(Washington, DC)—Dickstein Shapiro LLP is proud to announce that Deborah Kelly, the firm’s deputy general counsel and leader of its Employment Practice, has been honored with the 2009 PAR Flex Success Award. This is the first time that the Project for Attorney Retention (PAR), a national organization dedicated to advancing women lawyers and improving work-life balance for all lawyers, has given this award. The PAR Flex Success Award recognizes a partner in a PAR member law firm who is working or has worked a reduced hour arrangement that is considered successful by the firm, the attorney, and clients; and a client who contributes to the success of that arrangement.

Deborah Kelly and her client Anahaita Kotval, managing director and general counsel of RBS Securities, Inc., are one of two attorney-client pairs honored with the 2009 PAR Flex Success Award. Twenty years ago, following time off for the birth of triplets, Ms. Kelly proposed to work an 80 percent schedule while staying on partnership track. Since then, she has built and led a successful Employment Practice while continuing on a flexible time arrangement. Ms. Kelly has worked with Anahaita Kotval—who has also succeeded in her career while raising two sons—for more than a decade.

“This award is significant, as it reflects our firm’s values and affirms our success in helping attorneys achieve a work-life balance,” said Michael Nannes, chairman of Dickstein Shapiro. “I am honored that Deborah has received this award, as her experience clearly demonstrates how workplace flexibility can foster successful attorney-client relationships.”

The award was presented at a luncheon on October 29 during PAR’s Diversity and Flexibility Connection Conference in Washington, DC.

Dickstein Shapiro is committed to the advancement of women in the legal marketplace. The Firm is a leader in developing and implementing progressive work/life balance policies and fostering a consistently employee- and family-friendly environment. As a result, the Firm attracts and retains exceedingly talented women attorneys who serve at all levels. The Firm’s commitment to advancing womens’ issues in the legal industry consistently has been recognized. This year, Dickstein Shapiro was recognized, for the fourth time, by the Washington Business Journal as one of the ‘Best Places to Work’.

Dickstein Shapiro LLP
Dickstein Shapiro LLP, founded in 1953, is a multiservice law firm with more than 400 attorneys in Los Angeles, New York, and Washington, DC. The firm’s clients include more than 100 of the Fortune 500 companies, start-up ventures and entrepreneurs, multinational corporations, leading financial institutions, major motion picture studios, charitable organizations, and government officials. Dickstein Shapiro’s core practice groups—Antitrust & Dispute Resolution, Business & Securities Law, Corporate & Finance, Energy, Government Law & Strategy, Insurance Coverage, and Intellectual Property—involve the firm in virtually every major form of counseling, litigation, and advocacy.

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