Inclusion Evolution

In this episode, Lisa and Mike talk with Malcolm Lemmons and Professor David Berri about the moment that Women's college basketball had this year, including the Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese controversy during the Final Four. We also tackle the disparities between men's and women's sports in general and explore its root causes and what can be done about to increase viewership and exposure for women's sports and to get women athletes the pay they deserve.

In this week’s episode, Lisa and Mike are joined by special guest, James Oliver, Jr., the founder of Kabila, an inclusive co-founder matching app that connects BIPOC and women founders to capital and to each other. James, Mike and Lisa discuss the funding gap for minority-owned businesses and how to best move the needle on this critical and long-standing issue. They also discuss the critical issue of entrepreneur mental-health and some creative initiatives focused on addressing it.

In this episode, Lisa and Mike speak with Bonnie Marcus, author of the book Not Done Yet! How Women over 50 Regain Their Confidence and Claim Their Workplace Power. Listen as Bonnie discusses what gendered ageism is and why it is a “double whammy” for women over the age of 50. Bonnie also describes how women by being their “badass selves”, can reclaim control and confidence over their careers when facing the stigma and stereotypes associated with ageism.

Today, Lisa and Mike speak with Mercedes Meyer, a shareholder at Banner & Witcoff. Mercedes is an experienced leader in both the diversity, equity and inclusion and the mental health and well-being spaces. 

In this episode, Lisa and Mike discuss the consolidated cases, Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and University of North Carolina that are currently awaiting a decision from the U.S. Supreme Court. Listen as they discuss the origins of affirmative action, the important U.S. Supreme Court cases to date involving affirmative action, the current case before the Court as well as the 5-hour oral argument that took place in October 2022. Finally, Lisa and Mike try and read the tea leaves and predict how the court will rule and discuss the implications if the court does hold to end affirmative action.

In today’s episode, Lisa and Mike talk with two individuals who are extremely passionate about increasing diversity in Patent Law – Elaine Spector and Judy Lee. Elaine is a patent attorney with Harrity & Harrity. Harrity & Harrity is a leader in programs to increase the number of diverse attorneys in patent law. Listen as Elaine describes the various programs Harrity has to increase diversity such as its Minority Firm Incubator program, Annual Women’s Patent Law Workshop, the Harrity Academy and its Patent Pathways program just to name a few. Judy is an Assistant General Counsel, IP at Microsoft, where she has been for the last 12 years supporting Microsoft’s Cloud and AI business. Listen as Judy describes “Advancing Diversity Across Patent Teams” or “ADAPT” of which Microsoft was a founding member in 2021.

In this episode, Lisa and Mike tackle the topic of allyship. Listen as they discuss what an ally is, the different types of allyship, and what lawyers and law firms can do to be better allies to underrepresented groups.

In this episode, Lisa and Mike talk about two individuals who have been in the news recently, a football player, Damar Hamlin and a politician, Jacinda Ardern, and what lawyers and law firm and business leadership can learn from each of them. The Damar Hamlin story drives home our shared experiences and traumas and how they impact us in life and is a reminder that we need to prioritize what is truly important. The Jacinda Ardern story reminds us about boundaries and priorities and having the courage to speak out and stand up for your mental health.

Everyone has biases. In this episode, Lisa and Mike discuss unconscious bias and the most common types. Listen as they offer tips and suggestions how individuals and law firms can overcome and mitigate unconscious bias.

In this episode, Lisa and Mike discuss the mental health challenges that the legal profession faces and why well-being is so important. To coincide with the start of 2023, Lisa and Mike discuss several resolutions that attorneys and law students can make to focus on and safeguard their mental health.