Verrill Dana Exceeds National Averages for Female Leadership
(March 20, 2019)– Verrill Dana, LLP recently announced the elevation of Executive Board member, Regina Hurley, to Chair of the Firm's Executive Board, and the election of new Board member Barbara Young. With the election of Young, Verrill's Executive Board is now led by a majority of women, significantly exceeding national statistics for gender parity in law firm leadership positions.
"Women leaders are not new to Verrill. Women have served as Managing Partner, on our senior Administrative Team, on our Executive Board, and on the firm's various committees, including our Partner Compensation Committee, which has been chaired by a woman in each of the last two years," says Hurley. "Inclusivity and diversity in all areas have been and will continue to be among Verrill's core values and its top priorities."
Hurley, a partner and Co-Chair of Verrill's Family Law Practice Group, represents clients in complex family law matters in Massachusetts and internationally. She has handled a number of cases of first impression involving parental rights, removal, and the validity of "Talaq" divorces in Massachusetts.
Young, a partner in Verrill's Business & Corporate Group, guides businesses in the legal aspects of their various business transactions and opportunities, including acquisitions, divestitures and joint ventures, securities offerings, governance issues, licensing, and general business counseling.
Along with Hurley and Young, Karen Wolf is the third female attorney on the firm's five-attorney Executive Board. A partner in Verrill's Trial Group and Chair of the firm's Professional Liability Group, Wolf serves as counsel for physicians, hospitals, health care professionals, attorneys, and accountants. Wolf also maintains a high stakes domestic relations practice and is in high demand as a mediator and arbitrator in this area.
Verrill was recognized as one of the top ten law firms in the country for gender equality by the National Law Journal in the 2018 "NLJ 500 Women's Scorecard," in addition to being named a 2017 Law360 Ceiling Smasher and ranked in Law360's 2015 and 2016 Glass Ceiling Reports. At the end of 2018, 40% of Verrill's partners were female and more than 35% of the attorneys at Verrill were women, each well above the national average for comparably sized firms. Women attorneys also serve in other management roles throughout the firm as practice group chairs, committee chairs and branch office leaders.
"Our commitment to diversity and inclusion is deeply rooted in our firm culture," explains K.C. Jones, Managing Partner at Verrill. "This Executive Board further strengthens and supports our continuous efforts to attract and retain an even more diverse workforce, as well as ensuring that our policies and initiatives continue to foster a culture of inclusion."
In addition to Hurley, Young and Wolf, Managing Partner K.C. Jones and Intellectual Property Group Chair Charles Bacall also serve as members of Verrill's Executive Board.
