The Hidden Benefits of Board Service

Since 1996, I have served continuously on one or more nonprofit boards, as well as in bar leadership, on top of practicing appellate law full-time. I currently serve on the boards of the International Association of Defense Counsel Foundation, Coastline Community College Foundation, RAND Institute for Civil Justice, and the Western Justice Center Foundation. Previously, I served on the boards of Opera Pacific, Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles, and Claremont Graduate University, and chaired the boards of national teen dating violence organization Break the Cycle and L.A.-based literary and poetry publisher Red Hen Press. Both as a newer lawyer and as a law firm partner, I have discovered many benefits to serving the community beyond the satisfaction of doing the right thing and giving back. I highlight five of those benefits here.