A Few Minutes with Women’s Leadership Initiative Chair Paula Hinton

Our Women’s Leadership Initiative (WLI) recently welcomed its new chair Paula Hinton, a Houston partner and accomplished litigator who has long been an active and passionate advocate for women in the profession. Winston’s WLI is dedicated to the strategic retention and advancement of women attorneys at the firm. WLI works with firm management and outside resources to improve retention of women attorneys and provide them with the tools and skills that lead to opportunities for advancement.

To continue the firm’s momentum on both of these fronts, Paula has been working with WLI leadership, Winston’s Diversity Committee, and other members of the firm on a number of new and ongoing WLI and Diversity Committee initiatives. “One such initiative is Winston’s recently launched Advancement Subcommittee, which is made up of members of senior firm management and is charged with providing a framework to enhance the opportunities for sponsorship and mentoring for women and diverse attorneys within the firm,” Paula notes. In addition, she has been working with the local office leaders of the WLI to frame customized WLI initiatives and programs.

“The Diversity Committee and WLI have made tremendous progress in working with management to make diversity and opportunity an important component of the firm’s client service philosophy and strategic business plan. As chair of the WLI, I hope to further implement initiatives to help create a more inclusive ‘one firm’ culture, breaking down silos and opening up opportunities for networking and business enhancement among all of our attorneys—both women and men regardless of her or his geographic location.”

One of Paula’s first efforts as the new chair is to conduct town halls in each office, and she also is forming a firmwide WLI Programming Subcommittee to assist in developing quarterly broadcast programs to present to Winston’s women attorneys. In addition, Paula is working with firm management on another new program to form an external advisory board made up of diversity champions to collaborate with Winston on best practices in a number of areas.

“I believe there are several initiatives in the works that will make 2016 a banner year for Winston in displaying to its professionals and the legal community our commitment to the important issues of opportunity.”