Community Involvement

Attorney Spotlight: Louise Kennedy Selected to Judge the 2023 Draper Competition for Collegiate Women Entrepreneurs

Our Founding Attorney and Smith College alum, Louise Kennedy, will judge the annual Draper Competition for Collegiate Women Entrepreneurs on April 13-15 at Smith College in Northampton, MA. This competition has been ranked #7 in the Times of Entrepreneurship Top 20 University Competitions.

The Draper Competition is designed to hone skills that undergraduate women need to advance from idea to venture creation. Through multiple rounds of competition, students demonstrate an understanding of a problem, why the problem requires a new venture to address it, and how their idea presents the best solution to the problem.

“This is my 2nd year judging the Draper Competition, and I really look forward to seeing these teams present and answer questions about their entrepreneurial vision,” said Louise Kennedy. “As counsel to several women-led companies and an alumna of Smith College, I am inspired by these young women in STEM who are leading the way for the next generation of women founders.”

West Hill is a WBENC-certified woman-owned business, actively redefining the concept of private law practice. Diverse hiring practices are important to many of West Hill’s clients either because of a corporate commitment to diversity or because hiring a certified woman-owned business assists them in attaining supplier diversity goals.

West Hill’s Louise Kennedy Receives “Top Women of Law” Honor at Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly 2022 Reception

On Wednesday, November 16^th, 2022, our Founding Attorney, Louise Leduc Kennedy, was honored for her extraordinary achievements in the legal profession, by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly as a 2022 “Top Women of Law.” Each year, this highly coveted honor recognizes exceptional women lawyers who are pioneers, educators, trailblazers and role models throughout the state of Massachusetts. This award goes to attorneys who are making significant contributions to the legal profession while also serving as role models for young women entering law. 

Louise founded West Hill Technology Counsel with a twofold mission: filling a need in the market for tech-savvy counsel for growing companies and creating a firm that would help keep women attorneys in the practice. Kennedy’s interest in technology began when she was a junior associate on a case that resulted in the first published opinion in Massachusetts holding electronic mail was discoverable.  In 2008, Louise established West Hill, based on the simple premise that you need lawyers who understand and care about your business’ success. Louise is still passionate about helping entrepreneurs and growth-oriented businesses succeed and continues to cultivate a team of like-minded attorneys to support this vision.   

Louise is well-known for her work advising technology companies on a variety of strategic and commercial matters including: software licensing and commercialization, cloud computing, strategic alliances, preparing for and facilitating mergers and acquisitions and all aspects of on-line business and contracting.  

Louise is an alumna of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program and is a regular speaker at bar associations, the Salem State University Enterprise Center, the North Shore Technology Counsel, the Center for Women and Enterprise and other industry groups.   

Prior to forming the firm, Louise worked for many years as in-house counsel at IBM Corporation, including as brand counsel for Lotus Notes. She received her B.A. in Economics from Smith College and her J.D., with honors, from the University of Connecticut School of Law.  

Louise and fellow award recipients were celebrated at the Top Women of Law reception at the State Room in Boston on Wednesday, November 16. The Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly Top Women of Law feature on Louise Kennedy can be found at this link and a full list of 2022 Top Women of Law Honorees is available here.

Community Involvement: Organizations We Proudly Support

West Hill believes in giving back to others and supporting local charities in the Greater Boston community that share our values. Each year West Hill makes a donation on behalf of our Clients, some of the organizations we have supported include:

• The YMCA of the North Shore – For over 160 years, YMCA’s have been meeting the community’s needs and in this past year families are experiencing a number of situations that required more support. The YMCA of the North Shore has risen to the occasion and helped the people in our community who need help the most.
• Beverly Bootstraps -provides critical resources to families and individuals so they may achieve self-sufficiency.
• Essex County Habitat for Humanity – brings people together to build affordable homes, strengthen families and communities and foster hope.
• The Victim Rights Law Center – gives free, comprehensive legal services to sexual assault victims in Massachusetts with legal issues, including privacy, safety, education, immigration, housing, employment, LGBTQ specific services, criminal justice advocacy and financial stability.
• The American Cancer Society – A nationwide, community-based voluntary health organization dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major health problem.
• Rosie’s Place – the first women-only shelter in the United States. Provides a safe and nurturing environment that helps poor and homeless women maintain their dignity, seek opportunity and find security in their lives.

A key component of the West Hill Mission is for our team members to “fuel the growth of our business clients and the success of our communities.”  One way we do this is through an annual gift to an organization making an impact in our community of Greater Boston. We are also supporters of organizations promoting women in business, including the Center for Women and Enterprise. 

Community Involvement: West Hill participates in Enterprise Center Technical Assistance Program for Salem Tourism Industry Businesses.

West Hill was selected to provide professional services for participants in the Small Business Technical Assistance Services (SBTAS) Program at the Enterprise Center at Salem State University. This SBTAS Program is being offered to help tourism industry small businesses located in Salem, MA that have been negatively impacted by COVID-19. It is funded by the City of Salem Department of Planning & Community Development and the U.S. Department of Commerce and Economic Development Administration (EDA).

The Enterprise Center is an entrepreneurial hub that offers business owners office space, education, and access and connections to small business resources. Serving entrepreneurs on the North Shore and beyond, to help entrepreneurs and their businesses start, grow and succeed.

Louise Leduc Kennedy, Founding Attorney at West Hill feels that “after one of the toughest years on record for small businesses, those that have weathered the storm have pivoted to meet the moment. West Hill is proud to support local businesses by providing no-cost legal services through this innovative program and, as always, to supporting the Enterprise Center.”

West Hill has participated in and supported various Enterprise Center programs over the past decade including CEO Groups, the Million Dollar Women Symposium, Workshops, and previous SBTAS offerings. The West Hill Team looks forward to continuing to help community businesses through this travel and tourism initiative.