Women in Law - On The Record

Allison Stewart
  • 5.0 (65)
  • Careers
  • Updated Bimonthly

An interview-based podcast spotlighting women in the legal field. We will learn how they got to where they are, what lessons they have learned along the way, and what they are doing now to achieve their next goal.

  1. Jul 19

    Episode No. 105: Amber Russell, Founder of LOAR, PLLLC

    Today on Women In Law On The Record, I'm talking with Amber Russell. Amber founded LOAR, PLLC to help injured Texans get justice before expanding the firm nationally. Her passion for the law started at an early age, and she has worked with victims her entire adult life. Amber graduated from the University of Texas with a Bachelors in Psychology before graduating with distinguished honor to the Order of the Coif, in the top 10% from the University of Texas Law School. Amber started her career working for an international defense firm, before switching sides to represent individual plaintiffs. Since then, Amber has helped hundreds of clients who have been seriously injured, including victims of trucking and auto crashes. In her community, Amber is known for being a fierce advocate. She and her husband launched and serve on the board of Scholarship Opportunities and Relationships or SOAR, a scholarship and mentoring program that provides $100K in annual scholarships, to help open doors for "first females." SOAR selects twenty high achievers each year to receive the scholarships in support of young women who are the first in their family to pursue higher education or who have overcome significant challenges. The scholarship program goes beyond financial resources by giving access to professional development and mentoring resources for these women as they go through school. If you haven't figured it out by now, Amber is just a very cool woman lawyer. I truly admired her during our conversation. I'm proud of and proud for her in all she has accomplished in her career so far and I look forward to watching her bright career continue to shine.

  2. Jun 3

    Episode No. 104: Aparna Williams, Chief Legal Officer, Sophos

    Today I'm talking with Aparna Williams, Chief Legal Officer of Sophos (a cybersecurity company. Aparna was born and raised in the Washington D.C. area. She attended the University of Maryland, Baltimore County where she obtained a bachelors degree in English literature and history. She then went on to the University of North Carolina for law school.  Through experiences and teachers early in life, the seed to become a lawyer was planted in Aparna's mind from a young age. Her family immigrated to the United States and she is a first generation American, so doing something special with her education was important to her.  Aparna took a non-traditional path out of law school, securing her first job in-house during the tech boom. She has remained in-house her entire career, rising through the ranks and making strategic moves along the way.  Aparna and I also shared stories about being a mom and a lawyer. Her insight and support was incredibly meaningful to me. It is a great example of why I do this podcast - to shine a light on women lawyers who inspire others. I hope you enjoy.

  3. Apr 29

    Episode No. 103: Rachael Bosch, Founder of Fringe Professional Development

    Today I'm talking with Rachael Bosch, Founder of Fringe Professional Development. Fringe helps people learn how to communicate better at work and stems from Rachael's belief that when you improve your communication skills, you also improve your work performance. Fringe PD brings coaching and training to professionals across disciplines and experience levels, and they're dedicated to putting humanity back into workplace environments, providing customized and progressive programming, and helping ambitious, high-achieving professionals excel at work. Rachael has worked inside some of the top global organizations with research-backed performance and coaching tools and that's given her the skills to identify strategic paths to advance teams and individual careers and she integrates that into Fringe's neuroscience backed training and coaching. As someone who has worked in a law firm for nearly 10 years, I was fascinated by Rachael's perspective and ideas. Please enjoy my conversation with her.

  4. Mar 31

    Episode No. 102: Mary Ellen O'Connor, Founder of O'Connor Law PLLC

    Throughout her life, Mary Ellen O'Connor has had a passion for standing up for what's right. As the founder of O'Connor Law PLLC, she considers it a privilege to be able to help those in need in the White Plains, Yonkers, and Bronx areas access the benefits that can help them provide for themselves and their families. After earning her Bachelor's of Science from SUNY Albany and her Master's from the College of Mount St. Vincent, Mary Ellen became a teacher. She soon discovered that many of her young students with learning disabilities were unable to access the services they needed to succeed in the classroom. Their parents either didn't know about the resources available or struggled to navigate the legal red tape that was required. Mary Ellen initially hoped that earning her law degree would allow her to be a more effective advocate for children with special needs. Life took an unexpected turn, however. Although Mary Ellen entered law school with the goal of focusing on special education law, she soon became frustrated with the ineffectiveness of the system and how it was being manipulated by the wealthy to provide extra advantages for their children. After an extended period of soul-searching, she channeled her desire to help others into a focus on workers' compensation benefits law and Social Security disability law. Mary Ellen strives to put a client's mind at rest from the very first meeting or telephone call. She draws on her background as a teacher to explain complex concepts without the confusing legal jargon other attorneys use and empower clients to take control of their situation by fully understanding their legal rights.

  5. Feb 26

    Episode No. 101: Denise Haugen, Corporate Counsel, Matheson

    Today I'm talking with Denise Haugen, Corporate Counsel at Matheson where she has spent the last nearly 18 years of her career. Prior to that, Denise was in private practice. She attended University of Texas Austin where she obtained a Bachelors in political science. She then obtained her law degree from the University of Houston.  I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Denise. Our conversation was honest, her responses and insight were thoughtful, and I am confident there are lots of good takeaways for all of you listening.

  6. 02/19/2025

    Episode No. 100 (Part II): Where Are They Now? Featuring D'Lonra Ellis and Iris Chen

    Today on Women In Law, I'm sharing Part II of my 100th Episode! I hope you enjoyed Part I where I checked in with Amy Tu and Samantha Monk. In Part II, I will first be speaking with D'Lonra Ellis, Chief Legal Officer of the Oakland Athletics and Adjunct Professor at UC Law. D'Lonra was my first guest ever on the podcast. It was such a thrill for me over 6 years ago to be able to feature her. At the time, she was Associate General Counsel of the team and since then she has climbed through the ranks, tackling all kinds of legal issues covering a wide array of subject matters. D'Lonra has set herself apart from most lawyers in the industry and all while also teaching law students the ins and outs of "sports law" at UC Law.   After D'Lonra, you'll hear me speak with Iris Chen. Iris is now the General Counsel of Moloco, which provides machine learning-based advertising solutions to drive growth for businesses of all sizes. Before taking on her first GC role, Iris was Deputy General Counsel at AirBnb and before that VP of Legal at Google where she spent 14 years of her career and where we first met. Iris and I walked through her time at AirBnb and how she gained valuable experience that positioned her for her role at Moloco. Just as she was in our first conversation, Iris is so forthcoming with the best insight and advice to share. I always leave our conversations feeling inspired and encouraged about my career. And this time was no exception.  Please enjoy my conversations with D'Lonra and Iris.

  7. 01/16/2025

    Episode No. 100 (Part I): Where Are They Now? with Amy Tu and Samantha Monk

    Today on Women In Law, I'm sharing Part I of my 100th Episode! It's been over six years in the making but we are finally here. For this special episode, I wanted to check back in with a few women I've met over the years to see where they are now. In Part I, I'm talking with Amy Tu who I first featured on the podcast in January 2021. Since then, Amy has become the Chief Legal Officer of Target, which is a dream job for her. We chat about what excited her most about the opportunity and how she has enjoyed the culture at Target so far.  After Amy, you'll hear me speak with Samantha Monk, Owner of Play Street Museum in Fayetteville, Arkansas. She and I first spoke on the podcast very early on - at a time when she was an M&A associate at Vinson & Elkins in Dallas, Texas and had just had her first son. Since then, she took an in-house role with Greystar Management and in her latest move she decided to start a Play Street Museum, which is an interactive children's museum & indoor play area designed to fuel imaginations. Sam is one of my dearest friends and I am so proud of her for taking on this new adventure. It's right up her alley - using her business savvy to provide a fun, family friendly venue to her community. In fact, while I visited, I had the opportunity to take my family to Play Street and it was awesome. The kids had a blast running all over the place, making slime, pretending to serve ice cream, work at a bakery, run a pet shop, you name it.  I loved checking back in with Amy and Sam and hope you enjoy hearing the latest about their career journeys.

  8. 01/07/2025

    Episode No. 99: Looking Back on Women In Law On The Record

    In today's episode, I reflect back on 100 episodes of Women In Law On The Record and share some of my favorite moments, guests, and memories from the last six and a half years.

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About

An interview-based podcast spotlighting women in the legal field. We will learn how they got to where they are, what lessons they have learned along the way, and what they are doing now to achieve their next goal.

Information

  • Creator
    Allison Stewart
  • Years Active
    2018 - 2026
  • Episodes
    107
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2018 - All rights reserved
  • Show Website
    Women in Law - On The Record

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