Lisa Helem, editor-in-chief of The National Law Journal

Progressive groups like the American Constitution Society are poised to make their mark on the federal judiciary if the 2020 election creates the opportunity to do so. In our December cover story, Jacqueline Thomsen chats with Stanford Law professor Pamela Karlan, chair of the ACS board of directors, about the group's goals for the judicial pipeline and its search for a new president.

Thomsen also sits down with Patricia Lee, general counsel of Washington Metropolitan Area Transportation Authority, in "1 on 1: Conversations with Newsmakers." The former Holland & Knight partner and trial attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice chats about her work and why Washington is fortunate to have a deep pool of diverse legal talent.

Next, take a look back at our 2019 NLJ Professional Excellence Awards, where we honored stellar members of the legal community for their industry-shaping work. The luminaries noted included the lawyers and law firms named in: The D.C. Rising Stars, The D.C. Litigation Departments of the Year, The Pro Bono Hot List, The Winning Litigators, The D.C. Legal Departments of the Year and The Appellate Hot List.

The honorees included lawyers from Washington and beyond who tackled some of the most high-stakes litigation matters of the past year, engaged in the most impactful appellate work and who are already shaping what the future looks like for the legal profession. Relive the night with photos by Diego Radzinschi, senior photo editor.

Next, we launched our "On the Rise: Voices from Young Lawyers" series in September, featuring commentary by our 2019 D.C. Rising Stars and other leading young attorneys from Washington and beyond. In their columns, the writers have tackled key legal practice topics including: transitioning from junior partner to rainmaker, dealing with the ebb and flow of regulatory change and best law firm diversity practices.

We feature the latest two columns in the series in this month's "Practice" section. MoloLamken's Eric Nitz writes about how young lawyers can use the feedback they receive in a tough critique to their advantage. And Natalie Bennett, of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, discusses best practices for cultivating visibility as a young partner at a large law firm. And she takes the traditional mantra of "do good work and the rest will follow" a few steps further. For more check out their pieces.

As always, we love hearing from you. Email me at [email protected] or reach out on Twitter via @lhelemNLJ. Thanks for reading!