focus

Published in Landslide® magazine, Volume 10, Number 4, a publication of the ABA Section of Intellectual Property Law (ABA-IPL), ©2018 by the American Bar Association. Reproduced with permission. All rights reserved.

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The newest of the ABA-IPL Sec-

tion’s ve afnity action groups,

the Women in IP Action Group

(WIP) is a network of legal profes-

sionals working together to advance

diversity, expand opportunities for

women, and mentor female colleagues

in the eld of intellectual property law.

At nearly 400 members since it was

founded last year, WIP shares its mem-

bers’ expertise, substantive knowledge,

and strategies in order to build a bet-

ter environment of gender equality for

teamwork and leadership within the IP

profession. As part of the American Bar

Association, WIP leverages the broad

reach of the ABA and liaises with rel-

evant organizations to attract, inspire,

and advance more women in IP.

The make-up of WIP is both women

and men, not only experienced practi-

tioners but young lawyers and energetic

law students looking for insight and

advice from members in every IP

practice and experience. The group

works together to create opportunities

for growth, learning, and support for

women in the profession. Subcommit-

tees including Education and Mentoring

operate independently and collabora-

tively to provide WIP members with

opportunities in the Section, within the

ABA, and with professional women’s

groups around the US.

WIP’s substantive and broad rep-

resentation contributes to its success.

Chair Lisa Dunner, a trademark and

copyright attorney, left big-rm life

as a partner and launched her own

rm. Members are from all areas of

IP, including patent, trademark, copy-

right, and trade secrets, and there is

also diversity in practice arenas: private

practitioners, corporate counsel, gov-

ernment counsel, start-ups, and solo

practitioners. As one of its many ini-

tiatives WIP focuses on involving its

community in various parts of the coun-

try. An example of that is the “Grit

Project” designed to educate women

lawyers about the science behind the

grit and growth mindset—two impor-

tant traits that many successful women

lawyers have in common. WIP has

identied the ABA Commission on

Women in the Profession’s Grit Proj-

ect as a top priority, and it launched

its own initial program in Washington,

DC, last year. WIP plans to produce a

number of Grit programs in various US

cities throughout the year, and mem-

bers are an integral part of planning and

promoting.

Along with its grit and growth mind-

set, WIP also believes that a great way

to create opportunities for learning and

development is through others—espe-

cially through leveraging trials and best

practices of successful women law-

yers. WIP’s monthly telephonic speaker

series features notable women in the

profession. An impressive group of

women practitioners have addressed

the group in recent months. All of these

speakers shared stories about the men-

tors in their lives, how they rolled up

their sleeves and got involved, and

ultimately achieved highly successful

careers. The Honorable Kara Fernan-

dez Stoll, US Court of Appeals for the

Federal Circuit, told about her experi-

ence moving from private practice to

the bench and the mentors that helped

her make the transition. Linda Klein,

past president of the ABA, spoke about

many of the initiatives she worked on

and how she has thrived and beneted

from her volunteer efforts in the ABA.

Jacqueline Charlesworth, former Gen-

eral Council, Copyright Ofce and of

counsel at Covington mentioned the

work-life balance differences in govern-

ment compared to private practice. The

Honorable Lucy Koh, US District Court

for the Northern District of California,

engaged WIP members about court-

room experiences, biases and prejudices

encountered in everyone’s careers,

and gave valuable advice on how best

to overcome obstacles. Dale Cendali,

partner, Kirkland & Ellis, spoke about

the mentors and others in her life who

helped her along the way.

A strong thread for WIP is the focus

on positive ways to achieve success in

the profession. And WIP puts special

emphasis on empowerment and practi-

cal tools needed to achieve balance in

one’s career and life.

For more information and to join

WIP visit http://ambar.org/WIP. n

Grit and Growth: ABA-IPL’s Women in IP Action Group (WIP)