The Portia Project

Join us for an inspiring conversation with Catrina Melograna, a Senior Project Leader-Space Policy and Strategy at The Aerospace Corporation. In this inspiring episode, she shares her journey from pursuing a career in law to becoming a leading expert in the field of space policy. Discover how she found her passion in space law and policy, overcame challenges, and built a successful career in the industry. This episode is not only inspiring to those interested in Space Law but also helpful to anyone navigating a career shift. Learn about the unexpected twists and turns that led her to her dream job and how she overcame challenges along the way. So, tune in to this episode with Catrina Melograna today.

Judge John Owens of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit discusses his career and path to the bench and encourages law students and new lawyers to consider judicial clerkships or externships to enhance their careers.

Sandra Phillips, Senior VP, General Counsel, and Chief Legal Officer of Toyota North America, shares her path to the C-suite, the role mentors and sponsors have played throughout her career, what gives her career greater purpose, and the importance of paying it forward to the next generation.

NASA Engineer and Women's Aerospace Network Founder Holly Pascal joins the podcast to share resume and career development tips, as well as her experience founding and building out the Women's Aerospace Network. Tune in and learn how to advance your career in any industry with the skills you have!

Judge Wendy Wood of the Arkansas Court of Appeals shares her journey from professional basketball player to private practice, research attorney on the appellate court where she now sits, and, of course, judge. Along the way, she shares how the discipline and teamwork of basketball influenced her career and emphasizes the importance of moving beyond your fears to accomplish your dreams.

Legal design is the application of human-centered design to law, making legal systems and services more accessible, usable, and satisfying. Today, we are joined by fantastic legal design leaders Tessa Manuello, Astrid Kohlmeier, and Sarah Ouis. 

Tessa Manuello is the Founder and CEO of Legal Creatives, an online educational platform empowering legal professionals from 50+ countries to think more creatively about the law, build better brands, and win new customers. Astrid Kohlmeier is a lawyer and internationally recognized pioneer in legal design. For more than 15 years, she has combined law and design in senior positions in the insurance, litigation finance and service design industries. Sarah Ouis is an experienced legal design consultant and visual legal design coach. She is also a successful legal content creator coach, reaching millions of views on social media and followed by some of the most highly regarded legal industry leaders.

Tune in as they share the importance of legal design and the possibility of having a legal design career that those in law school might have in the future. They also share how they got into legal design and how their training impacted their work and interest in the space. Finally, they reveal a key takeaway many should consider in making their practice more creative. 

In this episode, M.C. Sungaila interviews an esteemed panel of female legal tech founders: Nicole Clark of Trellis Research, Inc., Dorna Moini of Documate, and Jacqueline Schafer of Clearbrief. They discuss their respective businesses and the pain points that pushed them to move from law into the legal tech space. This standout trio is working on ways to use emerging tech to accelerate court processes, and impact access to justice. Tune in for practical tips and insights from the ones paving the way in the tech industry, where female founders still face significant barriers. 

Note: Trellis and ClearBrief are founding sponsors of this podcast. 

Ninth Circuit Judge Lucy Koh—the first Korean American woman to serve on a federal appellate court in the United States—shares what inspired her to become a lawyer and her path to the state court and then federal bench. From an early dream of civil rights law to influential roles on Capitol Hill and within the Department of Justice, Judge Koh's path is a masterclass in perseverance and adaptability. She shares candid stories about her transition from state to federal courts, navigating new challenges in criminal and intellectual property law, and the invaluable mentorship and community support that fueled her success. She also offers advice for those considering applying to the bench. This episode is packed with insights and inspiration. Don't miss it!

Carl St. Clair, longtime Music Director of Pacific Symphony, provides insights into conducting world-class musicians, mentoring and paying it forward, and how research for a music performance mirrors a lawyer's preparation for court. For those interested in classical music – as well as leading teams, building community, and encouraging collaboration – this episode is for you.

In this compilation episode, we feature marketing and presentation tips from cross-disciplinary guests Angela Meyer, Rachel Cossar, and Carol Carpenter. If you want to level up your client development and client presentation game (particularly on remote video calls), this is your episode.