© 2014 The Texas Lawbook.
By Brooks Igo
Staff Writer for The Texas Lawbook
(May 28) – Heather Hewitt was at her 15-year-old daughter’s tennis practice on April 29 when she received a call offering her the “opportunity of a lifetime.”
One day after interviewing with Baker Botts, she found out she would be joining the firm in Houston as one of the members of the inaugural class of the OnRamp Fellowship, a new initiative created to help women re-enter their career tracks in the practice of law. The nine fellows were announced last week.
“It is such a boost,” said Hewitt, who is the only Texas-based fellow. “This is a great next step in a new career for me in law.”
After practicing as a litigation associate at Andrews Kurth and Hicks Thomas in Houston, Hewitt left in 1999 to start a family. She said she applied for the OnRamp Fellowship program after hearing about it from a friend of hers who is a headhunter.
Though she was a litigator in her past life as a lawyer, Hewitt will join Baker Botts’ corporate department in mid-August and work closely with corporate and securities partner Jason Rocha, who will serve as her partner advisor. She said the results of her skills assessment through the OnRamp Fellowship application indicated she is a better fit for corporate law.
“Caren [founder of the OnRamp Fellowship] said I might’ve missed my calling after looking at my assessment,” she said. “I hope to learn a lot and show the firm I can add value and contribute while learning and sharpening my skills.”
OnRamp Fellows have at least three years of experience in the law and are at least two years removed from their practice. The fellowship provides the women with career-development support through unlimited access to online CLE programs; training by specialists in negotiations, business development and leadership; and one-on-one coaching by legal experts in the profession.
The OnRamp Fellowship was created by lawyer recruitment and advancement expert Caren Ulrich Stacy to bring more women lawyers back into the fold and advance more women into leadership roles.
“There is brain trust out there that is untapped,” said Hewitt, who credits Stacy with the program’s seamless and efficient application process. “Caren found the need.”
Baker Botts, which is one of four founding law firm sponsors of the OnRamp Fellowship program, also selected Yvette Lanneaux to join its corporate department in New York. The other seven fellows are at Sidley Austin, Hogan Lovells and Cooley.
OnRamp fellows receive a one-year training contract that includes a $125,000 salary. The hope is that after the year, the fellows will either start full-time at the participating firms or have the training and contacts needed to land their next job.
Dallas-based litigation partner Van Beckwith, who led the fellowship program for Baker Botts with corporate partner Samantha Hale Crispin, said the firm brought in a handful of candidates to interview.
“We were working to make sure we had people we thought could succeed at Baker Botts,” said Beckwith, who is the firm’s partner in charge of recruiting. “The in-person interview was crucial.”
Beckwith said Hewitt had an impressive resume – graduate of the University of Texas School of Law, federal clerkship and experience at law firms. He says she has a great opportunity to succeed in Houston.
“Houston is so busy,” said Beckwith. “I expect she will hit the ground running.”
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