Lisa Kobialka Represents Kramer Levin in the First Women in Law Hackathon; Kobialka Team Wins Third Place

Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP was one of 54 law firms who participated in the first-of-its-kind Women in Law Hackathon created by Diversity Lab, in partnership with Stanford Law School and Bloomberg Law. Kramer Levin Partner Lisa Kobialka, the firm’s representative, and her team took third place in a pitch competition aimed at generating innovative ideas to close the gender gap in law firms. Teams worked together virtually to devise initiatives that will help retain and advance experienced women in law firms and presented their ideas to a panel of judges in June. Paul S. Pearlman, Kramer Levin Managing Partner said, “We’re extremely proud of Lisa and her team’s winning proposal. We are eager to review all of the ideas and identify those that can be adopted here at Kramer Levin to help us improve our efforts aimed at retaining and advancing women at the firm.”

Ms. Kobialka’s team developed an initiative called “The Five Year Moment,” in which firms would develop and implement a detailed 20-point business development support plan intended for law firms of varying sizes that guide lawyers through the demanding two to three years before and after partnership. The plan was unique because it identified solutions to address specific systemic and individual issues that women face. While the solutions are inclusive and not intended to only focus on women, they play to women’s strengths and directly support women’s business generative efforts. The plan also explained how firms can generate analytical data to evaluate the solutions and ensure the success of women’s business development efforts. “It is energizing to be part of an industry-wide effort to address real world, implementable solutions. A great amount of effort, research and thoughtful discussion was done to create our plan, and I could not have done it without Kramer Levin’s support and dedication to this important issue.”

The third place prize of $5,000 will go to the National Association of Women Lawyers, which works to advance women in the legal profession and advocate for the equality of women under the law.