WOMEN’S LEGAL NETWORK (“WLN”) GOES FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH IN 2017!
Founded in 2015 under the direction of Lovette Tannock and Kimberley D. Caines, the principle aims of WLN are networking, education and philanthropy.
Building on a successful 2016, WLN partnered with PWC Bermuda on International Women’s Day on March 8th to discuss “The Diversity Journey: Taking Action, Creating Impact, Achieving Results”. Our panel, which consisted of the Honourable Chief Justice Dr. Ian Kawaley, Robin Mayor of Conyers Dill & Pearman Limited, Catherine Bromilow of PWC’s Governance Insights Center, Elizabeth Cava of Deloitte and Patrick Tannock, President of XL Insurance (Bermuda), came from varied backgrounds and provided a range of interesting perspectives – from constitutional, legal, Directorial, board and management level perspectives. Over 160 business people attended the event at O’Hara House.
In 2017, we began an article reading club, which was an opportunity to discuss a noted article written about issues women face in the workplace. The first article reviewed was “The Confidence Gap” in May at Bungalow 56; our second article was “Why Women Still Can’t Have it All” in November. Appreciation is extended to Robin Mayor and Conyers Dill and Pearman for providing a venue for our second article discussion.
9th June 2017 was particularly special for us, as we honored Mrs. Shirley D. Simmons on the 50th anniversary of her call to the Bermuda Bar with a tree and plaque at the Arboretum in Devonshire. It is a fantastic achievement to have longevity in one’s career and Ms. Simmons is a role model for whom we can follow. We encourage you to visit the Arboretum to visit the tree; it is just off the Parking-lot entrance on the Southern side of the Park.
We continued our “Talk Series” in October with a breakfast panel at the Dinghy Club. The discussion centered on the role of in-house counsel. Victoria Guest of Hamilton Insurance Group, Daina Casling of Renaissance Re, Kim Simmons of Butterfield Group and Shauna MacKenzie of the Bermuda Monetary Authority were our panelists. The discussions ranged from the reasons why our panelists chose in-house work, to the roles their positions played within their companies. The discussion provided great insight into the work and role of in-house counsel in Bermuda.
To round out the year, on the 4th and 5th of December, WLN again partnered with the Coalition for the Protection of Children Christmas Toys for Tots campaign. Over two day lunch hour periods, WLN members sorted two classrooms of gifts! Thank you to those who donated gifts, in particular, Beesmont Law, who provided both gifts and gift cards for older children. We continue to see the value in giving back to the local community at Christmastime, at a time when members of the Bar Council are fortunate enough to be able to provide a bit of Christmas cheer for Bermuda’s children.
We encourage members to watch this space as we plan for 2018. If you or your firm is interested in learning more about WLN or you wish to assist in our 2018 initiatives, please email us at womenslegalnetwork@gmail.com