Deborah Minkoff, Cozen O'Connor

Minkoff is one of the nation's leading insurance coverage litigators. She is vice chair of Cozen O'Connor's global insurance department, a member of Gov. Tom Wolf's Pennsylvania Commission for Women and lead counsel in complex coverage mediations and litigation. She is also a sought-after litigation mentor and could teach a master class in mentorship best practices.

Minkoff understands better than most that support from the top can make a real difference in the life and career of a young attorney. Twenty-six years ago, she became the first attorney at the firm to work a reduced-hours schedule—a status she maintained for 16 years as she earned promotions to member and shareholder. Career development was possible because senior attorneys and firm leaders valued her work, respected her choices and staffed her on the firm's biggest matters. It is now Minkoff's mission to enable other young attorneys to succeed and thrive.

Mentorship occurs both publicly and privately, and Minkoff is a stalwart and enthusiastic backer of her mentees in even the most public ways. 

When opportunities to engage with the broader legal community arise, Minkoff makes it possible for mentees to benefit from that exposure. For instance, when Minkoff was invited to author a chapter in the 2016 edition of the New Appleman Insurance Law Practice Guide (the gold-standard procedural and substantive guide to insurance law), she partnered with a mentee as a way to build that associate's name and credibility in the field.

According to current and former mentees, she excels at the personal side of mentorship. She is accessible, interested and caring. She builds trust, asks questions, listens to what is being said, and perceives what is not being said. She can be a career counselor, law professor, editor, strategic consultant, cheerleader or doting mother hen, as the situation requires. She'll address a knotty question of coverage jurisprudence then gush over Halloween baby photos.

While most of Minkoff's mentees are women litigators, she also has close mentoring relationships with male attorneys, gender-nonconforming attorneys, lawyers outside her department and lawyers outside the firm.

Why is mentorship important in the legal profession?

Most of the skills needed to have a satisfying and successful career as an attorney are learned after law school. We are all better lawyers when we learn from each other, teach each other, and support each other.

Who mentored you as you built your career?

I have been incredibly fortunate to have been mentored by three brilliant but very different lawyers: Stephen A. Cozen, Robert R. Reeder, and Ronald B. Hamilton. I learned separate skills from each of them, and am a better lawyer because of them.

My friends Elaine Rinaldi Bailey, Anita Weinstein, and Ann Thornton Field were invaluable. We miss Anita dearly.

What's one piece of advice you would give to a young lawyer in today's rapidly changing profession?

Listen. Listen to your clients, to find out their concerns. Listen to the court and your adversaries, so you know how to respond. Listen to your colleagues, so that you can grow together. Listen to those you love, so that you don't miss out on what brings you joy.