Taylor Pfingst: Glass Ceilings Are Meant to be Broken

09/30/22 • 75 min

In this episode, hosts April Abele Isaacson and Kate Geyer welcome a special cohost—fellow Kilpatrick Townsend patent litigator Taylor Pfingst—to discuss recent data on how law firms are doing on diversity, equity and inclusion, with particular emphasis on gender equality.

Taylor, a native Californian, is an Associate in Kilpatrick Townsend’s Los Angeles office. Her practice focuses on patent and trade secret litigation as well as other intellectual property disputes. She represents both plaintiffs and defendants in a broad range of industries, including technology, entertainment, and medical devices. Taylor was a key member of trial teams in high-stakes cases that resulted in more than $100 million in jury verdicts for the client. Every year since 2019, Super Lawyers magazine has recognized Taylor as a Northern California “Rising Star” for Intellectual Property Litigation.

Prior to joining the firm, Taylor served as a judicial extern for the Honorable Charles R. Breyer in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California and as a law clerk in the Public Rights Division in the California Department of Justice, Office of the Attorney General. She received her BA in political science from UC Santa Barbara and her JD from UC Hastings College of Law. While attending law school, she was the Executive Notes Editor of the Hastings Constitutional Law Quarterly.

In a candid conversation, April, Kate, and Taylor identify the seismic shifts that have taken place in the legal profession since the days when Taylor’s mom became a trial attorney, and the hurdles that still remain today. They discuss the recently published Law360 2022 Glass Ceiling Report: Women In Law, which provides statistical proof of how the profession has changed and how much still needs to be done.

Through personal anecdotes and insights, April, Kate, and Taylor weave the experience of three generations—Boomers, Gen Xers, and Millennials—into a cohesive timeline that speaks of the progress and setbacks on the road to greater diversity and inclusion.

Highlights include:

Destined for life in the law
Seeing how an earlier generation of women balanced work and family obligations, and were taken seriously as a lawyer
How not to be a mentor
Working mothers as role models for both men and women
Working while female; there is no excuse not to mentor
The value of not being the only woman in the room
Sobering statistics about women in leadership in the legal profession
A silver lining to the COVID pandemic
An invisible burden of proving everyone wrong
The luxury of being disorganized
Capitalizing on the momentum generated by greater numbers of women partners
Demystifying the path to partnership

Thanks for listening to Sidebars! Connect with us:

Learn more about April Abele Isaacson
Check out other insights from Kilpatrick
Subscribe to our YouTube Channel
Questions or feedback? Reach out at [email protected]
Learn more about Kilpatrick

**The opinions expressed are those of the attorneys and do not necessarily reflect the views of the firm or its clients. This podcast is for general information purposes and is not intended to be and should not be taken as legal advice.

Highlights include:

Destined for life in the law
Seeing how an earlier generation of women balanced work and family obligations, and were taken seriously as a lawyer
How not to be a mentor
Working mothers as role models for both men and women
Working while female; there is no excuse not to mentor
The value of not being the only woman in the room
Sobering statistics about women in leadership in the legal profession
A silver lining to the COVID pandemic
An invisible burden of proving everyone wrong
The luxury of being disorganized
Capitalizing on the momentum generated by greater numbers of women partners
Demystifying the path to partnership

Thanks for listening to Sidebars! Connect with us:

Learn more about April Abele Isaacson
Check out other insights from Kilpatrick
Subscribe to our YouTube Channel
Questions or feedback? Reach out at [email protected]
Learn more about Kilpatrick

Previous Episode

Amanda Brouillette: Taking Charge

In this episode, we interview patent litigator Amanda Brouillette, a Senior Associate in the Atlanta office of Kilpatrick Townsend. Amanda has defended a wide range of clients accused of patent infringement through all stages of litigation, including at trial. Her cases encompass a variety of technical fields, including telecommunications, medical billing, pharmaceuticals, and mechanical systems. In 2022 and 2023, Amanda was recognized as one of the “Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch” for Intellectual Property Law by The Best Lawyers in America®.
Amanda has a B.S. in physics and a B.A. in English from the University of Georgia, where she graduated summa cum laude, highest honors. She earned her J.D. from Stanford Law School with pro bono distinction for her work with the Stanford Domestic Violence Pro Bono Project. During law school, Amanda served on the Stanford Technology Law Review, first as a Lead Editor, then as Editor In Chief.
From an early age, Amanda thrived on learning new things. Her decision to double-major in Physics and English proved a perfect recipe for never being bored or feeling like she was stagnating with her studies—and it turned out to be the perfect gateway to patent litigation, too.
Amanda is a firm believer in taking charge of her own professional destiny and creating her own opportunities, including by actively developing connections with other patent law practitioners. Her brilliance, can-do attitude, and sunny disposition, which she brings to any task set before her, have helped her build strong relationships with mentors and sponsors within the firm, with clients, and with more junior attorneys whom she now supervises.
In this episode, Amanda shares her insights about what it takes to build a successful career as a patent litigator. She also discusses the importance of communication and relationship-building for professional development. And she talks about the two-pronged approach that firms—and individuals—can take to accelerate the creation of a more diverse and inclusive workplace.
Highlights include:

A chain of happy accidents leads to a career in patent law
Thriving on the feeling of success
The theater bug as translated into litigation
Taking deliberate steps toward more diversity in hiring
The cultural cues that may discourage women from pursuing a patent litigation career
Mentorship vs. sponsorship
How to find sponsors and build relationships with them
Bonding in a personal way for increased work productivity
Managing up and managing down
Developing a leadership style
A personal professional highlight that demonstrates the importance of sponsorship
A collaborative approach to better serving clients through diverse teams
A two-pronged approach to diversity and inclusion
The paradox of emphasizing female mentoring for junior women

Thanks for listening to Sidebars! Connect with us:

Learn more about April Abele Isaacson
Check out other insights from Kilpatrick
Subscribe to our YouTube Channel
Questions or feedback? Reach out at [email protected]
Learn more about Kilpatrick

Next Episode

The 2022 Mental Health Special Episode: Burnout in the Legal Profession

In this special episode, hosts April Abele Isaacson and Kate Geyer are joined by Kasey Koballa, an Associate from the Kilpatrick Townsend Raleigh office. Kasey’s practice focuses on patent litigation in federal courts and before the ITC in matters relating to a wide variety of industries, including video games and footwear and sport apparel. In 2015, Kasey received a BS in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering with a minor in Biotechnology from North Carolina State University, where she graduated summa cum laude, was the valedictorian of her class, and received the Top 10 Scholar Athlete Award for her achievements in soccer. In 2018, she received her law degree from William & Mary Law School with an Intellectual Property Concentration.

With three very different backgrounds and life journeys, April, Kate, and Kasey discuss the issue of burnout in the legal profession, and particularly in the hard-charging, high-stakes world of patent litigation. They share their first-hand experiences and their earned wisdom about building resilience and thriving in such a pressure-filled environment. In this important conversation, April, Kate, and Kasey use compassion and humor to tackle a serious problem that continues to claim many promising legal careers far too early. They also provide a glimpse into what it takes to work at the highest levels of patent litigation while keeping burnout at bay.
Highlights include:

Broadening career options
Definition of burnout
Why attorneys are particularly susceptible to burnout
The struggle to say “no”
Why women are more likely to suffer burnout than men
“I’ll sleep when I’m dead”
The signs of reaching your limit
Navigating the post-COVID hybrid work environment for greater productivity and better work-life balance
The critical importance of recognizing early signs of burnout
Recruiting your support system
Tiny recharging breaks can make a huge difference
Rethinking proactive management of work assignments to reduce overwork
Law-firm mentors as a first line of defense against burnout
Surprising reasons why burnout is a major threat to talent retention
The availability and value of external resources like employee assistance programs
Destigmatizing the use of therapy and other mental health support
Recognizing that blocking off time for self-care is not an indulgence but a tool to becoming a better lawyer

Thanks for listening to Sidebars! Connect with us: