The Portia Project

Today’s guest is Chief Justice Bridget Mary McCormack of the Michigan Supreme Court, one of the cohosts of the Lady Justice podcast. She sits down with M.C. Sungaila to talk about how being Chief Justice has helped her impact the legal system. Chief Justice McCormack shares her work prior to the bench as a criminal defender, and as a law professor and dean of clinical education, including in innocence clinics seeking to exonerate the wrongly convicted. She also gives advice for law students on their careers, and for lawyers on advocacy, and describes one of the most rewarding parts of her role as Chief Justice- the opportunity to provide administrative oversight to the court system.

As part of a Girls Inc. Of Orange County "Girls Meet the Workforce" job readiness And Externship program, about 100 11thgrade girls from Orange County gathered at Santa Ana College for a live recording of the Portia Project® podcast, which featured prominent female lawyers and judges from Southern California.

This live event featured previous podcast guests and was tailored for Girls Inc. of Orange County attendees. In addition to podcast host M.C. Sungaila, panelists included Justices Eileen Moore and Joanne Motoike of the California Court of Appeal; Justice Kimberly Knill of the Orange County Superior Court; Orange County Senior Assistant Public Defender Tracy LeSage; and Loyola Law School professor, Rebecca Delfino.

Girls Inc. of Orange County has been a respected member of the non-profit community since 1954. The mission of Girls Inc. is to inspire all girls to be strong, smart, and bold. We put our mission into practice through the Girls Inc. experience that equips girls to navigate gender, economic, and social barriers and grow into healthy, educated, and independent adults. Health, education, and independence are the three main areas that surround our program curricula.

Girls Inc. of Orange County positively changes the lives of 4,000 girls, kindergarten to 18 years old, each year by providing year-round holistic, compensatory, and intentional programming focusing on STEM, financial literacy, sound body image, healthy relationships, and college and career readiness.

In today’s episode, California Fourth District Court of Appeal Administrative Presiding Justice Judith McConnell shares her journey from the trial bench to administrative presiding justice of the Court of Appeal, and the difference she has made for women and girls and access to justice both before and after joining the bench, including as founder and president of the Lawyers Club of San Diego and the National Association of Women Judges. 

Many people lack access to, or funds for, a lawyer. This makes public interest work an essential part of our legal system. M.C. Sungaila delves into the public interest space with Leigh Ferrin, the Director of Litigation and Pro Bono at the Public Law Center. Leigh shares how and why she chose to work in the public interest arena, and how she leads and coordinates both the team of staff attorneys at the Public Law Center and the attorneys who volunteer their time pro bono to help the Center's clients. She also shares her insights on the need for volunteerism in law and the importance of finding your passion.

Judge Nicole Bershon was appointed to the Los Angeles Superior Court in 2013 by Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. Prior to becoming a judge, she served as a court commissioner and even an inspector general just to name a few of her varied roles in law during her practice. In this episode, she chats with MC Sungaila to share the twists and turns of her journey to the bench, from commissioner to superior court judge, and the supportive community of mentors that helped her along the way. Learn more about her journey by tuning in. 

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. 

MC Sungaila welcomes the Honorable Christine Byrd of the Los Angeles Superior Court, whose path to the family law bench included serving as a federal prosecutor and BigLaw partner. She offers valuable career advice -- including making sure you are paid commensurate with the value you bring to the law firm you work at -- and how women's career paths often involve multiple lateral moves in order to gain promotions and experience.

MC Sungaila is joined by the Honorable Anna Blackburne-Rigsby, Chief Judge of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals. Chief Judge Blackburne-Rigsby shares her journey as a Black woman lawyer and the advocacy and inspiration that spurred her towards a place on the bench. She describes the influence of her mother (now a retired judge), and that of her peers and mentors, and how she is in turn helping to inspire and train the next generation of lawyers.

M.C. Sungaila sits down with former law firm partner and litigator Jennifer Friend, now CEO of Project Hope Alliance. Jennifer shares her experience of homelessness and how that led her to law school, litigating in a law firm, and now leading a non-profit organization whose mission is to help homeless youth succeed in life. Jennifer is a beacon of kindness and mercy, and articulately explains how her litigation skills make her an effective nonprofit leader.

Justice Lee Smalley Edmon is the Presiding Justice of the Second District, Division Three of the California Courts of Appeal. She previously served as a judge of the Los Angeles County Superior Court from 2000 to 2015, and was that court's first female presiding judge from 2011 to 2012. Before joining the bench, she practiced civil litigation at Adams, Duque & Hazeltine and Dewey Ballentine, and served in leadership positions in numerous bar associations and legal nonprofit boards, including as President of the Los Angeles County Bar Association.