One Law Firm Builds Its Excellence Around a Female Majority

"What's happened is, I think, because I have been particularly successful in mentoring women, I get a ton of women that are amazing applying for jobs," Brown said. Brown, 49, who is black, said she has a reputation for acting as a mentor to both women and minorities.

LAW PRACTICE • Oct. 11, 2007
One Law Firm Builds Its Excellence Around a Female Majority

By Rebecca U. Cho
Daily Journal Staff Writer

Attorneys at the San Diego-based Brown Law Group have one less thing to worry about than most other law firms - no one has to wonder who forgot to put the toilet seat down.
The eight-attorney firm, specializing in business and employment law, has comprised only women since its inception in 2003. Only recently did the firm hire its first male attorney to start a Los Angeles location.
Janice Brown, who founded Brown Law Group after practicing for 11 years at San Diego's Seltzer Caplan McMahon Vitek, said her firm has been referred to often by clients and potential clients as "that all women law firm." Yet, she rarely markets the firm as such, she said.
"What's happened is, I think, because I have been particularly successful in mentoring women, I get a ton of women that are amazing applying for jobs," Brown said. Brown, 49, who is black, said she has a reputation for acting as a mentor to both women and minorities.
Today's attorneys, for whom finding work-life harmony is key, may find a female-managed environment particularly appealing, according to some industry insiders.
"For women trying to balance all things in life, it might be very attractive to go to a predominantly women-run and majority-of-women firm because they might feel in that environment there's more of an understanding of a lifestyle they're trying to have," said Linda Kornfeld, the managing partner of Dickstein & Shapiro's Los Angeles office.
Kornfeld oversees an office of 21 attorneys, 13 of whom are women. In a recent visit to Stanford Law School, Kornfeld said, she was surprised at how comfortable potential recruits, both men and women, were in stating that a high quality of life was the most important factor in their decision to take a job.
"There is much more pressure in corporate America to adapt to younger people's views on what successful life is," Kornfeld said. "Both men and women will be attracted to women-run businesses because of a greater acceptance to the quality of life approach."
At Dickstein & Shapiro, Kornfeld said, a mostly female staff of attorneys creates a collaborative environment with positive reinforcements galore. As a manager, she tends not to "rule from the top and bark orders and demand conduct," she said.
"I don't mean to suggest men don't brainstorm and act more collaboratively, but they say women have a more natural tendency to work collaboratively than men," Kornfeld said.
A predominantly female or an all-women law firm is rare, but nothing new. When used as a business strategy, some all-female firms have marketed themselves to potential clients who may be looking to bring in diverse outside counsel, said Larry Watanabe, a legal recruiter with Watanabe Nason & Seltzer. He said such firms have dwindled in number over the years as large firms have increased their diversity efforts.
"The vast majority of major law firms are keenly aware and are taking affirmative steps to recruit minorities and women," Watanabe said.
Brown Law Group in the past year has teamed up with Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman in representing a corporate client who wanted more diverse corporate counsel. Brown Law Group handles employment work for the client.
Brown, a litigator, said she moved out of the large-firm world seeking a more progressive, unrestrictive environment. Previous to her time at Seltzer, where she was a partner, Brown worked for four years for the U.S. Department of Justice as a trial attorney in Washington, D.C., where she was named Trial Lawyer of the Year in 1987.
"I'm much happier in the environment I'm in right now because I can be myself," Brown said. "I don't have to fit anyone's model. I'm happier and more authentic."
She said she has not aimed to exclusively hire female attorneys, having interviewed both highly qualified men and women for firm positions.
Nadia Bermudez joined Brown Law Group as an associate in 2005 after four years in big firm life, first as an associate at Pillsbury and then at Baker & McKenzie. She said she came to Brown Law Group seeking the supportive environment that she lacked in big firms.
"Being mentored by women of color was significant for me, which I'd never had," Bermudez said. "Mentorship was a big deal, mentorship of people like me."
Brown said in managing her office, she makes sure the attorneys are taking care of themselves. She said she has paid for massages and yoga classes for the attorneys and one Christmas, the firm had a spa retreat.
She said the firm's clients, who are predominantly male, benefit from the uniquely female viewpoint that the firm brings into employment issues, such as sexual harassment. But at the same time, clients seek them out because they are simply good lawyers.
"You have to promote excellence, it doesn't matter what you are," Brown said. "We bring our perspectives as women, but that doesn't mean clients wouldn't have the same expectations from us as men."
Kornfeld said she hopes to see more all-female and majority female law firms succeed.
"Certainly in Los Angeles where we're progressive and open-minded, I'd think there's great opportunity for success," Kornfeld said. "It's not about male or female, it's about competency and meritocracy. Hopefully we're getting there."


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