Ms. JD

Every spring Ms. JD holds an essay contest for students pursuing public interest summer work. The winner's essay is published on Ms. JD and awarded a stipend to support their summer work.

Every year Ms. JD hosts a conference for women in the legal profession. Past conferences include Legally Female at Yale Law School in 2007, the NWLSO Leadership Summit in New York City in 2008, and Avenues to Advancement planned to take place on Northwestern's Law School Campus in downtown Chicago on November 20th & 21st, 2009.

Ms. JD maintains an online database of over 300 resources on women in the legal profession. The collection is easily searched and includes data reports, law review articles, best practices, and books.

Ms. JD maintains a blog at www.ms-jd.org. The blog features advice, testimonials, and news items pertaining to women in the legal profession. Contributors include Barbara Babcock, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, Dahlia Lithwick, and Lynn Hecht Schafran.

Grateful for the educational opportunities we have had in the U.S., Ms. JD created the Global Education Fund to enable women in developing countries to pursue legal educations. Without the Global Education Fund, these women would not have access to further education. In its first year Ms. JD's Global Education Fund made it possible for two young Ugandan women to pursue their dreams of becoming lawyers by attending the law program at Makerere University in Uganda!

Each year Ms. JD invites guest bloggers to serve as Writers in Residence at Ms. JD. The Writers in Residence each pen one post per month, are featured on the site, and participate in various Ms. JD events throughout the year, including a Writers in Residence event at Ms. JD's annual conference.

Each spring, in conjunction with the ABA's Commission on Women in the Profession's Margaret Brent Award, Ms. JD selects 20 second year law students as Fellowship Winners. In addition to receiving financial support and invitation to ABA and Ms. JD events, Ms. JD matches the law students with mentors from among the Commission's alumnae of commissioners and Brent Award Winners. The one-year program is designed to foster a commitment to excellence in a new generation of women attorneys, inspired by the generation of trailblazers who paved the way for their success.

Ms. JD has campus chapters at law schools across the country. Together, these chapters form the National Women Law Students' Organization (NWLSO). NWLSO chapters participate in various Ms. JD projects, including the annual conferences, student workshops, and regional networking events. Through NWLSO, Ms. JD has created a “rapid response” network that connects professionals to students and spreads news about women in the law, job opportunities, resources, and events.