Driving Diversity

Elaine Spector shares her candid thoughts on law firms requiring an in-person return to office as we transition into a post-COVID environment below.

“I get so frustrated when I hear about another Biglaw firm requiring their lawyers to return to the office full-time with minimal remote work options. While various factors may drive these changes, they have the potential to affect lawyers, particularly those with families, disproportionately.

Remote work has proven to be a game-changer for many professionals, allowing them to effectively manage their careers and personal responsibilities. The legal field is no exception, as countless lawyers have thrived while juggling complex cases and family commitments from the comfort of their homes. However, a shift away from remote work in certain Biglaw firms could inadvertently create an uneven playing field, disadvantaging those who rely on remote work options to maintain a healthy work-life balance.

Lawyers with families, in particular, could face challenges due to this shift. Many parents find remote work a lifeline, enabling them to be present for their families while delivering exceptional legal services. Eliminating or limiting remote work opportunities may unfairly bias these dedicated professionals. It doesn’t need to be this way.

When I went remote six years ago, my life completely changed. I didn’t have to waste time in my car commuting, and I could attend to my family and work more readily. I was so much less frazzled and present and happy. I became a top biller and a top rainmaker. Don’t you all want your lawyers to feel balanced and happy? I guarantee they will overperform if they are.

Are you feeling frustrated by the return to the office edicts? I’d love to hear your comments.”

Want more? Watch Elaine Spector’s Driving Diversity series HERE. Elaine shares tips and sparks conversations to drive diversity in the legal field in this weekly short-video series.

In a remarkable acknowledgement of excellence, Elaine Spector, a partner at Harrity & Harrity, has been awarded the 2023 Stars of the Bar Award by the Women’s Bar Association of the District of Columbia (WBA). This award celebrates women who have made significant contributions to the legal community and is emblematic of Elaine’s steadfast commitment to the principles that define her legal career and our firm’s mission.

About the Stars of the Bar Award

The Stars of the Bar Award is an annual recognition by the WBA Foundation, designed to honor exceptional women attorneys who have demonstrated leadership, community service, professional growth, and commitment to the WBA’s mission of maintaining the honor and integrity of the profession. This award adds to Elaine’s rich legacy of excellence in the legal community.

Dedication to Diversity

Elaine’s work in promoting diversity within the patent field echoes Harrity’s focus on increasing diversity and championing underrepresented groups in intellectual property law. Her alignment with the values recognized by the Stars of the Bar Award further emphasizes her dedication to this vital cause.

Innovation and Quality

Elaine has actively contributed to our firm’s endeavors in automation, quality, analytics, and innovation. Her role in building a progressive environment aligns with the innovative spirit rewarded by the Stars of the Bar Award and highlights Harrity’s leadership within the patent law industry.

Community Involvement

A firm believer in giving back, Elaine’s community involvement resonates with Harrity & Harrity’s values and the WBA’s focus on community service. Her generous efforts have fostered a culture of responsibility and compassion, reflecting the ideals celebrated by the Stars of the Bar Award.

Elaine Spector’s receipt of the 2023 Stars of the Bar Award by the Women’s Bar Association of the District of Columbia is a notable acknowledgment of her professional excellence, innovation, commitment to diversity, and community service. This award aligns perfectly with Harrity & Harrity’s values, making it a proud moment for our firm. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Elaine and eagerly anticipate her continued achievements in patent law.

Want more? Watch Elaine Spector’s Driving Diversity series HERE. Elaine shares tips and sparks conversations to drive diversity in the legal field in this weekly short-video series.

Elaine Spector is determined to bring equality and diversity to the patent world, and she’s not afraid to show it. She recently sat down for an interview with The Patent Lawyer magazine to discuss her inspirations, experiences, and ideas for equality in the industry.

With over 25 years of experience in intellectual property law, Elaine is a partner at the IP boutique, Harrity & Harrity, and is the first female partner in the firm’s history. She holds a degree in mechanical engineering and is dedicated to improving diversity in the field of patent law. Elaine serves as the co-chair of Harrity’s Diversity Committee and as the vice-chair of IPO’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee.

Elaine’s passion for patent law started in high school, where her love for math and science intersected with her interest in law. For those starting their career, she advises advocating for oneself and valuing the unique skills you bring to the table. Her career path involved working at various firms and transitioning into a role as a Tech Transfer Intellectual Property Manager at Johns Hopkins before joining Harrity & Harrity, where she was able to work remotely and on a flexible schedule. Elaine encourages women to set boundaries and not compromise themselves. She faced challenges in balancing work and family life early on in her career, but was able to set boundaries and find more flexibility in her schedule as her children grew older.

Of her greatest achievements in her career, Elaine recounts the memory of joining Harrity in 2017 at a time when it was a smaller firm of only about 14 lawyers (and they were all men!). Fast forward to 2023, and Harrity boasts up to about 45 practitioners now, including multiple women attorneys. This rapid growth has helped the firm move very quickly on new initiatives without much red tape. During the six years Elaine has been at Harrity, their diversity committee has launched numerous external diversity initiatives to improve the pipeline with regard to the patent bar, all with visible impacts. She mentors young women in the profession and hopes to see a more diversified patent bar in the future. Elaine’s future career aspirations include developing DEI initiatives to improve diversity in the patent bar, specifically by expanding their Patent Pathways program to support more Black women, and then shifting the program to help other underrepresented groups in the future.

In the next five years, Elaine hopes to see the patent community take a more active role in promoting diversity and equality through engagement in DEI programs like ADAPT (a coalition of various companies including Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, Google, Cruise and Disney. ADAPT stands for Advancing Diversity Across Patent Teams, and provides a platform for in-house patent attorneys and law firms to get engaged in various DEI programs) and by taking action to support initiatives like Patent Pathways. She emphasizes the need for collaboration and involvement from the larger patent community to effect meaningful change.

“I really would like to see more firms and corporations not just talking the talk and actually taking action to make these initiatives successful. My firm can’t do it by itself; we need the patent community at large to step up and get involved in programs like ours,” Elaine states.

Hear about these initiatives, the advice Elaine has to give, and more in this exclusive interview with The Patent Lawyer Magazine. Read the full article HERE.

Want more? Watch Elaine Spector’s Driving Diversity series HERE. Elaine shares tips and sparks conversations to drive diversity in the legal field in this weekly short-video series.

Elaine Spector, Partner at Harrity & Harrity, LLP, and ChIPs Washington D.C. Member, was featured in ChIPs recent spotlight, “How to Make the Future DigitALL,” which focuses on improving diversity and inclusion for women in IP. Her response? Persevere! Read the full interview below.

Q: What actions are needed to keep more women and diversity in the rooms where innovation is happening?
A: I think the most impactful action step to keep more women and diversity in the rooms where innovation is happening is to inform women about the innovation process as well as careers in the intellectual property (IP). Many women with STEM degrees don’t know that they can enter the patent profession without going to law school. You will find that many of us who entered the profession were told about it through a family member or family friend. As we inform women about the innovation process as well as careers in IP, they can then take the steps needed to be included by speaking up and being proactive with regard to invention submissions. If innovation is not their thing, they can be part of the innovation process by becoming a registered patent practitioner without having to go to law school. I am a true believer that knowledge is power! And we, as women, are more powerful than we even know.

Q: What actions can open pathways for the next generation to thrive?
A: We need more outreach programs to women to get them interested in STEM fields, as well as well as being proactive in nurturing an entrepreneurial spirit in women. Men are taught to take risks, while women are taught to be perfectionists. We need to encourage the younger generation of women to take risks. My advice for the girl or woman behind me is to not give up, to persevere. I strongly suggest building a network of like-minded women (and men) who can support you during the tough times. I’ve developed amazing friendships with women who are very similar to me, who absolutely understand my struggles. Feeling seen and heard and cared for you other women has been integral to my success.

Q: What advice would you give to the girl or woman coming up behind you?
A: My advice for the girl or woman behind me is to not give up, to persevere. I strongly suggest building a network of like-minded women (and men) who can support you during the tough times. I’ve developed amazing friendships with women who are very similar to me, who absolutely understand my struggles. Feeling seen and heard and cared for you other women has been integral to my success.

Q: How does your company embrace equity?
A: Harrity & Harrity, LLP is one of the few law firms that dedicates thousands of hours to outreach programs to change diversity of the patent profession.

Q: How do you innovate? How do your life experiences
impact your innovation?
A: I am so grateful to be part of a law firm that prides itself on innovation. Harrity innovates in many areas, including automation, analytics, charity, and diversity. For me personally, I have always been a problem solver, so innovation is second nature to me. As a child, when something would break, my mind would always go to finding a solution to get it back working again. Being at a firm that embraces my innovative spirit has led to a lot innovation in the diversity space! I am so grateful, likewise, for the innovative spirit of the members of Harrity’s Diversity committee, as we truly make an impact in diversifying the patent bar.

Harrity Partner & Diversity Co-chair, Elaine Spector, joins Judy Yee (Microsoft) as guests on Inclusion Evolution, a podcast hosted by Lisa Mueller & Mike Kasdan focusing on diversity, equity, and inclusion in the legal profession, the technology space, the world of sports, and our everyday.

This episode covers why Harrity & Elaine are so passionate about diversity; the various DEI programs we’ve launched, including the Minority Firm Incubator programs, Annual Harrity for Parity Women’s Patent Law Workshop, the Harrity Academy™, and Patent Pathways™; ADAPT.legal (Advancing Diversity Across Patent Teams)’s efforts to improve #DEI together, and much more.

It’s a fantastic episode that you won’t want to miss. Listen now at:
Apple: https://lnkd.in/gXJRA4tw
Spotify: https://lnkd.in/gW8guR5f

Harrity Partner & Diversity Co-chair, Elaine Spector, recently went viral in a LinkedIn post sharing her thoughts on how mothers are treated in the field of law, in response to a leaked text message from a male attorney to his female colleague in Ohio.

In short, the female attorney was asked to work while on maternity leave, and later resigned. She received the following text from a male partner at her firm.

“What you did — collecting salary from the firm while sitting on your ass, except to find time to interview for another job — says everything one needs to know about your character. Karma’s a bitch. Rest assured, regarding anyone who inquires, they will hear the truth from me about what a soul-less and morally bankrupt person you are.”

Elaine’s post reads:

“‘Collecting Salary From the Firm While Sitting on Your Ass’

We can all look at the statement and think it is atrocious. But what is more atrocious is that the firm leadership’s first response was to “explain” the exchange. I am happy to hear that the lawyer who sent the text was fired, but why didn’t that happen initially?

And what unnerves me the most is that many lawyers think this way. That somehow, maternity leave is easy where we just “sit on our ass” and eat bon-bons.

Let me tell you something. Growing a human inside of me (three times) was the most physically challenging time in my life, not to mention the trauma of birth. I had no idea the recovery would be so painful. Imagine having surgery and then being woken up in the middle of the night every 2 hours to nurse a child. It is absolutely physically exhausting. I needed every day of the 12 weeks I had off to recover from birth, as well as bond with my child.

So, as a show of solidarity with the woman who received that horrific text, I am posting a picture of me just after I gave birth to my first child 20 years ago. It was harder than any race I have run.

We are warriors!”

Shortly after, Elaine was featured in an article for Above the Law by Wendi Weiner, who discusses the curtailing impact of why toxic culture is to blame for women leaving law firms.

“Elaine Spector, a patent lawyer, posted in solidarity about her pregnancy and subsequent harsh recovery. Both of these posts and countless others sent a very loud and clear message: maternity leave is definitely not ‘sitting on your ass,'” the article, titled Why Toxic Culture Is To Blame For Women Leaving Law Firms reads.

At Harrity, we believe in equal treatment and opportunity regardless of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status. We are also committed to maintaining a respectful, inclusive, and supportive workplace for all employees.

In support of all working women and all moms throughout the world, if you haven’t already, we encourage you to post a picture of yourself either after childbirth, mothering your children, or whatever you have, to demonstrate our support of one another and as a way to break the bias towards moms! Please include the hashtag #BreakMomBias.

You can see more of Elaine’s insights in her weekly vlog, Driving Diversity, on LinkedIn. Learn more about our Diversity Initiatives here and join our Diversity Mentor Network here.