Labor/Employment,
Family
Sep. 27, 2022
Striving for spousal equity: returning to complex litigation after paternity leave
Erin and I made the decision to delay having children and then found it very difficult to conceive. Once we conceived, our world did not stop moving. Erin tried two cases while pregnant. Likewise, I handled a full slate of depositions, court appearances, traveled for conferences, stayed up all hours of the night writing briefs and everything else litigation requires.
Early in my career, I recall a partner remarking, "Opposing counsel told me that he just got back from paternity leave." The comment struck me as odd coming from someone with a family. The partner's next words signaled unequivocally that opposing counsel's parental leave was a sign of weakness. I internalized the impact of his comments: children are a weakness to a litigator, a "burden" to be borne by the other spouse. Later, I observed that many...
For only $95 a month (the price of 2 article purchases)
Receive unlimited article access and full access to our archives,
Daily Appellate Report, award winning columns, and our
Verdicts and Settlements.
Or
$795 for an entire year!
Or access this article for $45
(Purchase provides 7-day access to this article. Printing, posting or downloading is not allowed.)
Already a subscriber?
Sign In