Chapters

Washington DC

The Washington D.C. Chapter of the Women's White Collar Defense Association was founded in 1999 by Karen Popp, Co-Chair of Sidley Austin's White Collar Practice and Beth Wilkinson, named partner at Wilkinson Walsh, upon their departure from government jobs to enter private practice. After attending the annual ABA White Collar conference in 1999, they were galvanized by their observation that there were very few women in the White Collar bar and the awareness that building a practice meant building a referral network.

After consulting senior women practicing in the field, the D.C. chapter was formally launched with Attorney General Janet Reno as the first guest speaker. Other speakers have included officials from all three branches of the U.S. government, members of the media, and numerous in-house lawyers.

The thriving D.C. chapter holds lunch meetings five times a year and hosts cocktail receptions twice a year.

CHAPTER MEMBERSHIP CRITERIA

The Washington D.C. Chapter accepts Law Firm Attorney Members and Consultant Members as defined:

Law Firm Attorney Member: Women attorney private practitioners primarily practicing in the area of White Collar Defense and Investigations, defined as those who specialize in the representation of corporations, other organizations and individuals facing government enforcement actions (criminal, civil, regulatory, and administrative), and in internal investigations, compliance and ethics matters.   

Consultant Member: Women professionals who work at consulting firms (or non-attorney professionals who work at law firms), specialize in the White Collar Defense and Investigations field, and who otherwise qualify under the WWCDA membership criteria and offer support services and referral opportunities to attorneys in the practice. 

Some WWCDA and chapter events may be limited to women attorney private practitioner (law firm attorney) members only.  

All Members must have their primary work address in the same location as our chapter. 

Apply for membership today. 

Chapter Leadership

Note: Chapter leaders are listed alphabetical by last name.