Infobit: Since 1985, law schools have been graduating classes of new lawyers that are 40% or more female. Yet in 1996, only 14.2% of law firm partners were women, and in 2005, only 17.2% were women. (Note: this figure is for all partners; the number of equity partners is lower.) Source: Catalyst. At this rate of increase, women should make up half of law firm partners by the year 2115.

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Linda Bray Chanow, Esq. is the Director of Research for the Project for Attorney Retention and Senior Counsel at the Center for WorkLife Law (WLL), a nonprofit research and advocacy center at the University of California Hastings College of the Law. Since 1997, Ms. Chanow has worked to advance women lawyers and promote greater workplace flexibility in law firms. She is a frequent speaker and author on topics relating to women lawyers and flexible work arrangements. Ms. Chanow serves as Co-Chair of the D.C. Women's Bar Association Initiative on Advancement and Retention of Women and was instrumental in the WBA Initiative's groundbreaking final report, Creating Pathways to Success. She is the author of the nationally-referenced work, Results of Lawyers, Work & Family: A Study of Alternative Schedule Programs at Law Firms in the District of Columbia. In addition to her local bar association work, Ms. Chanow recently designed and implemented, Ready to On-Ramp?, for the National Association of Women Lawyers to help women lawyers develop their own personal strategy for re-entering the legal workplace.

Until recently, Ms. Chanow was head of the Women's Career Development practice at Shannon & Manch, L.L.P. Ms. Chanow began her legal career as a commercial litigator and bankruptcy lawyer at WilmerHale. In addition to her legal work representing clients before federal, state, and administrative courts, Ms. Chanow played a leadership role in assessing and developing policies and programs related to work-life balance and the advancement and retention of women lawyers at WilmerHale. Ms. Chanow graduated magna cum laude from American University's Washington College of Law in 1999. While in law school, Ms. Chanow focused on employment law and worked with Distinguished Professor of Law Joan Williams on the development of Professor Williams' book, UnBending Gender. Ms. Chanow also served as a Legislative Fellow to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and as an Equal Employment Opportunity Law Clerk at the National Partnership for Women & Families.