Women of Legal Tech: TJ Johnson Says Don't Take No for an Answer

Theresa (TJ) Johnson, Olenick. Courtesy photo.



There’s a shortage of women in science, technology, engineering and math. And there’s still a 17 percent gender gap in pay—across the board—in all of legal (18 percent at Big Law). But within the legal technology community are many women with thriving careers. Monica Bay recently interviewed Theresa (TJ) Johnson, 60, who spent 15 years at the International Legal Technology Association (usually called ILTA).

Speaking about names: Johnson's given name is pronounced “tey-ray-suh” as in the Spanish, French and Italian pronunciations. "Lawyers and Americans butchered that name for years, so I began to use TJ ‘tee-jay’ as my business name. It stuck and became somewhat of a brand; it’s who I am now.”

Education: B.A. in Business Administration from the University of Winnipeg, 1985.

Current job: I recently joined a new adventure as part of the leadership team at Olenick’s Legal Practice. I focus on the conception, development, and implementation of new service lines to augment Olenick’s technology and software projects for legal. I will use everything I’ve learned about technology and the people in law firms who use it, to help them do it better.

My work at ILTA was various—information technology (IT) and operational leadership capacities for law firms and legal departments. I led the strategy development and execution of ILTA’s global portfolio of events, and other successful educational events, research studies and projects. It was the best job in the world—supporting ILTA to connect people in legal and technology and help them find more ways to leverage technology to address business challenges across the legal industry.

In your education did you consider a career in science, technology, engineering or math? I came to tech through my role as a paralegal and project manager. Every new process, workflow and collaboration project required some technology, so I researched, investigated, developed and implemented whatever we needed. I didn’t so much pursue a career in tech, as the roles that opened for me were in legal and technology—paralegal, law department manager, law firm office manager, law firm IT director, leadership in ILTA—and now leadership in an IT services firm for legal.

What was your first paid job? Counselor/care giver at a home for emotionally disturbed children. Some might say that trained me to work in legal and in tech.

What was your “first seat at the table,” and how did that experience influence you? As IT director at a law firm, I chaired the technology committee and reported both to the chief operating officer and the managing partner. Presenting tech projects to the decision makers gave me an appreciation of the importance of tech as a way of supporting the business, as well as the practice of law. More importantly, it taught me to develop an ironclad business case, form allies and support for projects prior to unveiling to management, and to be flexible and adaptable as circumstances change on a dime.

First obstacle and how you overcame it: One of my first presentations was a formal business case for the firm to implement a document management system (DMS). I was “right” and I had pretty graphs and made passionate pleas about how this would solve all their problems. I was not able to convince the powers that be that they should spend the money. I was devastated by their decision and slunk away in defeat.

After a bit of time, I created a little scenario and shared it with an influential partner, helping him work out how his practice would be improved with a DMS. I took time to build support, and I prepared a different business case that was focused on tangible benefits for the firm. I put my ego aside when I did the second presentation, making it all about them. It was still a slog to get approval, but it happened. It taught me a lot that I used the next time I had a big project in mind.

Most flagrant sexism you personally encountered, and how did you address it? In applying for the IT director position at a law firm, I leveraged a connection to the managing partner to get an interview. It was clear from the moment I walked into the interview that the COO did not want a woman in the role. The chair of the Tech committee asked about big picture technologies and tech adoption strategy and projects, while the COO focused on network engineering work and the need to crawl under attorney’s desks to fix computers. When we were left alone, the COO became more combative, and over the four hours, he seemed to be encouraging me to give up. He talked about my predecessor, who was apparently perfect and easily dealt with angry partners and under-performing suppliers. It was clear he thought I was not up for that. His final volley was a requirement that the incumbent be a Certified Novell Engineer (CNE). I assured him I would achieve the certification prior to starting the job. I was given the job and became a CNE within three weeks.

I worked at the firm for seven years, and the COO never forgave me for forcing him to hire me. He watched for signs of weakness, always telling the partners he was concerned about me being delicate. When I told the firm I was going to work for ILTA, the COO wished me quickly on my way while the partners begged me to stay. The COO hired a male network engineer who did not do well with the executives, and the firm waved the COO off to find his own new adventure within a year.

Secret to your success: Service, simplicity and a passion—and belief in who I am and what I can do. I watch for gaps and trouble-shoot every day, taking the lead where needed and supporting people as they grow. I am straightforward and transparent. I ask lots of questions to get the core of challenges. I look for the simplest way to deal with everything, attacking each day with a passion and enthusiasm that seems to rub off on others. Life is an adventure to be lived, every day.

Work tips re: “managing up”: Listen, absorb, ask questions about the goals of what’s being proposed. Look for ways to add to the conversation or the project. Seek counsel from people who have been able to make inroads with that person, and always be ready to step back a bit, assess and come at things from another direction.

Advice for young women: Show up every day, do the work, and be confident. Don’t expect every job to immediately be your bliss. You need to find those places where you can shine, gaps you can fill and watch for leadership opportunities and ways to make a difference. Don’t resort to drama or feminine wiles to get your way, rather let the work speak for itself. Do what feeds you and do it well.

Favorite technology tools:

• Zoom: In our virtual and remote world, we need to stay connected and Zoom is the easiest video connection I’ve used.

• com: My friend Browning Marean shared many new tools with me over the years and this was a favorite, simple and so useful.

• Logitech Conference Camera: Allows a meeting room to be a true hybird meeting.

• Tiny Scanner app for iPhone, and Tiny Fax app for iPhone: Allows total remote office.

Book that inspired you? Kill the Company and Why Simple Wins, by Lisa Bodell. The treatises of these books go to the core of what I believe around simplicity and asking questions to make things better, while providing practical tools to make real changes and advances.

Favorite vacation venue: Italy—I am Italian in my soul, even though Ancestry.com says I am 85% British. In Italy, I feel at home.

Your mantra: Be extraordinary every day—and help people.

Favorite quote: “It’s not about how much you do, but how much love you put into what you do that counts.” — Mother Teresa.



Monica Bay is a Fellow at CodeX: The Stanford Center for Legal Informatics. She is a columnist for Legaltech News and a freelance journalist (Alchemizing Law LLC). She is a member of the California Bar. In 2015, she retired from ALM (Editor-in-Chief at Law Technology News). She lives in Connecticut but can get to Yankee Stadium in two hours.