If You Ask Me

In this episode of If You Ask Me, we speak to Louise Jeffers, partner in clinical negligence at Browne Jacobson, about building a successful legal career in a way that is both ambitious and sustainable.Louise reflects on her route into law, her move from claimant to defendant work, and the career path that led her to partnership while raising two young children. She talks openly about the realities of combining leadership and motherhood, the support systems that made it possible, and why becoming a parent did not reduce her ambition but gave her a deeper sense of clarity, empathy and purpose.The conversation also explores some of the bigger structural questions facing the profession, including what law firms need to do to retain more women, why genuine flexibility matters, and how better support around maternity leave and return to work can make a real difference.Louise also shares her thoughts on financial independence, why women in law should be talking more about money and investing, and how having financial freedom can create more choice over the shape of a career and family life.This is an honest, thoughtful conversation about leadership, motherhood, money and what success can look like when you define it for yourself.

In this episode of If You Ask Me, Hannah and Sarah speak to Marianne McJannett, employment law partner at Aberdein Considine, about building a legal career on her own terms.Marianne shares the story of how she stepped into leadership unusually early, taking on major responsibility just months after qualifying, and how that shaped the way she thinks about confidence, networks and career development. She also talks candidly about using LinkedIn to raise her profile, build credibility and open doors, including how it supported her path to partnership.The conversation also explores the reality of combining a demanding legal career with motherhood. Marianne reflects on returning from maternity leave, the adjustment of the first six months back, the importance of support at home and at work, and why becoming a parent sharpened her ambition rather than limiting it.This is an honest and practical conversation about visibility, leadership, flexibility and what career progression can look like when you stop following the traditional script.

In this episode of If You Ask Me, we speak to Joy Davey, partner at CMS, co-founder of Women Who Work, and mother of three, about what it really takes to build a senior legal career alongside family life.Joy shares her path into law, her determination to make partner, and the reality of navigating promotions, maternity leave and career moves with young children. We talk about the impact of post-Covid flexibility, the pressure many women feel to scale back after becoming mothers, and why ambition does not disappear after having children.This is a candid conversation about speaking up for what you want, resisting the urge to opt out too early, and creating a version of career and motherhood that works for you.Expect honest reflections on:returning to work after maternity leavefull-time versus part-time workingmaking partner with young childrenflexibility in law firmsthe support women really need to thriveA practical and reassuring listen for women in law who want both a fulfilling career and a family life on their own terms.

This episode explores the reality of building a senior legal career while raising a young family and why trying to “do it all” simply doesn’t work.Georgie Field, partner at Norton Rose Fulbright, shares her journey from returning from maternity leave unsure about her future, to making partner with two young children. She talks candidly about the pressure, self-doubt, and emotional load that comes with that transition, and what ultimately helped her move forward.The conversation covers the importance of speaking up about your ambitions, the role of flexibility in modern law firms, and why visibility and self-advocacy still matter. Georgie also shares the practical realities behind the scenes—delegating at home, building the right support network, and setting boundaries with clients.This is an honest look at ambition, motherhood, and the trade-offs involved, along with a reminder that you don’t need to do everything yourself to succeed.

In this episode, we are joined by Harriet Miller, an investment management partner at Macfarlanes, and someone who has built her entire legal career within the firm. Harriet trained at Macfarlanes, discovered her passion for private funds early on, and has now been with the firm for 15 years. She was made partner four years ago while on her second maternity leave. In this conversation, Harriet talks openly about what she learned on each maternity leave and how that time helped her come back a stronger lawyer. She shares why she believes motherhood can sharpen judgment and leadership, and how she and her husband built a genuinely shared approach to parenting across two demanding legal careers.Whether you are a woman planning maternity leave, preparing for partnership, or trying to balance two identities as a lawyer and a parent, Harriet's perspective is both relatable and reassuring. Her story shows that career progression and motherhood do not have to be competing parts. With intention, clarity and the right support systems, they can instead work together.Host: Sarah Lyons, Founding Director of BlueSkyHost: Hannah Bradshaw, Founding Director of BlueSky Guest: Harriet Miller, Partner at Macfarlanes

In this episode of If You Ask Me, we are joined by Louise O’Byrne, Partner and Head of the Commercial Department at Arthur Cox.Louise has spent nearly two decades at the firm, specialising in employment law and progressing through partnership while raising a young family. She reflects on making partner while heavily pregnant with her first child, navigating three maternity leaves and later advancing to equity partnership amid a particularly challenging time in her personal life.During the conversation, Louise speaks candidly about the realities of combining a demanding legal career with motherhood. She considers why the idea of “having it all” can be misleading, how learning to work alongside uncertainty and organised chaos became part of daily life, and what it means to take on senior leadership while being open about the pressures that can come with it.The discussion explores the assumptions that can arise when women return from maternity leave, the importance of direct and honest communication within teams, and the shared responsibility involved in managing career progression during periods of change. Louise also reflects on how hybrid working has altered the experience of working parents and what may be driving stronger retention and progression of women within Irish firms compared with some UK-based practices.Her perspective offers a grounded account of ambition, trade-offs and the evolving shape of leadership across a long legal career.Host: Sarah Lyons, Founding Director of BlueSkyHost: Hannah Bradshaw, Founding Director of BlueSkyGuest: Louise O’Byrne, Partner at Arthur Cox 

In this episode of If You Ask Me, we speak with Lauren Gosnell, Partner at Kennedys and Manchester lead of the firm’s Serious and Catastrophic Injury team.Lauren’s career in law began with an early interest in the profession, influenced by her father’s work in the legal world. Over nearly two decades in practice, she has developed a specialism in complex, high-value defendant claims, acting in cases involving spinal cord and brain injury, and managing technical evidence on causation and life expectancy. Since joining Kennedys, she has grown the Manchester team from a single lawyer into a team of 25.Alongside building her career, Lauren became a mother, an experience she describes as significantly influencing how she approaches her work. She reflects on returning from maternity leave during the pandemic, adjusting to remote work during a time of personal and professional transition, and stepping into partnership with a renewed sense of clarity and confidence.During the conversation, Lauren discusses her partnership interview, the decision to introduce herself first as a parent, and why acknowledging life outside work has become central to how she leads and connects with others. She considers how attitudes towards family life have shifted across the legal profession over the course of her career and how hybrid working has changed the way lawyers participate in meetings and client relationships.Lauren also speaks about leading a growing team in Manchester, setting clear boundaries around family commitments, and creating an environment where colleagues feel able to balance professional responsibility with life outside the office. She reflects on supporting team members returning from maternity leave and modelling the behaviours she hopes to see within her team.Host: Hannah Bradshaw, Founding Director of BlueSkyHost: Sarah Lyons, Founding Director of BlueSkyGuest: Lauren Gosnell, Partner at Kennedys

In this episode of If You Ask Me, we speak about maternity leave, returning to work and what it really takes to keep moving toward partnership in law.We reflect on how becoming mothers changed the way we were seen professionally and how those shifts are often subtle rather than explicit. The expectations that appear on return. The assumptions that are made about ambition, availability and commitment. And the gap between how legal careers are meant to work on paper and how they often feel in practice.Our own experiences as employment lawyers, and later as founders of BlueSky, shaped these reflections. We saw first-hand how many women struggle to name what feels different after maternity leave, even when their capability and drive remain unchanged.In this episode, we reflect on:What maternity leave and return to work felt like for usHow perceptions can change once women become mothersWhy progression toward partnership can feel more uncertain after leaveThe structural challenges that sit inside legal career frameworksWhat we have learned from coaching women navigating return and progressionWhat genuinely supports women who want to keep moving forwardThis conversation is honest and reflective. It is about law, about motherhood, and about what it takes to sustain a long and meaningful legal career after maternity leave.Host: Sarah Lyons, Founding Director of BlueSkyHost: Hannah Bradshaw, Founding Director of BlueSky

In this episode of If You Ask Me, we are joined by Rebecca Jason, a partner in the Banking and Finance team at Winckworth Sherwood.During the conversation, Rebecca shares how motherhood reshaped her confidence, judgement and approach to what mattered most in her career. She also shares how a partnership opportunity first arose while she was on maternity leave, how that possibility took shape over time, and what it was like stepping into her first partner role while adjusting to life with two young children.The discussion explores how ambition, progression and sustainability can coexist over the long term, even when career paths do not follow an expected or linear route.Host: Hannah Bradshaw, Founding Director of BlueSkyHost: Sarah Lyons, Founding Director of BlueSkyGuest: Rebecca Jason, Partner at Winckworth Sherwood

In this episode of If You Ask Me, we are joined by Carolyn Miller, a partner at Lewis Silkin and one of the lawyers responsible for opening the firm’s Glasgow office.Before returning to private practice, Carolyn spent several years running her own consultancy, Fish to Water. During this time, she provided HR and employment law advice while creating greater flexibility to be present with her children. Her career reflects a non-linear path shaped by senior leadership responsibility, family life and deliberate professional choices.Earlier in her career, Carolyn reached a senior role in a large firm and began to question the personal cost of the traditional model. She decided to step away from firm life, not from the law itself, and continued practising independently. Throughout this period, she maintained her practicing certificate, built a client portfolio on her own terms, and developed a working style that better aligned with her family commitments.In the conversation, Carolyn speaks openly about the emotional and financial trade-offs involved in stepping away from private practice, the realities of the motherhood penalty and fatherhood bonus, and what it was like to return to partnership after a long break. She also reflects on the importance of firm culture, flexible working and the conditions that made her return to private practice possible.Carolyn’s experience offers a grounded perspective on career breaks, senior leadership and what it takes for legal careers to remain sustainable over the long term.Host: Hannah Bradshaw, Founding Director of BlueSkyHost: Sarah Lyons, Founding Director of BlueSkyGuest: Carolyn Miller, Partner in the Employment Team at Lewis Silkin

In this episode of If You Ask Me, we speak with Alison Eddy, Partner and Ambassador for Inclusion at Irwin Mitchell and former London Managing Partner, a position she held for over a decade.Alison’s career has been shaped by her work as a medical negligence lawyer and her role in growing Irwin Mitchell’s London office from its early beginnings into a large, full-service practice. She joined the firm in the mid-1990s at a time when she was raising five young children and managing considerable personal and financial pressure as her family circumstances changed.Alongside a long-standing commitment to client work, Alison went on to lead one of the firm’s largest offices. Her experience brings a grounded perspective on senior leadership, motherhood and how progression unfolds over the course of a long career in law.During the conversation, Alison looks back on the moments that influenced her path, the demands of sustaining leadership over many years, and what it means to be a visible leader during periods of disruption, including the pandemic.She also discusses the impact of flexible working, how Irwin Mitchell came to have more than 50% female partners, and her experience of maternity leave across different generations. Alison reflects on supporting women returning to work, questioning assumptions about age and ambition, and the importance of flexibility and imagination when thinking about career progression.Host: Hannah Bradshaw, Founding Director of BlueSkyHost: Sarah Lyons, Founding Director of BlueSky Guest: Alison Eddy, Partner Ambassador for Inclusion at Irwin Mitchell

In this very first episode of If You Ask Me, we wanted to share our story. Why we left law, what it was really like to come back from maternity leave, and why we decided to build BlueSky.We talk about the moments that stayed with us. Being told we “wouldn’t be hungry enough” for a partnership. Watching colleagues praise fathers for doing a single nursery pick-up while mothers were questioned on their commitment. Realising that traditional coaching was not shifting the dial for women in law.These experiences shaped the way we designed BlueSky. We wanted something honest and real. Coaching that focuses on connection helps women feel less alone and gives them a strategy for their careers at a time when it can feel like everything is slipping away.In this episode, we reflect on:What returning to law after maternity leave felt like for usHow the motherhood penalty and fatherhood bonus still show up in firmsWhy are women so often judged on performance today, while men are measured on potentialThe power of connection and group coaching in showing you are not aloneWhat we wish we had known at the start of our journeysThis conversation is personal, a little raw, and hopefully reassuring. It is about law, about life, and about possibility.Host: Sarah Lyons, Founding Director of BlueSky Host: Hannah Bradshaw, Founding Director of BlueSky