Stinson Receives Gold Standard Certification by Women in Law Empowerment Forum

Stinson Morrison Hecker LLP is proud to have been awarded the Gold Standard Certification by the Women in Law Empowerment Forum (WILEF), a designation for law firms that have integrated women in top leadership positions. This is the second year in a row Stinson has been awarded this certification. Only 50 law firms nationwide received this honor in 2012.

According to WILEF, law firms are eligible for the 2012 WILEF Gold Standard Certification if they successfully demonstrate that women represent a meaningful percentage of their equity partners, of their highest leadership positions, of their governance and compensation committees, and of their most highly compensated partners. A meaningful percentage is defined by meeting three or more of the following criteria:

20 percent of equity partners is female
10 percent of the firm's chairs and managing partners (firm-wide, U.S. or North American Regional, and U.S. branch offices) is female
20 percent of the firm's primary governance committee is female
20 percent of the firm's compensation committee (or its equivalent) is female
25 percent of the firm's practice group leaders and/or department heads is female
10 percent of the top half of the most highly compensated partners in the firm is female

"We greatly appreciate the recognition by the forum because enhancing diversity is an important priority for the firm," said Pat Konopka, Stinson's diversity committee co-chair. "We recognize that by doing so, we are a better firm as a whole."

Stinson is proud to have a variety of women leading the firm in various positions. Those include:

Allison Murdock, who serves as the firm's deputy managing partner and also is a member of the firm's Executive and Policy Committees
Sara Welch, who chairs the Commercial Litigation Division
Pat Konopka, who is a member of the Policy Committee and co-chair of the Diversity Committee
Kelly Daly, who chairs of the Energy & Environmental and Telecommunications Division
Kristin Farnen, who leads the eDiscovery Practice Group
Susan McGreevy, who leads the Construction Litigation Practice Group
Stephanie Scheck, who leads the Employment/Employee Benefits Practice Group and is a member of the Diversity Committee

ABOUT WILEF

Founded in 1997, WILEF is dedicated to assisting women in law to assume leadership roles within the Amlaw 100, Second Hundred and Fortune 1000 legal departments and within their respective communities. WILEF presents cutting edge programming that provides an educational and networking forum for women in law. For more information on the Women In Law Empowerment Forum, please visit its website.

ABOUT STINSON MORRISON HECKER LLP

Stinson Morrison Hecker LLP is one of the country’s largest law firms with more than 300 attorneys representing clients nationwide in a full range of corporate, transaction and litigation matters. The firm has experience in more than 45 industry-focused areas, with attorneys located in eight key markets, including Kansas City, St. Louis and Jefferson City, Mo.; Overland Park and Wichita, Kan.; Omaha, Neb.; Phoenix, Ariz.; and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit the firm online at www.stinson.com.