By Rachel Smith As military spouse attorneys, we know that the military is its own world and its judicial system is no exception. The unfortunate reality is that domestic violence is prevalent in the military. Many military spouses (civilians...
By Rebecca Bartlett Part I: The Set-up Now is the time for military spouse attorneys to adapt their legal career, yet again, to overcome the odds. Uniquely, COVID-19 has thrown the entire country right in there with us this...
MSJDN members often encounter licensing difficulties throughout their careers. Most federal government attorneys are only required to be licensed and in good standing in any state, not the specific state where the office is located. Attorney positions with the...
On November 15, 2017, the military and legal communities came together for a night of networking and connections. Sponsored by Mayer Brown and White & Case, MSJDN was thrilled to work with Hiring Our Heroes, the American Bar Association, and...
By Karen Scanlan As an ABA affiliated organization, the National Conference of Women’s Bar Associations (NCWBA) presents a yearly Women’s Bar Leadership Summit (the “Summit”) during the ABA’s Annual Meeting. The 2017 Summit, Succeeding with Strength and Savvy was...
by Katherine Lee Goyette Hurricane Harvey became a Category 4 hurricane on August 25, 2017, hitting land hours later near Rockport, Texas at peak intensity. The same day, President Trump issued a Major Disaster Declaration for the state of...
It is my great honor to serve as the President of the Military Spouse JD Network for the 2017-2018 year. Since joining MSJDN in 2012, I’ve been fortunate to meet many amazing military spouse attorneys with compelling stories of...
by Rachel Winkler The efficient and effective delivery of immigration benefits and services to our service members, veterans, and their families is essential to military readiness and to national security. Since 2001, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has naturalized...
By Lindsey Savage You’ve just found out your Active Duty spouse is being transferred to a new location. You immediately begin the latest round of PCS preparations. You start drafting your timeline: when you’ll give notice of your move...
There is nothing that a roomful of military spouses cannot accomplish when given a day to learn, share, and collaborate with each other. I was so proud to be a member of MSJDN last week, when our amazing MSJDN...
by Rachel Sacks Winkler Frequent military moves often complicate many residency issues, including voting. However, there are a number of efforts to support servicemembers and their families exercise this important civic duty on the local, state and national...
On August 26, 2016, Military Spouse JD Network (MSJDN) and the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) will convene a day-long event to educate, encourage collaboration and provide tools to make military spouse-led organizations more effective. Learning &...
By Thea Pitzen MSJDN members are no strangers to the bar exam. The vast majority of MSJDN members have taken and passed at least one, and over a third have taken multiple bar exams. Some have even taken the...
By: Meghan Dohoney, Freelance Attorney and MSJDN Member Between the frequent deployments, having to move every three years, and the stress that comes with military life, it wasn’t long into my marriage that I knew that a traditional legal...
by Stephanie Martin Halford We’ve all witnessed a DUI checkpoint – usually on a holiday weekend where significant drinking is expected. The checkpoint is in place to ensure that people with the ability to drive do so responsibly....
Last year, the first ever Veterans’ Legal Career Fair took place in Washington, D.C with the goal of matching veteran and military spouse attorneys with law firms, corporate legal departments, and government agencies. Hosted by Orrick, the event was a...
By Camille Edwards Bennehoff As the April 15, 2016 deadline for filing your 2015 taxes draws near, it is time to collect your W-2s, 1099s, and expense receipts and think about filing your returns. Because military families face some...
by Maureen Lavery Thanks to the ubiquity of home computers and easily accessible high speed internet connections, telecommuting is becoming increasingly common: a 2015 Gallup poll found that 37% of workers telecommute at least occasionally, an increase of almost 30%...
By Emily Macey When I started searching for my first attorney position at the start of my career, I spent a substantial amount of time on the road traveling to interviews. Fast-forward to the present and technology has replaced...
By Rachel Hsiao As a military spouse, having a career is not easy. As a military spouse who is also an attorney? I am sure you are all aware of the challenges and obstacles we face. The option I...
Earlier this year, MSJDN launched a redesigned website, featuring a refreshed look and feel. We are excited to announce that the continuing work on the functionality and features of the site has been completed, resulting in an upgraded online experience...
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....
By Tara Gaston “In this day, successful attorneys must have websites, a social media presence, and really put themselves out there!” “In this day, servicemembers and their families must be careful in the information they release in the event that it...
By Catherine Stanton Justice for Military Families (JMF) is the MSJDN pro bono initiative that connects military families with legal needs to legal assistance from military spouse attorneys. JMF currently partners with Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS) to provide legal counsel...
Once a military spouse, always a military spouse, right? Many MSJDN members are facing transition as the time comes to leave the active duty life behind and enter (or re-enter) the civilian workforce. There are probably a few things...
MSJDN proudly announces the launch of a redesigned version of its website, www.msjdn.org. Key features of the new site include public and private directories, an upgraded member section featuring a jobs board and member-only forums, and streamlined access to resources...
Stories Around the Table (“Stories”) is exactly what it intimates: a collection of short stories about life in and around the military. Male and female military spouses, service-members, mothers of service-members, and children of service-members all gather around an...
For many military spouse attorneys, pursuing traditional legal careers while their partner is on active duty can be like trying to shove a square peg into a round hole. In response to the challenges of balancing a legal career...
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...
Perseverance in the face of adversity and the belief that your destiny is not fixed and you can improve your skills through hard work and effort are more than just ideas. They are concepts that define MSJDN members. According...
In the age of the Internet, email, smart phones, and teleconferences, working remotely is becoming increasingly possible – and common – for attorneys. A quick Google search on the topic will reveal everything from job postings by Lumen Legal...
Isn’t MSJDN all about lawyers? Lawyers create stress, they don’t relieve it! But, attorneys are actually uniquely well-suited to talk about stress relief. At the end of the day, we fix problems for a living and stress is just...
MSJDN broadcast its first-ever webinar on January 26th to rave reviews. Almost 30 attendees from across the country tuned in for an hour-long session discussing small business formation. Presenter and military spouse attorney Donna Huneycutt provided a thorough review of options for business forms,...
Dear MSJDN, Winter is finally here, and with it come lots of opportunities from the Military Spouse JD Network. MSJDN is working to improve and update our governance documents – including our by-laws, policies and procedures, and committee policies...
Happy Holidays from Lindsey Savage, Membership Chair, and the entire membership committee. We have been hard at work to identify and secure valuable membership benefits for you and are excited to share what’s coming in 2015: ABA Discount: Be...
Two years ago, Michelle Etchebarren decided it was time to take a step forward and make her dream of having her own business a reality. At the same time she was conceiving Attorneys in Motion, a special court appearance...
Raise your hand if you’ve ever been mistaken for the court reporter when you walk into a room to take or defend a deposition. If your hand is in the air, chances are you’re a woman. In 1987, the...
Due to the humanitarian crisis at our Southwestern border, various advocacy organizations are seeking assistance for the thousands of children who have crossed our borders seeking protection, safety, and family who already reside in the United States. From October...
On October 17, 2014, MSJDN will host Making the Right Moves at the Thomas Jefferson School of Law (TJSL) in San Diego, California. While many law schools have recently expanded their programs to include part-time students, TJSL took the...
Dear MSJDN Members, Making the Right Moves is right around the corner….do you have your ticket? I’m looking forward to this year’s day of development in sunny San Diego. This year’s full day event features some incredibly impressive leaders...
Editor’s Note: As we were going to print on this issue of Bars & Stripes, MSJDN received confirmation of another terrific keynote speaker. Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez of the 80th Assembly District for the California Assembly will also be addressing attendees at...
Making the Right Moves (MRM) is a conference dedicated to the professional development of military spouse attorneys. This year, the second annual MRM conference will focus on creating and following a successful career path tailored to the unique needs...
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...
MSJDN’s 2014-2015 leadership team – including the Board of Directors for both MSJDN and the Military Spouse JD Foundation, as well as Committee Chairs – met on July 26 and 27 at the historic Army Navy Country Club in...
By April Carson On a daily basis, Capitol Hill staffers in both houses of Congress are hard at work on matters of national importance. Their work directly affects not only the military but the entire federal government, and the...
At the MSJDN Annual Reception on May 7, 2014, President Mary Reding passed the MSJDN torch to incoming President Rachel Winkler, our 2014-2015 MSJDN President. Now, MSJDN is accepting applications for open slots on the Board of Directors that...
MSJDN is honored to welcome Justice Phil Johnson, an Air Force veteran and current member of the Texas Supreme Court, as our keynote speaker at Deep In The Heart on February 23, 2014. Tickets and tables are available here....
Military Spouse JD Network (MSJDN) and In Gear Career announce that they will be co-hosting Homefront Rising, an innovative exercise in political training for military spouse attorneys and other military family advocates. This ground-breaking,...
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,...
Note: MSJDN is pleased to introduce another member of its new Writer’s Corps, Natalie Wilson. We hope you enjoy her debut installment. Last week, as part of the “Everyone Serves” blog series from Blue Star Families, the BSF network...
Summers bring change for military families, and MSJDN families are no different. Our private member groups have been buzzing with the typical summer PCS season drama — well, the MSJDN version. On top of moving houses, states, and even...
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?...
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...
As a Navy wife, Judy Brown is no stranger to self-sacrifice, family separation, and the flexibility required for constant relocations that are a fixture of military life. Yet having to give up her career as a Dental Assistant ranks...
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...
