Women's initiative

GableGotwals is committed to the recruitment, retention and advancement of women attorneys and staff members of the firm, ensuring a positive and supportive environment at all times. Many of our firm's committees, including the Diversity Committee, are led by women attorneys. The firm is committed to the following:

  • Instituting a formal flex-time policy that addresses partnership prospects
  • Increasing the number of women at the associate level
  • Increasing the number of women at the partnership level
  • Increasing the number of women in leadership positions
  • Focusing on strengthening the firm's mentoring program for women
  • Managing/monitoring allocation of work assignments and/or hours billed to ensure women have equal access/inclusion on top client matters

Professional Involvement
We strongly encourage women of the firm to be active leaders in professional and community outreach organizations and have many women who hold leadership positions in a number of organizations. In 2011, Renée DeMoss was elected to the Oklahoma Bar Association’s Board of Governors. Renée is also Chair of the Oklahoma Bar Association’s Women in Law Section and chaired the OBA Women in Law Conference which was attended by the majority of women attorneys at GableGotwals.

Renee and Rania Nasreddine serve on the Tulsa County Bar Association’s Diversity Committee.  Rania chaired the Committee in 2007-2008 and 2008-2009 and helped implement a number of programs that enabled the committee to create change in the Tulsa legal community.

Community Involvement
The firm has sponsored the Women Entrepreneurs INSPIRE Conference presented by the Riata Center for Entrepreneurship at Oklahoma State University. The program “celebrates the accomplishments of female entrepreneurs, explores unique challenges and opportunities confronting women who want to pursue entrepreneurial dreams, focuses on how to effectively handle challenges and provides insight and perspective regarding the path to entrepreneurial success.”  The firm also provided a majority female panel of experts to answer legal questions from those attending the “Do I Need a Lawyer?” seminar.

Firm shareholder David McKinney is a member of the YWCA Advisory Committee, the largest and oldest women's organization in the United States. The YWCA represents more than one million women, girls and their families. The YWCA is dedicated to eliminating racism, empowering women and promoting peace, justice, freedom and dignity.

Recognition and Rankings
Many of GableGotwals women attorneys are recognized for their accomplishments in the legal profession and in their communities by a wide range of publications and organizations. Our women attorneys are listed in The Best Lawyers in America, Oklahoma Super Lawyers, as well as other respected directories.

Work/Life Balance
In 2010, the firm implemented a formal flex-time policy. Our firm's strength is derived from its diverse and deeply talented group of attorneys. As a firm, we are committed to maintaining and promoting our diversity and talent. A key way for us to demonstrate our commitment is to recognize that our attorneys have responsibilities and interests outside the Firm that need to be supported and that these responsibilities and interests will affect our attorneys' work schedules. Flex Time schedules are available to our attorneys as one way of supporting their lives outside the office. 

The firm also offers paid maternity leave for attorneys who have had recently given birth or adopted a child. Upon returning to work, attorneys are offered participation in the firm's Dependent Care Assistance Plan.

Professional Organizations
At all times GableGotwals has active members of the firm on committees or sub-committees of the Tulsa County, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma or American Bar Associations whose purpose is to promote diversity initiatives in the legal profession.

Renee DeMoss serves as Chair of the Oklahoma Bar Association's Women in Law Section and chaired the OBA Women in Law Conference, attended by a number of women attorneys from the firm. Renee was also elected to a three-year term on the OBA's Board of Governors.

Steve Barghols continues to serve on the Oklahoma Bar Association's Diversity Committee (having been its founding chair). Steve also continues to serve on the Oklahoma City University Diversity Advisory Committee. The purpose of this committee is to contribute to the diversification of the American legal profession and to produce lawyers and judges who are well prepared to serve America's increasingly diversifying population.

Renee DeMoss and Rania Nasreddine serve on the Tulsa County Bar Association's Diversity Committee. Rania chaired the Committee in 2007-2008 and 2008-2009.

Members of the firm attend the Summit for Business Leaders -- "a community collaboration to create more awareness and opportunities for businesses to come together and discuss strategies, challenges, and share best practices as it relates to successfully implementing diversity and inclusion practices."