Insights
Firm News

Profile in Women Leadership - Mary McCutcheon

March 7, 2023

Farella is proud to honor Women’s History Month. Our women lawyers and staff have imparted and continue to provide significant value in making Farella the firm it is today. To demonstrate this outsized impact, we have launched our inaugural Profile in Women Leadership honoring insurance partner Mary McCutcheon. In the following years, we will profile a different, significant woman at the firm as part of Women’s History Month.

What's one thing you know now that you wish you knew earlier in your career?

It’s okay not to know all the answers. We all succeeded in high school, college, and law school by being thoroughly prepared. We drew our confidence from knowing all the answers. In law, you have to be thoroughly prepared, but you will not know all of the answers—there may not even be answers. Draw your confidence not from knowing the answer to the problem, but from knowing that you have the experience and judgment to figure it out. 

What's the biggest challenge that you have faced related to being a woman in the law?

Time! There aren’t enough hours in the day for my family, my practice, my colleagues, my community, my friends, myself…

What do you consider to be your greatest professional accomplishment so far, and what's one skill that helped you achieve it?

Helping to build a practice group that is kick-ass, thriving, diverse, and collaborative, and will be a force to reckon with long after I am no longer practicing. The skill?  Besides being fortunate enough to hire great attorneys, I enjoy working with them on challenging matters, and introducing them to clients, referral sources, and opposing counsel.

During your career, how have things changed — or remained the same — for women partners in a law firm?

Being a “lady lawyer” is not as unusual as it was when I was a young attorney. Woman partners can be incredible sources of support not only with respect to internal firm politics but also business development.

What does it mean to be a woman leader in a corporate law firm in 2023?

Sometimes it means you are a voice for other women, making sure that their achievements are recognized and rewarded. But most of the time it means that you are running the business, just like any other partner.

What's one piece of advice you have for young women pursuing a law career today?

Show your enthusiasm for your work to the people you work with, other lawyers, friends, and contacts. People will want to work with you and give you work.

Firm Highlights

Event

The Fine Print: A Litigator’s Perspective on Boilerplate Contract and Insurance Provisions

Join Carly Alameda and Amy Briggs in the discussion on "The Fine Print: A Litigator’s Perspective on Boilerplate Contract and Insurance Provisions" to the ACC Bay Area Chapter. Corporate counsel are often tasked with negotiating...

Read More
Publication

State Minimum Fire Safe Regulations Go Into Effect April 1, 2023

The State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection has been actively pursuing comprehensive new wildfire protection standards for development in Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones and State Responsibility Areas where the State of...

Read More
Publication

Nonprofit Basics: Conflict of Interest Policies and Best Practices for Approving Insider Compensation

Welcome to  EO Radio Show – Your Nonprofit Legal Resource . This episode is the second in a series discussing insider transactions. In episode 32, I gave a general overview of the federal laws...

Read More
Publication

Nonprofit Basics: Best Practices for Approving Insider Compensation Decisions

Welcome to  EO Radio Show – Your Nonprofit Legal Resource . This episode is the third in a series discussing insider transactions by exempt organizations. In this episode, I'll look closely at best practices...

Read More
Publication

I Always Feel Like AI Is Watching Me: Artificial Intelligence and Privacy

ChatGPT got the early press, and every day we learn of new generative artificial intelligence products that can create new and creative visual and text responses to human input. Following on ChatGPT’s fame, Google’s...

Read More
Event

Insurance 101 for Non-Insurance Attorneys

Jennifer Bentley and Patrick Loi are speakers at the Bar Association of San Francisco's MCLE program "Insurance 101 for Non-Insurance Attorneys." Session Overview: A primer for non-insurance lawyers on common insurance terminology, insurance products, exclusions, and pitfalls. Topics...

Read More
News

WhatsApp and Facebook Take the NSO Group to Court

Kyle McLorg was interviewed for the  Shoot The Messenger: Espionage, Murder, & Pegasus Spyware  investigative podcast episode “WhatsApp and Facebook Take the NSO Group to Court” produced by Exile Media in collaboration with The...

Read More
News

Farella Advises TILT Holdings Inc. on $86.7 Million Debt Refinancing

Northern California legal powerhouse Farella Braun + Martel advised TILT Holdings Inc. , a global provider of cannabis business solutions that include inhalation technologies, cultivation, manufacturing, processing, brand development, and retail, on a series of...

Read More
Event

The Fine Print: A Litigator’s Perspective on Boilerplate Contract and Insurance Provisions

Join Carly Alameda and Amy Briggs in the discussion on "The Fine Print: A Litigator’s Perspective on Boilerplate Contract and Insurance Provisions" to the ACC Bay Area Chapter. Corporate counsel are often tasked with negotiating...

Read More
News

Justices Don't Appear Ready To Overturn Social Media Liability Law

Erik Olson, an intellectual property partner and co-chair of Farella's Platforms Group, spoke to the Daily Journal for the article "Justices Don't Appear Ready To Overturn Social Media Liability Law."  The article covered the U.S...

Read More