Hasting's Women's Law Journal (HWLJ) 25th Anniversary and Symposium

Hasting's Women's Law Journal (HWLJ) 25th Anniversary and Symposium
The Hastings Women's Law Journal (HWLJ) will be commemorating its 25th Anniversary with a symposium on October 18, 2013 entitled "Onward and Upward: Breaking Past Gender Barriers in Law and Tech." This year we will be celebrating our 25th Anniversary by inviting women in leadership roles to discuss the opportunities and obstacles they have faced in the work place. While women have come far in the last twenty-five years in terms of achieving equality in position, opportunities, and pay, we still have further to go. Our purpose in selecting speakers and panelists is to provide a comprehensive overview of the different types of work places women encounter in the Bay Area, including law firms, non-profits, start-ups, and politics. We also would like to address how the next generations of women have legal protections against inequality in the workplace.

Our discussion is framed by an overview of the four patterns of gender bias. Gender bias presents itself in four distinct patterns, as described by the Director for Worklife Law, Joan Williams: women have to work twice as hard to get half as far; women must choose between being liked and being respected; mothers are assumed incompetent and uncommitted; gender bias turns women on each other. Panel 1 will cover women's experiences in the law. Our speakers have been in a variety of working environments including non-profits, the judiciary, academia, and private practice. Panel 2 will reflect on women's experiences in the tech world, featuring women entrepreneurs, investors, and IP attorneys. Lastly, Panel 3 will cover policy developments in the Bay Area and resources for women leaders. Our speakers are executive directors, founders, and coaches.

For More Information, please contact:

Amanda Hamilton, BALIF member and HWLJ Executive Symposium Director. 

Dustin Helmer and Midori Hirai, BALIF Student Representatives