Ex-Chadbourne Partner of 35 Years Decries Firm’s ‘Origination Inheritance’ System

Add Mary Yelenick, a longtime Chadbourne & Parke partner and onetime head of the product liability group, to the list of women who say the “male-dominated culture” of the firm’s management committee has led to decades of systematic discrimination against female attorneys.

In a sworn declaration filed in Manhattan federal court, Yelenick took aim at Chadbourne’s “origination inheritance” system, claiming it allows retiring male partners to pass their origination credit to “favored male successors” instead of women.

She cited an example: In 2016, Marc Alpert, a management committee member and partner, departed the firm to become general counsel at Loews Corporation. According to Yelenick, ...