Karen Koehler and Mo Hamoudi bring their Velvet Hammer Podcast style to an important CLE.  This program examines how bias, marginalization, and systemic inequities affect trial lawyers who are BIPOC  in Washington State courts. Drawing on first-hand accounts, qualitative data, and professional experiences, Karen and Mo will explore how their lived experiences reflect broader structural and cultural barriers in legal communities and systems.

From courtroom dynamics to professional advancement,  adversarial interactions to peer relationships, this seminar will illustrate how both explicit and implicit biases can shape reputations, work environment and outcomes.  Highlighting RPC 8.4(g) (related to professional misconduct) and a lawyer’s ethical duty to promote fairness and integrity in the justice system.  

Participants will hopefully gain insight, connection, and empathy.  And leave with practical tools for: a) recognizing and/or surviving bias; b) fostering inclusion and/or navigating exclusion; and c) becoming motivated to strive for improvements to institutional culture.