G. Elaine Wood Elected Chair of Legal Momentum Board of Directors; Laura A. Wilkinson Elected First Vice Chair

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Date: 

June 25, 2014

Media Contact: 

Jean Gazis

212-413-7558

jgazis@legalmomentum.org

New York, NY June 25, 2014--At its quarterly meeting in New York City on June 19, 2014, the Board of Directors of Legal Momentum, the oldest non-profit legal organization dedicated to advancing the rights of women and girls, elected board members G. Elaine Wood as its new Chair and Laura A. Wilkinson as its First Vice Chair, effective July 1st.

Ms. Wood is Managing Director at the global consulting firm Alvarez & Marsal, where she focuses on business intelligence and advises on corporate compliance programs. Previously, she was a Managing Director at Kroll; an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of  New York; and an associate at Cravath, Swaine and Moore. Ms. Wood served as a court-appointed monitor in the waste carting industry in New York and designed an international monitoring protocol to eliminate child labor abuse in the sporting goods industry. She advises on workplace violence issues and assists clients dealing with sexual harassment in the workplace. Ms. Wood holds a B.A. from Cornell University and a J.D. from the Columbia University School of Law. She was a member of Legal Momentum’s Board of Legal Advisers for ten years and joined the Board of Directors in 2012.

Ms. Wood said, “In my decade of involvement with Legal Momentum, I have seen the key role that Legal Momentum plays in fighting for women’s rights. I am thrilled and honored to lead the Board in support of this important work. We have a strong president, a dedicated staff, and a committed and talented Board focused today on securing both economic and physical security for women and girls.”

Ms. Wilkinson is an antitrust partner at Weil, Gotshal & Manges in Washington, D.C., with a practice focusing on mergers and acquisitions. She also serves as a Trustee of Cornell University and on the board of Alpha Kappa Alpha Educational Advancement Foundation. Previous positions include partner at Clifford Chance and Deputy Assistant Director at the Federal Trade Commission. She has served as chair of the District of Columbia Bar’s Antitrust and Consumer Law Section, and co-chair of the American Bar Association, Antitrust Section’s FTC Committee. She has taught antitrust law as an adjunct professor at Howard University School of Law. She holds a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania, a M.B.A. from Cornell University’s Johnson Graduate School of Management, and a J.D. from Cornell Law School. Ms. Wilkinson joined Legal Momentum’s Board in 2012 and is co-chair of its Strategic Planning Committee. Ms. Wilkinson said, “My passion always has been to work with organizations that help young women develop and achieve their potential. I am inspired by Legal Momentum’s unwavering, long-time commitment to equal rights and equal opportunity for all women and girls.”

Legal Momentum is deeply grateful to Linda A. Willett, Senior Vice President, General Counsel, and Corporate Secretary, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, for her outstanding service as Chair of Legal Momentum’s Board from late 2006 through June 30, 2014. During her tenure, Legal Momentum launched the Workplaces Respond  to Sexual and Domestic Violence national resource center, created several new training resources in its National Judicial Education Program, helped pass the 2011 and 2013 reauthorizations of the Violence Against Women Act, and successfully advocated for women who were subjected to discrimination in their workplaces. “Serving as the Chair of Legal Momentum’s Board has been one of my most rewarding professional experiences. It is a great organization with a wonderful Board and I look forward to continuing as a Board member under Elaine’s leadership as Chair,” Ms. Willett said.

“We are delighted to have these impressive leaders heading our Board of Directors,” said Carol Robles-Román, President and CEO of Legal Momentum. “They are dynamic women whose valuable expertise will further enhance  Legal Momentum’s impact nationally on behalf of all women and girls."

About Legal Momentum

Legal Momentum is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1970 to advance the rights of women across the nation by using the power of the law and creating innovative public policy in three broad areas: economic justice, freedom from gender-based violence, and equality under the law. Successful initiatives include judicial education programs on the realities of sexual assault, domestic violence, and their intersection; successful advocacy for the Violence Against Women Act and for expanded protections for Native American and other survivors of violence in its 2013 reauthorization; and helping women gain access to justice in the areas of pregnancy discrimination and accommodations, Title IX campus assault, and employment discrimination in the uniformed ranks. For more information, visit www.legalmomentum.org.