More Women in Leadership Spots Coming in Big-Ticket Cases

Women have struggled to obtain plaintiff leadership positions in federal multidistrict litigation, especially in lead counsel slots in complex mass tort cases.

One attorney at that level, however, is optimistic as judges stress the need for greater diversity in plaintiffs’ leadership, and more firms are creating opportunities and support structures for female lawyers.

“I do see women represented more than a few years ago,” Kelsey L. Stokes, with Fleming Nolen Jez LLP in Houston, told Bloomberg Law. “If you’re at a firm that is not afraid to put a young attorney up as the face of their firm on the ...