Bloomberg Law to Play Leading Role at First-Ever Women in Law Hackathon

ARLINGTON, Va., June 8, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Bloomberg Law will serve as the exclusive sponsor of the Women in Law Hackathon, a first-of-its-kind event designed to elicit fresh and creative ideas for promoting gender parity within leading law firms. Bloomberg Law executives will give the keynote address and participate on the judging panel at the June 24th event, which will bring together a cross-section of the nation's largest law firms at Stanford Law School.

"Bloomberg Law is eager to support Hackathon participants and organizers in tackling the 'gender gap' problem that has persisted at national firms despite well intentioned efforts to address it," said Melanie Heller, Vice President and General Manager of Bloomberg Law, who will deliver the keynote speech at the invitation-only event. "We love the fact that the Hackathon is approaching the issue in an imaginative way that promises to lead to real progress."

The Women in Law Hackathon was conceived by Caren Ulrich Stacy, Founder and CEO of Diversity Labs, in collaboration with Stanford Law.

Fifty-four different law firms are sending representatives to the Hackathon, a Shark Tank­-style competition in which teams will pitch new ideas for encouraging the retention and advancement of women at private firms. The nine teams of nine—all of which include one Stanford law student and two thought leaders on issues of diversity or talent—have been developing their ideas since January. Of the law firm participants, more than two thirds are managing partners, practice group heads, or others in leadership positions.

David Perla, President of Bloomberg Law and Bloomberg BNA's legal division, will serve on a judging panel that includes retired federal Judge Faith Hochberg; the general counsel of PepsiCo, Tony West; and other leading lawyers from private enterprise and academia.

The three Hackathon teams receiving the highest scores will win prize money for a non-profit organization of their choice that supports the advancement of women in the legal profession and beyond. The prize money—$10,000 for first place, $7,500 for second place, and $5,000 for third place—will be donated by Bloomberg Philanthropies. Diversity Labs is adding $5,000 in prize money for a "crowd favorite" award, which will also benefit a non-profit.

Event details

Date: June 24, 2016

Location: Stanford University

Judges:

• Lucy Endel Bassil, Assistant General Counsel, Microsoft
• Alan Bryan, Senior Associate General Counsel, Legal Operations – Outside Counsel Management, Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.
• Alexis Diaz, Managing Director, G100 and General Counsel, G100 Companies
• Deborah Gillis, President and CEO, Catalyst
• Honorable Faith Hochberg, United States District Judge (Retired)
• David Perla, President, Bloomberg Law
• Deborah Rhode, Stanford Law School, Center on the Legal Profession
• Miriam Rivera, Venture Capitalist and Former VP/Deputy GC, Google
• Jim Sandman, President, Legal Services Corporation
• Tony West, General Counsel, PepsiCo

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