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Gender Equality Committee
Mission:
This committee investigates issues of gender discrimination and equality in the legal profession and in the legal system. The committee may undertake projects as deemed necessary or appropriate to ensure fair treatment and equality of all members of the legal profession and all participants in the legal system. The focus for this committee includes follow-up to the findings of the latest NHBA Gender Equality Survey, including development of a proposed voluntary certification process of non-discriminatory, family-friendly employment policies for legal employers to be presented to the NHBA Board of Governors.
Committee Leadership
Chair: Meredith M. Lasna
Co-vice Chair: Kelleigh C. Murphy Gleason
Co-vice Chair: Jacqueline A. Leary
Successful Negotiations Workshop
The New Hampshire Bar Association Gender Equality Committee and New Lawyers Committee partnered with the New Hampshire Women’s Bar Association to put on a Negotiations workshop. Law students and new lawyers had the opportunity to watch a new hire and lateral/partner level interview and then engage in discussions about how to address some issues that come up during interviews. In addition, the workshop included a panel discussion on the dos and don’ts of negotiating and interviewing, and the panelists also answered questions from the attendees. Thank you to the attorneys with Upton & Hatfield, Pastori Krans, Bernstein Shur, Manning & Zimmerman, Murphy Legal, and McLane Middleton for providing invaluable insight to the future of the New Hampshire Bar.
Gender Equality Committee Holds “Ask Me Anything” Event with UNH Law Students
On Tuesday, November 10, NHBA’s Gender Equality Committee partnered with the Women’s Student Law Association to host an “Ask Me Anything” panel discussion. In the world of COVID, the GEC wanted to give law students an opportunity to network and ask attorney’s truly anything. Law students took the opportunity to ask questions about what to take advantage of while in law school, whether a change in field is possible, and what steps to jumpstart and further their career as practitioner in New Hampshire. The panelists each provided such a unique perspective and invaluable advice.
Philip S. Hollman Award for Gender Equality
A Hollman award recipient is someone who is dedicated to promoting respect and fair treatment toward all members of the judicial system. This person acts as a leader, educator, and role model on such issues. Congratulations to the Honorable Susan B. Carbon, who has been selected to receive the 2023 Hollman Award and will be honored at the breakfast for her efforts to advance gender equality within the state’s legal community. Judge Carbon chaired a task force that was created in 1987 by the NHBA to perform a gender bias study on the status of women in the legal profession. This task force and its findings planted the seeds for what would eventually become the GEC in 1994. Since then, Judge Carbon has been a champion for gender equality in the state, a staunch advocate for increasing the number of women in leadership, and a mentor for numerous women in the legal profession. In addition to her duties on the bench, Judge Carbon is also the director of the US Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women, nominated to the position by President Barack Obama in 2009. She is also a former NHBA president and was named judge of the year in 2020 by the National Court Appointed Special Advocate/Guardian Ad Litem Association for Children.
View All Philip S. Hollman Award Winners
Gender Equality Surveys
Families First Coronavirus Response Act: Employee Paid Leave Rights
The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA or Act) requires certain employers to provide employees with paid sick leave or expanded family and medical leave for specified reasons related to COVID-19. The Department of Labor’s (Department) Wage and Hour Division (WHD) administers and enforces the new law’s paid leave requirements. These provisions will apply from the effective date through December 31, 2020.
