The Portia Project™ Podcast seeks to inspire the next generation of women lawyers and law students by sharing the stories of high achieving women in the law – their paths to the bench, the bar, and beyond. Their personal histories, spanning the 1960’s to today, chronicle women’s progress in the legal profession and business world, and serve as powerful reminders that there are many individual paths to success.
As master storyteller Bobette Buster puts it: “Stories, told well and acted upon by one generation, ignite the next generation to greatness; because they have heard with their own ears, and seen with their own eyes, what courage can achieve.”
Guests stepping into the spotlight to share their career stories include federal judges, state supreme court justices, and state trial judges from across the country, as well as leading trial lawyers, general counsel, law professors, business and nonprofit executives, and founders. They provide tips on effective lawyering and reveal the array of meaningful careers possible with a law degree, in a format that is a far cry from formal judicial or lawyer profiles in traditional legal publications – one that brings out the interviewees’ human side and lets their personality shine through.
By listening to the lives of these lawyers and judges, you will gain a clearer idea of how they built their careers and may be inspired to follow in their footsteps. Who knows, maybe the next woman to revolutionize law, business, or the judiciary will be you!
Hosting the podcast is M.C. Sungaila, a practicing lawyer for more than 30 years, who has consistently been named one of the Top 100 Women Lawyers in California by the legal newspaper The Daily Journal. She focuses on civil appeals, writs, and related trial strategy and consulting. M.C. received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor for her combined professional achievements in humanitarian and pro bono work. She shares this recognition with seven U.S. Presidents, Nobel Prize winners, athletes, artists, and industry leaders who made a significant contribution to humanity.
M.C. invites amazing judges and lawyers to the podcast to share their valuable, inspiring legal advice. With each guest, you receive the best of both worlds: tips to improve your law practice and insights to enhance your career trajectory.
Join M.C. Sungaila in this meaningful journey to elevate your legal career and forge the path to becoming the lawyer of your dreams.
Listen to The Portia Project™ Podcast today at theportiaprojectpodcast.com
Therese M. Stewart, Associate Justice of the California First District Court of Appeal, Division Two, chats with MC Sungaila about moving from a high-profile advocacy career to the bench, efforts to …
Annaliese Fleming, Senior Associate Executive Director and General Counsel for the American Bar Association, joins M.C. Sungaila to talk about her experience leading the ABA's legal function. Listen …
Lynn Hecht Schafran, the Senior Vice President and Legal Director of the National Judicial Education Program at Legal Momentum, has played a leading role in the advancement of women's rights. Introdu…
Vice-Chief Justice of Arizona's Supreme Court, Ann Scott Timmer, shares her tips on brief writing and oral argument, and discusses her path to the bench and role on her state's supreme court.
Justice Adrienne Grover of the California Court of Appeal, Sixth District, discusses her path to the bench and her views on the justice system and gives sound advice for both advocates and lawyers as…
Leah Ward Sears was the first African-American female chief justice of a state supreme court in the United States. When she was first appointed as a justice in 1992, she became the first woman and yo…
Judge Joanne Motoike serves as the Presiding Judge of the Juvenile Court in Orange County, California. She discusses her time on the bench and her remarkable career prior to the bench serving as a se…
Justice Eileen C. Moore of the California Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, Division Three, joins us today to provide a historical perspective on the challenges women faced in becoming lawy…
Lee H. Rosenthal is the Chief Judge of The Southern District of Texas. She discusses her distinguished career, special relationship with her law clerks, and role leading the Federal Rules Committee.…
Join your host M.C. Sungaila as she talks to Justice Judith Ashmann-Gerst of the California Court of Appeal about her journey to the bench, from night law school to the trial court and then the court…
In this episode, MC Sungaila talks shop with Christine Mayle, Judge, Ohio Sixth District Court of Appeals. Judge Mayle discusses what drew her towards appellate law, and what drove her towards a posi…
Margaret M. Grignon, retired Justice of the California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, discusses the joys and challenges of a distinguished career on the bench and in practice. Justice Gr…
Joining M.C. Sungaila is Elizabeth D. Walker, Justice of the West Virginia Supreme Court and Co-Host of the podcast Lady Justice: Women of the Court. She shares the ups and downs in her life as a ju…
Today's guest Karen Scott was appointed as a U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Central District of California in 2015. Prior to her appointment, Judge Scott was a partner at Rutan & Tucker, LLP in Costa …
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michelle Williams Court took a non-traditional path to the bench. Judge Court discusses her civil rights career and continued commitment to serving the community as a…
In this episode, we chronicle a woman's journey to the bench and beyond. Christine Durham retired from the Utah Supreme Court in 2017 after serving as a Justice for 35 years, including 10 years as Ch…
Welcome to the Portia Project™️ Podcast, a podcast designed to celebrate and share the careers, personal stories, and hard earned wisdom of accomplished women judges and lawyers, in order to educate …