Leadership in Law profile: Carolyn Thompson - Journal Record
Solo practitioner, semi-retired, consulting only
Before starting law school in 1980, Carolyn Thompson worked in a cardiovascular clinic in a position that today would be called a physician assistant. In 1978, a law was passed that required physician assistants to be licensed by the state. To become licensed, Thompson would have had to obtain a second bachelor’s degree, which she chose not to do.
Thompson considered attending medical school but was told by the then-dean of the University of Oklahoma medical school that, as a 30-year-old woman starting medical school, she would not be a good investment of the school’s money because, as a woman, it was unlikely that she would practice medicine full time as a man would.
“I thanked the dean for his honesty and decided to go to law school with the goal of working in hospital administration. However, soon after I started law school, I realized that I really enjoyed studying law and that my brain seemed to have a natural ability to ‘think legally,’” said Thompson. “By the time I finished law school, I was hooked on the law and so began my career as a lawyer.”
Thompson has practiced family law for more than 30 years and, during that time, represented hundreds of people, many of whom were in a serious life crisis.
“I know that I have been able to significantly impact, in a positive way, many of the people I have encountered as a family law attorney. Even now, after 30 years of practicing family law, someone will occasionally stop me to thank me for helping them get through such a terrible time in their life or for standing up for them so they could have a good life after their divorce,” she said.
Education: Oklahoma City University School of Law (J.D. with honors, 1983); Tulane University (B.S. in biology, 1971).
Admitted to practice in: Oklahoma; U.S. District Court, Western District of Oklahoma.
Professional involvement: Family Law Section of the Oklahoma Bar Association (past CLE chairperson); Family Law Section of the Oklahoma County Bar Association; Oklahoma Chapter of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (past fellow, past chair and CLE chair); adjunct professor of Family Law at Oklahoma City University School of Law and the University of Oklahoma College of Law; Oklahoma Bar Association High School Mock Trial Program, volunteer coordinator for Oklahoma County and Tulsa County, trial site coordinator for OKC trial sites; various roles involving state legislation on matters of family law; numerous articles on family law topics published in both state and national legal publications; co-author of several articles published in national medical-legal journals.
Community involvement: Advisory Board Chair, Law and Public Safety Academy for OKC Public Schools at Douglass High School (2015-2018); Douglass High School Mock Trial Team – attorney coach (2016-2018); OKCPS District Academy Advisory Board Member (2015-2017); Calm Waters Center for Children and Families, past board member.
Awards/honors: Oklahoma Bar Association Alma Wilson Award, Oklahoma County Bar Association Bobby Knapp Leadership Award, Oklahoma Bar Association Earl Sneed Award, Oklahoma Bar Association Family Law Section – Outstanding Family Law Attorney Award, Best Lawyers in America for Family Law for 20-plus consecutive years.
Hobbies: Traveling, spending several months each year in a little village in Provence, France; cooking and baking.
source: https://journalrecord.com/2022/05/04/leadership-in-law-profile-carolyn-thompson/
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