Shipman & Goodwin LLP is pleased to announce that managing partner Leander A. Dolphin, was named to Corporate Counsel Business Journal’s inaugural list of “50 Women to Watch.” Selected from a nationwide pool of more than 500 candidates, Leander joins an exceptional short-list of influential women change-makers in their respective industries who demonstrate outstanding leadership in their businesses and communities.
Recognizing her strong leadership capabilities and long history with the firm, Shipman elevated Leander to the role of co-managing partner in 2021, and then to the role of sole managing partner in 2022. She is the first African American woman in the firm’s history to lead as managing partner. Leander is one of a very small group of women of color in top leadership roles at midsize and large law firms worldwide. She started at Shipman as a first-year associate in 2004. Prior to her election as managing partner, she served for three years on the management committee before being named co-managing partner in 2021.
Leander has been recognized throughout her career for breaking barriers, excelling in leadership roles, dedicating herself to the mentorship of others, and amplifying the voices of underrepresented communities. In October 2022, she received the Courageous Leader Award from the National Legal Aid and Defender Association (NLADA). The award is given to racial equity leaders committed to advancing anti-racist values and recognizes the advocacy of trailblazers, like Leander, who model the commitment and courage to advance meaningful, lasting change. Under Leander’s leadership, Shipman partnered with NLADA to sponsor a Black Public Defender Association 2022 Summer Internship; in 2023 and 2024 Shipman will sponsor leadership development opportunities through NLADA’s Racial Equity Institute.
Appointed by Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont to serve on the Connecticut Judicial Selection Commission in August 2022, the commission’s members unanimously elected Leander to serve as their chairperson shortly thereafter. Dolphin was named one of Hartford Business Journal’s (“HBJ”) Top 25 Women in Business for 2022, and in November 2021, she was elected to the Connecticut Business & Industry Association’s (CBIA) board of directors.
“I am honored to be included in Corporate Counsel Business Journal’s phenomenal inaugural list of 50 Women to Watch,” said Dolphin. “The women on this inaugural list are leaders in business and law across industry and across the nation. It is a privilege to lead Shipman, where diversity, equity, and inclusion are not only a core value, but a sustained commitment that is central to Shipman’s strategic growth and success.”
