The Indiana Supreme Court, like courts in many states, has a rule that governs whether out-of-state lawyers can become members of the state bar without first taking the state bar examination. Out-of-state lawyers who practice law in full-time, salaried, traditional jobs are welcome. Those who choose alternative jobs while their children are young are not.

I gladly eschewed the prevailing 60-hour workweek that is common at law firms when I had a child in 1993. I was committed to doing everything possible to give my baby a good start in life, and I wanted to enjoy the relatively short period in my child's life before he went to school.

Still, I didn't retire. I couldn't afford to. I regularly represented domestic violence victims in court. I edited a three-volume series on domestic violence law that was published in 1998 by a respected scholarly press. I lectured on domestic violence at the University of Pittsburgh, where I was a faculty member and research associate. A committee of the Pennsylvania Legislature even consulted me on proposed domestic violence legislation.

Continue Reading...