Fresh off the AAJ Winter Conference and several other incredible professional gatherings, I can say one thing for sure: nothing replaces being in the room.
Over the past few years, we’ve all grown comfortable with virtual meetings. Zoom has been an incredible tool—one that I personally championed during the pandemic to bring our community together in the Women’s Caucus. It has kept us connected, productive, and engaged in ways we never imagined. But after spending time face-to-face with my peers, sharing ideas over coffee (or something a little stronger), and engaging in real-time discussions, I’m reminded of how in-person connection offers a different kind of energy and impact.
New Year’s resolutions—how many of you set them? And how many of you struggle to keep them or feel weighed down by them? Resolutions can sometimes feel like pressure instead of motivation. That’s why I’ve embraced a different approach: choosing a Word of the Year.
As lawyers, we know that the Seventh Amendment, ensuring the right to a jury trial, is not just a constitutional guarantee—it’s a cornerstone of our democracy. It is the foundation of fairness and accountability in our legal system, ensuring that justice is decided by everyday citizens rather than solely by government entities or corporate interests.
That’s what I saw as I walked into the convention hall of an unfamiliar city for my first AAJ convention. The organization was new to me, and my mind raced with questions and self-doubt: Where do I go? How do I make the most of this experience? What’s the best way to network? It was overwhelming, to say the least.
As 2024 winds down, I find myself reflecting on one of the year’s most defining moments. It was a warm evening in Nashville at the Rare Bird, where I had the honor of soft-launching my campaign for AAJ Parliamentarian. The memory of that night is set to the backdrop of Ashley McBryde’s Girl Goin’ Nowhere, a song that captures the resilience and determination of pursuing a dream against all odds.
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