The Women of Kelley Drye Honor the Life and Work of Judge Patricia Wald

In celebration of Women’s History Month, the Women of Kelley Drye hosted a lunch program for all attorneys on March 25 honoring the life and work of Judge Patricia Wald, former chief judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.  Judge Wald, the first woman to preside over the D.C. Appeals Court and the 2013 recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the country’s highest civilian honor, passed away earlier this year.

During the program, former Kelley Drye of counsel and longtime friend of Judge Wald, Jodie Bernstein, shared stories of their friendship and professional relationship, which spanned more than 50 years, in a conversation facilitated by partner Dana Rosenfeld.  Jodie spoke of their days at Yale Law School— during a time when most law schools did not accept women, their careers in the government, and the time they spent at home raising their families.  Kristi Wolff, partner in the firm’s Advertising practice and member of the Diversity & Inclusion Committee, started the program with a brief introduction and special counsels Melissa Byroade and Jaclyn Metzinger provided attendees with notable highlights of the hundreds of rulings by Judge Wald during her tenure on the D.C. Circuit and while serving in The Hague on the international court for war crimes in the former Yugoslavia.