By Rachael Archambault MSJDN’s 2018 Exceptional Service Award was awarded to member Zaira Solano at the Making the Right Moves Conference on October 19th-20th, 2018 in San Diego. Originally raised in a Dominican family of immigrants in New Jersey,...
By Gina Hannah “Blessed are the flexible for they shall never be bent out of shape” is the mantra of MSJDN’s 2018 Making the Right Moves Volunteer Service Awardee, Adrianne Blake. Adrianne is an activist and avid volunteer for...
Up next in our “Get to Know Your MSJDN Board” series is Karen Scanlan, MSJDN President-Elect:
Two inspiring MSJDN members are among the newly announced nominees for the 2019 Armed Forces Insurance Military Spouse of the Year. Join us in congratulating Harriet O’Neal and Crystal Cornwall on their nominations which highlight their professional accomplishments and...
By Sarah Cable MSJDN members are well aware of the challenges associated with continuing their legal careers while accompanying their service-member spouses from state to state and across the world. One of the biggest hurdles they face is the...
MSJDN is excited to announce that the 2018 Professional Excellence Award will be presented to military spouse attorney Cheryl Mason at the Annual Reception on May 17th. Cheryl, known to her colleagues as Cheri, is an experienced attorney and leader, the...
by Katherine Lee Goyette One of our very own MSJDN members was recently nominated by the Air Combat Command for the 2018 United States Air Force Joan Orr Spouse of the Year Award. It’s a highly prestigious award that...
by Rachel Smith Whether to remain a practicing attorney is an issue and theme that runs through the career of many MSJDN members. My husband likes to remind me that I will always be an attorney. I may not...
by Sanya Sarich Kerksiek MSJDN members and entrepreneurs Laura King and Brittany Dowd co-founded a virtual and remote company, Ad Hoc Legal Group, shortly after graduating from law school. Ad Hoc Legal offers research and writing services to other...
by Maria Campbell MSJDN’s 2017 Exceptional Service Award was presented to member Angela Allen at the Making the Right Moves Conference on September 29, 2017. Angela Allen is a Partner at Jenner & Block, a mom, and the wife...
With apologies to our awesome MSJDN Communications team, I’m writing this month’s letter the day before the newsletter goes out because I knew I wouldn’t want to write anything until after the Making the Right Moves conference was over....
by Candice McPhillips Bobbie Collins has spent years “paying it forward” by providing pro bono legal work for her local military spouse club on Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The Kirtland Spouses’ Welfare Club recently honored...
On Sunday, June 11, 2017, during MSJDN’s annual Board retreat weekend at the Army Navy Country Club in Arlington, Virginia, President Libby Jamison presented State Licensing Director and Board Member Karen Scanlan with the Mary Reding Smith Excellence in...
By Amanda Downs Frizzelle Amy Waller Apostol is a military spouse attorney who has successfully navigated the demands of military life while still maintaining a meaningful legal career. A mother of three and a wife to a Navy JAG...
by Maria Campbell MSJDN is thrilled to announce that the 2017 Professional Excellence Award will be presented to member Rebecca Bresnik at the Annual Reception on May 10th. Rebecca Bresnik is Assistant Chief Counsel for International Matters at NASA,...
Six of our awesome MSJDN members are among the newly announced nominees for the 2017 Armed Forces Insurance Military Spouse of the Year. Join us in congratulating Patricia Bredlau, JinYoung Englund, Katherine Goyette, Alexia Palacios Peters, Laura Russoniello, and Lindsey Savage...
by Sarah Cable Earlier this year, the Military Spouse JD Network put out a call for nominations for the 2016 MSJDN Exceptional Service Award to recognize a member for demonstrating an unwavering commitment to the legal profession and going...
By Maureen Lavery On October 21, 2016, the Military Spouse J.D. Network will kick off Making the Right Moves 2016, MSJDN’s annual career development conference created for the specific needs of military spouse attorneys. This year’s conference will be...
Over the July 4th weekend, First Lady Michelle Obama was interviewed by the Military Times in recognition of New York becoming the 50th state to enact legislation addressing license portability for military spouses. As part of the interview, the...
MSJDN is excited to announce that the 2016 Professional Excellence Award will be presented to military spouse attorney Donna Huneycutt at the Annual Reception on May 12th. Donna is co-owner and Chief Operating Officer at WWC, a woman owned consulting firm focused...
by Natalie Wilson As military spouse attorneys, we wear many hats: military family member, attorney, wife, home front manager, and more. With the title “military spouse attorney”, we are automatically giving two of those roles a primary position in...
On January 21st, we introduced you to seven amazing military spouse attorneys nominated during the initial round of the 2016 Armed Forces Insurance Military Spouse of the Year (MSOY) program. Thanks to your support and votes during that round,...
“There are two ways to spread light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it.” – Edith Wharton Of all the things I do in MSJDN, my absolute favorite is to nominate our deserving members and programs...
Seven talented MSJDN members are among the newly announced nominees for the 2016 Armed Forces Insurance Military Spouse of the Year. Join us in congratulating Katherine Goyette, Emily Macey, Ashley Ludovicy-Donahue, Michelle Mance, Anna Rabe, Leigh Searl, and Natalie...
Earlier this year, the Military Spouse JD Network put out a call for nominations for the 2015 MSJDN Exceptional Service Award to recognize a member for going above and beyond the call of duty to serve others. Many deserving military...
By Maureen Lavery The U.S. military is still overwhelmingly male – about 85% of the active duty force, according to the most recent Defense Manpower Data Center demographics report – so it comes as little surprise that the membership...
Military spouse attorney Jessica Ortiz, who worked diligently in support of licensing accommodation in Oklahoma, was the first MSJDN member to be sworn in under the rule. Like many military spouses, Jessica found herself in a state far from home thanks...
As an attorney and vice president of business development at a real estate and investment firm based in New York, NY, Leigh Searl has built a successful career facilitating real estate transactions and advocating on behalf of her clients....
The MSJDN Communications team is excited to introduce our Writer’s Corps team. Please help us in welcoming our new team! Maryann Menanno is our new editor of the Bars and Stripes Newsletter. Currently she lives in Maryland and...
On Sunday, July 12, 2015, during MSJDN’s annual Strategic Planning weekend at the Army Navy Country Club in Arlington, Virginia, MSJDN President Eleanor Vuono presented Communications Director and Board Member Libby Jamison with the inaugural Mary Reding Smith Excellence...
Last year, MSJDN celebrated as the New York State Board of Law Examiners published a military spouse attorney licensing policy. Now, we celebrate again, as Sarah Gardner-Cox has become the first MSJDN member to be sworn in after utilizing...
MSJDN is excited to announce that the 2015 Professional Excellence Award will be presented to Christina Guerola Sarchio at the Annual Reception on May 6th in D.C. Currently a partner in Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP’s Washington, DC office,...
Courage Beyond Hosts “Helping Our Heroes Heal” Conference in Clarksville on March 27 Courage Beyond, a national non-profit serving military service members and families, is proud to host the Helping Our Heroes Heal conference in Clarksville, Tennessee on March...
On March 5, 2015, MSJDN Member Angelica Kang received the prestigious “Woman of Inspiration” Award from Ms. JD at its “Ms. JD: Stronger Together” conference in San Francisco, California. Angelica is a law student in Fordham University’s evening division...
MSJDN is proud to announce that Lieutenant General Flora Darpino has been named as a recipient of the ABA’s Margaret Brent Women Lawyers of Achievement Award. LTG Darpino, the senior military legal advisor in the U.S. Army and a...
by Eleanor Magers Vuono Volumes have been written about the stresses of new parenthood, including the exhaustion, the shock of sleep deprivation, and the anxiety about basic life functions (is she eating enough? breathing right? pooping properly?). Motherhood brought...
Six, yes, SIX of our talented MSJDN members are among the newly announced nominees for the 2015 Armed Forces Insurance Military Spouse of the Year. Join us in congratulating Maria Chavez-Black, Tara Gaston, Elizabeth Jamison, Tatiana Matta, Natalie Wilson,...
MSJDN Member Christina Guerola Sarchio has had a varied, exciting career that would be the envy of any lawyer. It is also the product of a surprising journey. Currently a partner in Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP’s Washington, DC...
“I quickly learned that uncertainty would be the norm. And we should embrace the time we have together.” Jocelyn Benson In 2010, Jocelyn Benson became a newly-minted military spouse on the brink of her...
On October 24, 2014, MSJDN Member Maria Chavez-Black received the Attorney of the Year award from the American Bar Association’s Immigration Justice Project (“IJP”) in San Diego, California. The IJP’s mission “is to promote due process and access to justice at...
Military Spouse J.D. Network is pleased to announce that Kari-Lynn Wenciker has accepted the role as State Licensing Chair. MSJDN’s state licensing initiative is run by a committee of state directors working with teams of volunteers to implement strategic state licensing...
“This is amazing. A group that is sympathetic and understanding of what I am going through!” That was Evelyn Guevara’s reaction when she found Military Spouse JD Network (MSJDN) after googling “military spouse attorney.” Evelyn met her husband in...
Every October, the American Bar Association creates an annual national spotlight on pro bono through their Celebrate Pro Bono campaign. Justice for Military Families is part of the national pro bono community; we provide pro bono legal services to the...
MSJDN member Donna Huneycutt is an inspirational reminder of how incredible and supportive military spouses are. She has steered her career in a way that allows her to enjoy every workday, and still maintain the energy and drive to...
The Military Spouse JD Network congratulates board member Natalie Wilson on receiving the Belva Lockwood Outstanding Young Lawyer Award from the Bexar County Women’s Bar Association. This award is presented annually to recipients chosen based on overall contributions to...
As part of its annual Stars of the Bar recognition, the Women’s Bar Association of the District of Columbia (WBA) has named Mary Reding Smith, Immediate Past President of the Military Spouse JD Network, a 2014 Star of the...
Author’s Note: Jennifer McBee was the first person to be admitted to the North Carolina Bar under the Military Spouse Licensing accommodations in January 2014. We sat down with her to discuss her experience, talk about the process, and gather...
The MSJDN Communications Team is thrilled to announce the addition of four new members to our writing team. Here’s a little bit about each of them: Jillie Gordon Foerster is a newly-married Air Force spouse, currently stationed at Barksdale...
July 8, 2014 was proclaimed Reda Hicks Day by Houston Mayor Annise Parker. The official proclamation read: WHEREAS, the Military Spouse Appreciation Day held in Spring 2014 celebrated the force behind the force by honoring spouses who exemplified dedication to...
MSJDN is pleased to announce our nomination of Justice Sandee Marion to receive the Sarah T. Hughes Women Lawyers of Achievement Award. Justice Marion is thoughtful, intelligent, a consummate professional, and a military spouse attorney! Not only has she...
“It feels like he’s gone more now that he’s in the Reserves,” says Amy Apostol, laughing. Amy’s husband is a Navy Reserve JAG officer, and MSJDN members know well the contradiction — your spouse leaves Active Duty only to...
The Military Spouse JD Network wants to shine a big spotlight on employers that are really making a different for military spouses. We all know the (abysmal) statistics on military spouse employment, and the legal profession is certainly no...
Four MSJDN members are among the newly announced nominees for the 2014 Armed Forces Insurance Military Spouse of the Year. Join us in congratulating Josie Beets, Reda Hicks, Betsy Post, and Rachel Winkler for their dedication to the military...
Donates $250,000 to continue a legacy and serve Ohio’s veterans legal needs It’s near the end of your 1L year and you’re settling in for a long night of homework. You’re a military newlywed, meaning you married then promptly...
This week, North Carolina MSJDN member Jennifer McBee became the first sworn in and licensed under the military spouse attorney licensing rule in that state. This is her story. by Jennifer McBee The Military Spouse J.D. Network is changing...
[Editor’s note: As we embark on the holiday season, we are most grateful for our members — we are in constant awe of their dedication to legal career and military life. This is the story of the Pitzen family, Thea...
As MSJDN continues to grow and develop as an organization, we are frequently asked to provide quantitative data about our members which we don’t have. We are often able to extrapolate data about military families from the Department of Defense and other...
MSJDN is very pleased to congratulate member Erin Hennessy, recipient of the 2013 Professional Excellence Award, to be awarded at the Making the Right Moves Awards Luncheon in Washington, D.C., on May 22. The Professional Excellence Award recognizes a...
MSJDN’s Communications Director Lori Volkman was featured in the News You Can Use Blog run by Pioneer Services this week, at the kick-off of Military Appreciation Month. Highlighting an issue that affects nearly one in three military spouses, including...
“So are you ever going to use your law degree?” I am asked this every day, multiple times. What people do not realize is that while I’m not in a structured law firm (as I sit here in yoga...