Lawyer encourages minorities and women to pursue careers in law despite obstacles

AVA E. LIAS-BOOKER
Age: 47
Profession: Attorney and partner, McGuireWoods LLP, Baltimore office.
Achievements: Among the first female African-American partners at any major law firm in Maryland. In April, dismissal of the last in $79 million in claims that threatened Telos Corp., a defense contractor with more than 500 employees in Maryland.

Q. What inspired you to become an attorney?

A. In a junior high school in Georgia (I am an Army brat and my father was stationed at Fort Gordon in Augusta, Georgia) there were two pivotal events that no doubt changed the trajectory of my life. I became student council president and was chosen to be one of the lawyers in a mock trial exercise in my civics course. I knew then that I wanted to be a lawyer, a litigator and a leader in my chosen profession.

Q. What path did you take to become a lawyer? What obstacles did you face?

A. As the first in my family to attend college, I had the great fortune to get into and attend Duke University where I studied political science. Needless to say being the first to attend college in your family and arriving at a prestigious institution like Duke from a public school background presented a number of challenges.

Fortunately for me, what I lacked in preparation was overcome by parents whose high expectations for me became my own and a work ethic inspired by my parents and grounded on the knowledge that as a young African American female my road would not be easy and that success could be achieved only if I was willing to work hard, stay focused and out perform expectations.

By the time I arrived at the University of Maryland law school, I found an academic environment ready to embrace a committed student and propel me forward. My law school professors (including now Dean Karen Rothenberg and federal court Judge Andre Davis) took a personal interest in my success as a student and lawyer and believed, before I did, that I could become a successful partner in a major law firm. At that time there were not many women, let alone minority or minority women, lawyers in major Baltimore law firms. Ultimately, I was among the first of a handful of African American women to make partner in a major law firm in Maryland. When I think back on my path, I smile and think of the words of Kermit the Frog, “It’s not easy being green…”

Q. Is race and gender an obstacle for a prospective lawyer?

A. Yes, unfortunately race and gender remain obstacles to overcome for lawyers and prospective lawyers. In law firms today progress has been made on the recruitment front, but there has been an alarming lack of progress on the retention front, particularly for minority women. According to the 2007-2008 NALP Directory of Legal Employers (NDLE), the annual compendium of legal employer data published by the National Association of Law Placement (“NALP”), “minority women constitute just 1.65% of partners at the nation’s major law firms.”

I remain confident, however, that over the next decade we may witness a sea change as corporate America and now law firms recognize that diversity is not just the right thing to do it is good business.

Q. What advice do you offer young people who might consider a career in law?

A. If you have a passion for service to and advocacy on behalf of others and a passion to analyze and solve problems then you are suited to a career in the law. Successful pursuit of such a passion requires development of (1) a keen intellect by challenging yourself intellectually in your academic pursuits; (2) an uncompromising commitment to hard work, and (3) a drive and determination that exceeds the capacity of most people. Also, you must always remember you have chosen a profession, not a job, and this means that your clients and their needs will often come before your own.

Q. Do you see the law as an instrument for change in society?

A. Absolutely. Notwithstanding the flaws and historical abuses in our system of rules and laws, when we look around the world we have to marvel at how the rule of law in America has been an instrument for the advancement of progressive human thought and societal change. Think of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the Emancipation Proclamation, Brown vs. Board of Education, civil rights laws, Roe v. Wade, Grutter v. Bollinger, the National Bank Act and even Sarbanes Oxley to name but a few, and even the cynics among us have to appreciate the unique ability of the rule of law in America to enforce what is good, decent and fair and its ability to prohibit, nullify or punish that which could tear apart the seams that hold the fabric of society together. Indeed, Hillary Clinton was right, the Civil Rights Movement changed the hearts and minds of a nation, but federal civil rights laws effectively ended legal discrimination in voting, employment and public accommodations.

Q. What do you consider your greatest achievement as a lawyer?

A. When I decided to become a lawyer, I envisioned myself as a Thurgood Marshall type of lawyer working for positive socio-economic and political change. I thought being a lawyer in private practice and aspiring to become a partner was, well, a sell out of nobler goals and aspirations. It turns out, however, that given the statistics being an African American woman who is married with two kids and a partner at one of the top 100 law firms may prove to be my greatest achievement as a lawyer.

Although my firm, McGuireWoods LLP with some 900 lawyers and over 15 offices across the country and in Europe and Asia, has better statistics on women and minority lawyers than many of their counterparts, the attrition rates and dismal partnership showing for minority women is simply unacceptable. We must figure out how to make the law firm environment more hospitable for minority women and how to prepare, inspire and support minority women, professionally and personally, who choose the path I have chosen.

As I have said, it not only takes a village to raise children, it takes a village to help women, particularly women of color, have a successful law career, a good marriage and great kids. My career simply would not have happened if I did not have support from loving parents, siblings (including my “adopted” college sisters), and my husband, along with some very special women and men who laid a path, opened a door, whispered in my ear, held my hand, wipe the tears away and laughed with me at some of the most important times in my career and life.

In 2008 when I won one of the biggest cases of my career, I will see my exceptional daughter off to Princeton University, and I will do square root problems with my bright eight year old son and cheer him on at baseball games (he hit a grand slam home run at age 7!). I can’t and don’t do “everything,” and yes sometimes it seems and feels impossible, but you learn how to prioritize and, with my husband, to “divide and conquer” on the home front. As we told our family and friends in our New Year’s cards (we got too busy to send Christmas cards this year), my husband (whose company is based in California!) and I still think the blind date 21 years ago was a good idea! In short, I remain grateful, appreciative and humbled by what the last 22 years have brought my way.

Q. Have you set goals for your career? If so, do you have more in mind?

A. Oh yes, over the years I have set goals and been fortunate and blessed to accomplish many of them. At this stage of my career, I have practical and, what I will call, philosophical goals. I want to continue an effort that began four years ago to build and expand our very diverse and talented complex litigation team in the Baltimore office of McGuireWoods LLP to serve our business, institutional and governmental clients. I want to see more women of color at the partnership level and in leadership roles in our law firms. And, of course, I still want to argue in the Supreme Court of the United States one day.

Q. In April, you won dismissal of the last claims against a client, Telos Corp., in a legal battle that took years to decide. What was at stake? What does it take for an attorney to win such a difficult case?

A. That was a very satisfying win on so many different levels. At stake was the future of a Maryland corporation that is a federal defense contractor with over 500 employees engaged in the technology business. So it was critical to win a decision that we hope will allow this company to move forward in tact with its management team and board focused on its continued growth and success.

In addition, assignment of the case, which was filed in the Circuit Court of Maryland for Baltimore City, to the Business and Technology Case Management Program allowed me to appreciate first hand the work of the legislative task force on which I served that created the B&T program. Our goal was to provide a more effective way to manage complex business and technology litigation in the state court system and generate a body of published opinions to assist in the development, expansion and accessibility of Maryland law to those who do business in Maryland. I think the program allowed for effective management of what became a complex, discovery intensive, and lawyer heavy case (over ten different law firms over the course of the case), and generated very useful published state court opinions on corporate and procedural issues that should prove useful to other businesses.

Finally, because a case of this magnitude can be brutally time consuming and cause quite a strain on professional and personal relationships, a win is a time for reaffirmation of why it is you do what you do.