ASKED & ANSWERED: Jennifer Belveal on women in the law

By Steve Thorpe Legal News Jennifer Belveal led a group of attorney and staff team members in nominating Honigman, Miller, Schwartz, and Cohn LLP for the 50 Best Law Firms for Women recognition. Aside from being a working mom, she is a partner in the Litigation Department at Honigman, serves as associate general counsel, co-chair of the firm's White Collar Criminal Defense and Investigations Practice Group, chair of its Pro Bono Committee, and co-chair of the Retention Subcommittee of the firm's Committee on Women Attorney Initiatives. Her law practice focuses on both white collar criminal defense and complex commercial litigation involving many aspects of business, real estate, health care and environmental laws. Thorpe: How did Honigman come to have such a strong commitment to women in the workplace? Belveal: Honigman long ago realized that what is best for clients and for business is a strong talent base, and women are an important part of that base. Our firm stands out as a leader among women-friendly law firms for three important reasons: (1) Honigman offers unparalleled flexibility to accommodate each lawyer's individual needs; (2) Honigman is a true meritocracy, which allows women to advance without limits; and (3) Honigman is committed to the success of women attorneys. Thorpe: The firm has been honored recently for their commitment to women. Tell us about that. Belveal: For the fourth year, Honigman is the only Michigan law firm to be named one of the 50 Best Law Firms for Women by Working Mother magazine and Flex-Time Lawyers. Honigman also earned this recognition in 2008, 2009 and 2011 (there was no list in 2010). This recognition is based on law firms' family-friendly policies and focused initiatives that help retain and advance women attorneys. In addition, Honigman is proud to be named among the "101 Best and Brightest Companies to Work For" and one of the Detroit Free Press "Top Workplaces" in Michigan. Thorpe: What are some of the policies that make the firm a good place for women to work? Belveal: Honigman provides paid maternity and paternity leave for both birth parents and adoptive parents. In addition, the firm successfully utilizes an alternative work schedule policy which allows both female and male lawyers to work flex or reduced schedules while staying on the partnership track. The firm also provides a clear and transparent path for success by using core competencies, benchmarks and performance evaluations to mark progress. This provides a level playing field for advancement. Thorpe: How does Honigman insure that women get equal opportunities? Belveal: As part of the firm's commitment to women, it created a Committee on Women Initiatives as one of its governing committees. This group includes task forces aimed at achieving improvements in core areas of retention, career development and business development. Honigman continues to support and improve upon many of its historical best practices, innovative policies and benefits designed to have an impact on helping female lawyers manage their career and family. Two examples are: (1) The "Honigman Women Attorneys' Forum" which is an annual event that brings together all female lawyers in the firm to network and to hear a national speaker on various topics designed to enhance personal, career and business development. (2) Affinity groups are designed to provide lawyers and senior staff with similar interests a platform to foster personal and professional relationships, including groups specifically helpful for women attorneys, including "Women Making Connections" and the "Parent's Affinity Group." Thorpe: What are some of the new programs that Honigman has created especially for women? Belveal: Two recently initiated programs are the Honigman Ally Program and the Just Add Women toolkit series. The Ally Program is a long-term initiative that pairs each female associate with a female partner until the associate reaches partnership. The goal is to create a support system and encourage networking and sponsorship. Honigman acquired the Just Add Women toolkit series from Negotiating Women Inc. The toolkit series (which has been endorsed by the National Association of Women Lawyers and is used by several national law firms) is a "turnkey" program, designed to educate professional women in the skills and strategies they need to successfully manage their careers. Each program in the series is led by women attorneys within the firm who receive facilitator training and get the opportunity to demonstrate their leadership skills. Thorpe: Tell us about an area within your firm where women play a leading role. Belveal: Aside from leadership roles on the firm's board of directors, on firm governance committees, as department chairs and practice group leaders, Honigman has created an Attorney Development and Recruiting Department staffed with a very resourceful group of women. It was not the firm's intention to create an all-female staff but it was the result of choosing the best person for the position without regard to gender. Tricia Sherick, a partner in the firm's Commercial Law, Bankruptcy and Reorganization Department, leads the new Department as the Partner of Attorney Development and Recruitment. The firm also hired Julie Norris as its director of Attorney Development and Recruitment. Julie, who reports not only to the partner of Attorney Development and Recruitment, but also directly to the firm's chairman and CEO, is an attorney who ran her own consulting and executive coaching business for 20 years, with clients including Fortune 100 companies in various industries. In addition, the manager of Attorney Development and Recruitment is Abby Stover, a former associate attorney with Honigman who understands the needs of developing attorneys. Thorpe: What does the future hold for the firm in terms of "women friendly" policies? Belveal: The firm continues to hone its programs and search for innovative ways to insure that women attorneys have the best available resources to succeed. Now that many "baseline" programs are firmly established, the focus is on expanding tailored opportunities for women attorneys in professional and business development, the two areas that are most crucial to the success of any attorney. Published: Tue, Dec 11, 2012

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