What started as a group chat between Fordham Law alumnae navigating the challenges women face in the legal profession has grown into a vibrant networking community of more than 100 women lawyers across the country.
Milana Dostanitch ’14, senior of counsel at Lipsky Lowe LLP, and Katerina Housos LL.M., ’14, CEO and general counsel of United Steps Therapy, formally launched IWILL: Inspiring Women in Law League in September 2023 along with fellow co-founder Kalpana Nagampalli, a litigation attorney at Kakar P.C. They described it as the first organization of its kind to provide career development resources, mental health and wellness support, business growth and financial education resources for women in the legal profession.
The idea for the organization emerged out of a real need for connection in a world that suddenly went remote, said Dostanitch, heightened by the isolation she and her women lawyer friends experienced during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I had amazing friends who were lawyers, and we all started facing similar things that I think women in law face,” she said, pointing to a lack of mentorship and career support, challenges getting promoted and equitably paid, and concerns around how to find meaningful work and career fulfillment.
She found herself repeatedly having the same conversations with different women, and finally started a group chat on WhatsApp called “Inspiring Women in Law” to serve as a safe place for them to candidly share their experiences and to facilitate career advancement. Soon, the energy of friends connecting and cheering each other on led to friends of friends being added and the group chat grew, eventually leading to the birth of IWILL:Inspiring Women in Law League (“IWILL”), which officially launched to the public in September 2023.
“I think that it all came together in a very beautiful way,” added Nagampalli. “All of us have different kinds of networks and approaches to how we create a community but we knew one thing for sure: we want a supportive community that caters to a diverse set of women lawyers.”
As an employment lawyer, Dostanitch says she has heard from countless women in all types of industries who have faced gender discrimination and hit the glass ceilings, and she is familiar with the often depressing statistics facing women in the workplace.
But she emphasizes that the work of IWILL is “action-oriented” and “solution-based,” with a focus on helping women “step into [their]power” to create new opportunities and innovate the practice of law. IWILL supports its members in creating revenue and growing as legal entrepreneurs allowing them to practice law on their own terms. Importantly, Dostanitch encourages the community to set and hold strong to their non-negotiables, including flexibility, rest, family and personal goals.
Now that the community has officially launched, IWILL has expanded its private network by accepting applications for membership from J.D. and LL.M. students, as well as allies, including women and men in other professions that support the organization’s values for inclusivity and empowerment.
IWILL currently hosts up to four events per month including social outings such as an upcoming yoga retreat in Puerto Rico, a classical concert with a Carnegie Hall pianist, holistic medical health event, and gatherings focused on career growth, social media, and self-marketing. The platform also enables members to collaborate on legal work, sharing brainpower and growing their books of business, and on mutual professional goals, such as undergoing mediation trainings and co-authoring a book.
In the future, the founders hope to transform IWILL into a paid platform model to help expand their mission of connecting women to more regions of the US. IWILL currently has members in 15 states working in a wide range of legal roles.
Still, the group’s humble origins remain a key part of their success, and represent the powerful impact that relationships can have on our careers.
“The DNA of the group, of course, started with our friendship,” and “unwavering support for each other” said Dostanitch. “The fact [is]that we can all succeed together… Women should openly talk to each other, and know that if one of us wins, we all win. We have this amazing culture at IWILL, and now other people get to enjoy it and be nurtured by it.”
