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 has been an exciting few weeks for Military Spouse JD Network, with the announcements of a rule change in Virginia and a military spouse accommodation policy in Massachusetts. And it’s about to get even more exciting! On June 13, 2014, the...
The Massachusetts Board of Bar Examiners has voluntarily enacted a military spouse attorney licensing policy as of March 2014. The following message appears online: “The Massachusetts Board of Bar Examiners welcomes inquiries and applications for Admission on Motion from attorney spouses of...
On April 7, 2014, MSJDN asked members to register to pay dues for the first time in the organization’s history. After several years of unprecedented growth and success, MSJDN needed funding to continue to increase our reach, expand programs, and...
On May 30, 2014, approximately 20 MSJDN members visited the Supreme Court of the United States for a special “behind the scenes” tour. After assembling by the John Marshall statute on the ground floor, tour guides took the group...
Since joining the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps as a young First Lieutenant in 1987, Lieutenant General (LTG) Flora Darpino has remained true to her “work hard, take chances” attitude, and it has served her well during her...
By Megan Evans There are many exciting things happening right now for MSJDN on the state rule change front! Since the last update, one state has passed a rule change, one state has an accommodation policy, and more states...
As we reported last week, two MSJDN members are presenting MSJDN’s licensing accommodation proposal to the New Jersey Supreme Court today. We share the remarks of our New Jersey State Directors Jennifer Talley and Katie McDonough on the blog today as...
Our New Jersey team, powerhouses Jennifer Talley and Katie McDonough, will present MSJDN’s petition for rule change to the full New Jersey Supreme Court on May 27. The pair was invited to give comment after their response to the...
On Friday, May 16, 2014, the Supreme Court of Virginia issued an order adopting a new attorney licensing rule aimed at easing the burden on military spouse attorneys seeking to practice law while on orders to military installations in Virginia...
On Wednesday, May 7, MSJDN members from the DC region and across the country gathered to celebrate another year of accomplishments for the organization. Held at the gorgeous Citi Rooftop Terrace, the event featured the launch of Justice for...
Editor’s Note: This is the eleventh and final installment in MSJDN’s series highlighting the employers MSJDN members say are going above and beyond for military spouse attorneys. Each employer in this series was nominated for MSJDN’s Member’s Choice Award...
Editor’s Note: This is the tenth installment in MSJDN’s series highlighting the employers MSJDN members say are going above and beyond for military spouse attorneys. Each employer in this series was nominated for MSJDN’s Member’s Choice Award by members...
Editor’s Note: This is the ninth installment in MSJDN’s series highlighting the employers MSJDN members say are going above and beyond for military spouse attorneys. Each employer in this series was nominated for MSJDN’s Member’s Choice Award by members who told us...
Editor’s Note: This is the sixth installment in MSJDN’s series highlighting the employers MSJDN members say are going above and beyond for military spouse attorneys. Each employer in this series was nominated for MSJDN’s Member’s Choice Award by members who told...
Editor’s Note: This is the fifth installment in MSJDN’s series highlighting the employers MSJDN members say are going above and beyond for military spouse attorneys. Each employer in this series was nominated for MSJDN’s Member’s Choice Award by members who told...
Editor’s Note: This is the fourth installment in MSJDN’s series highlighting the employers MSJDN members say are going above and beyond for military spouse attorneys. Each employer in this series was nominated for MSJDN’s Member’s Choice Award by members who told...
Editor’s Note: This is the third installment in MSJDN’s series highlighting the employers MSJDN members say are going above and beyond for military spouse attorneys. Each employer in this series was nominated for MSJDN’s Member’s Choice Award by members who told us...
Editor’s Note: This is the second installment in MSJDN’s series highlighting the employers MSJDN members say are going above and beyond for military spouse attorneys. Each employer in this series was nominated for MSJDN’s Member’s Choice Award by members who told...
Editor’s Note: MSJDN asked its members to help us spotlight employers that are going above and beyond for military spouse attorneys. Each employer in this series was nominated for MSJDN’s Member’s Choice Award for doing just that, by members...
Author’s Note: It’s Tax Day, which seemed an incredibly fitting day to announce MSJDN’s formal endorsement of a bill to simplify and reduce the burden of state income taxes paid by people doing their jobs from remote locations. Below...
Recently, MSJDN members and rule change leaders Jennifer Talley and Katie McDonough have been working overtime to rally support for a military spouse bar accommodation policy in New Jersey. Most notably, two articles featured the work of the New Jersey...
Will Host Texas Supreme Court for Brunch in Austin This Weekend Today, Military Spouse Magazine announced MSJDN member Reda Hicks as 2014 Armed Forces Insurance Army Spouse of the Year. The honor comes as no surprise to those of...
On February 23, Military Spouse JD Network (MSJDN) will be having a brunch at the iconic Austin Club in Austin, Texas. The event, called Deep in the Heart of Texas, is being held to celebrate a year of Texas...
One year ago, in February 2013, Texas became the first state to initiate a licensing accommodation policy for military spouse attorneys without a formal rule change so that it could begin consideration of military spouse applications immediately. The License...
Military Spouse JD Network (MSJDN) and In Gear Career, along with our partners She Should Run, Women Influencing Public Policy, and the American Military Partner Association, are pleased to announce that they have confirmed the morning keynote speaker at...
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...
In October, Military Spouse JD Network (MSJDN) and In Gear Career announced that they would be co-hosting Homefront Rising, a ground-breaking, non-partisan event that will provide an innovative political educational opportunity to military spouse attorneys and other military family advocates....
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...
Update: Congress passed the Bipartisan Budget Act today, by a vote of 226-195. The Act now moves to the Senate for consideration and voting. MSJDN will continue working on this issue in the coming week and asks members to...
Since 2011, MSJDN has experienced unprecedented growth and success. In our first year, we went from only two members to more than 400; in our second year, that number doubled again, bringing us to over 800 members. Our licensing...
Today, over five months after President Obama’s June 4, 2013 nomination of Patricia Millett to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, the Senate voted to close debate and proceed with the nomination to the judiciary of this exceptional military...
MSJDN has been very open about their strong support for Patricia Ann Millett‘s nomination for U.S. Appeals Court for the Washington, D.C., Circuit. On October 31, 2013, Pattie’s nomination was blocked by Senate Republicans because of unrelated party politics....
Last Thursday, the Senate blocked the nomination of military spouse Patricia Millett for the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeal. Her nomination needed 60 votes to overcome a Republican filibuster and advance in the Senate, and the 55-38 vote, with...
MSJDN has been busy the past two days on Capitol Hill, working to push past the politics and support fellow military spouse Patricia “Pattie” Millett, who has been nominated for one of three vacant spots on the DC Circuit...
At MSJDN, we live to bust the, “I thought I was the only one!” myth, a misconception held by many of our members before we discovered more than 800 of our colleagues. The support we’ve offered each other through...
From the beginning of her career, Patricia Millett had the markings of a legal rock star. From Harvard Law School to the head of Akin Gump’s Supreme Court practice, and now a nomination to the DC Circuit Court of Appeals....
MSJDN is excited to announce that we will be working with the Military Officers Association of America’s (MOAA) Veterans Service Office Program in their efforts to assist with veterans’ claims. Throughout the country, there are many Veterans Service Organizations...
We recently announced that the Military Spouse JD Foundation (“MSJDF”) was invited to compete in Newman’s Own Foundation’ CrowdRise Challenge: Honoring Those Who Serve. Only charities that have been specially selected by Newman’s Own Foundation are able to compete....
Now that the federal government has shut down, many military families and civilian government employees – including our own MSJDN members and families – are looking for answers about what will happen and where we can turn for help....
In the last week, our military communities have been stricken by natural disasters and man-made tragedies: the flooding in Colorado and the shooting at the Navy Yard. Although US military personnel are stationed in every corner of the globe,...
On September 11, 2013, the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs held a hearing regarding the implementation of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs’ Fully Developed Claims (FDC) program. MSJDN President Mary Reding and...
Today, the South Dakota Supreme Court issued an order adopting Rule 13-10, a licensing rule for military spouse attorneys. Originally part of a set of bills to provide licensing accommodations to military spouses in other professions, Rule 13-10 was...
Members, we need your help! MSJDN is joining the National Military Family Association in their efforts to #EndSequestration. On Thursday, September 12, NMFA, MSJDN and other leading military family organizations will take a stand and Storm the Hill to...
Note: MSJDN is pleased to present the first installment from Lizanne Carleson, a member of the organization’s new Writer’s Corps. On August 15, Illinois Governor Patrick Quinn signed the “Access to Justice Act,” allowing better access to the justice...
Wednesday was a day of celebration for families across the United State Uniformed Services, as the Department of Defense (DOD) took significant steps that Secretary Chuck Hagel described as underscoring Defense’s commitment to “ensuring that all men and women...
On Tuesday, I had the opportunity to represent MSJDN at the inaugural meeting of the Department of Defense’s Spouse Ambassador Network. Ten organizations, including many of our partners like MOAA, NMFA, In Gear Career, and the U.S. Chamber’s Hiring...
This has been a whirlwind of a week for the Military Spouse JD Network, and it’s not over yet! It all started when our ongoing rule change efforts in California were derailed by a piece of legislation, AB 296,...
On Monday MSJDN launched its campaign to kill California AB 296, a bill harmful to military spouse attorneys and their families. Tuesday, MSJDN members, friends, family, and supporters took to the phones to let the bill’s sponsor, Assemblyman Don...
Yesterday, we launched our campaign to defeat California Assembly Bill 296, a bill that claims to help military spouse attorneys but Actually creates a harmful precedent for the largest military-populated state. You yelled, you screamed, you shared with your...
Update available HERE. Last week MSJDN achieved another state victory with the passage in Illinois of a licensing accommodation for military spouse attorneys, making it the fifth state to do so. That’s why we were so shocked to hear that California Assemblymember Don Wagner...
Today the Illinois Supreme Court issued a press release outlining several new measures designed to “improve legal services for the disadvantaged in Illinois.” Among those new provisions, which become effective July 1, 2013, is one designed to ease attorney...
Today marks the first ever National Ketchup Day, and people around the country are celebrating by sending Heinz Ketchup by the caseload to a single destination–the Washington Post. Quite a random way to celebrate a random holiday, you say?...
Last week, Military Spouse JD Network members from across the United States gathered in Washington D.C. for our flagship event, “Making the Right Moves,” organized by MSJDN Board member Stephanie Crosse and held in the historic Army & Navy...
Last Monday in New York there was an event called Media & the Law: The 3 Totenbergs, featuring what might be the most powerhouse group of sisters you’ve ever come across: Judge Amy Totenberg of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District...
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...
with additional contribution from Steven G. Fisher The DoD Military Family Readiness Council has been under fire in recent months, and some of the reviews have been downright scathing. With a mandate from Congress to consider the efficacy of military family...
Every Administration’s First and Second Ladies come to the job with specific issues they want to address, and the current First and Second Lady are no exception. For the past two years, Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden have...
On March 15, 2013, MSJDN Vice President Rachel Winkler hosted a table to connect with military spouse attorneys attending the most recent Hiring our Heroes event in Washington, D.C. The U.S. Chamber’s Hiring Our Heroes (HOH) program is helping veterans and military spouses by...
The Department of Labor issued new rules that increase the protections of the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) for certain military families, effective March 8, 2013. FMLA requires covered employers to provide up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected...
On President’s Day I had the opportunity to be interviewed on Army Wife Network’s Army Wife Talk Radio about what MSJDN has been doing to help military families. It was amazing to retell the steps since our formation, discuss the common...
Texas Offers Military Spouse Attorneys Path to Law License In an unprecedented move, Texas is now the first state to initiate a licensing accommodation policy for military spouse attorneys without a formal rule change so that it could begin...
On January 25, 2013, the North Carolina State Bar (NCSB) approved a rule providing unencumbered bar admission for military spouse attorneys. NCSB approval puts rule change in North Carolina one step closer to reality, and will now go to...
Congrats to Lori Volkman and Marcelina Chambers! Both were voted Military Spouse of the Year for their installation and have advanced to the next round of voting for Military Spouse of the Year! Lori will be representing NB San Diego and competing for...
Lori Volkman, MSJDN Communications Director and Deputy Prosecuting Attorney in Washington State, and Marcelina Chambers, MSJDN member and Assistant Attorney General in Arizona, have both been nominated for Military Spouse Magazine’s Military Spouse of the Year. We wrote about Lori and Marcelina earlier...
Lori Volkman, MSJDN Communications Director and Deputy Prosecuting Attorney in Washington State, and Marcelina Chambers, MSJDN member and Assistant Attorney General in Arizona, have both been nominated for Military Spouse Magazine’s Military Spouse of the Year. Congratulations to both! The first round of...
The Conference of Chief Justices voted to support a resolution for admission of military spouse attorneys without examination. The Conference of Chief Justices was founded in 1949 to provide an opportunity for the highest judicial officers of the states...
Last week, North Carolina’s Governor Bev Perdue signed a law reducing barriers for military spouses in licensed professions. See http://www.stripes.com/news/army/continuing-us-trend-nc-helps-military-spouses-with-licensing-1.184047 The White House Joining Forces and the Department of Defense campaign to address barriers for military spouses in licensed...
New York State Bar Association Recognizes Unique Licensing Challenges Facing Military Spouses The New York State Bar Association (NYSBA) partnered with the Military Spouse JD Network (MSJDN) last week to submit a barrier-breaking new rule to the Chief Judge...