Women now making up nearly half of the lawyers in the United States doesn’t mean the Women’s Lawyer’s Association of Michigan is less necessary.

Macomb County attorney Tanya Grillo, who was sworn in Saturday as the new president of the WLAM, said the group remains prominent and active because women lawyers need each other as much as ever.

“We are living in a time that is more complex, more polarized, and in many ways, more demanding than ever before,” Grillo said in an email. “And yet, WLAM continues to be a place where we come together — not just to succeed, but to support one another with empathy, strength and purpose.”

About 41% of lawyers in the United States in 2024 were women, and more women than men have been graduating from law schools every year since 2016, according to the American Bar Association.

Still, only 28% of law-firm partners and about one-third of federal judges are women, according to the Bar.

Grillo, 48, of St. Clair Shores, said the WLAM is building partnerships with other organizations, including “affinity” law associations (those that lawyers are not required to join) to try to improve women in leadership posts over the long run.

“As we march into the future, having partnerships with other organizations and other affinity bar associations is critical to success,” she said in an interview. “We’re trying to build bridges and connections that matter and will sustain over time.”

As part of that effort, Grillo is interviewing presidents of different organizations in the state on the WLAM’s podcast.

The WLAM’s role is to “provide a safe space” for members “to be their authentic self, which is my goal,” she said.

The theme of this year’s annual meeting at the Italian American Cultural Society in Clinton Township, where Grillo was sworn in, was, “Come As You Are.”

“I want women to show up as their authentic self,” she said. “They each bring gifts. Their skill sets are different from my skill sets, but we can only grow and be better if we work together.”

Young lawyers need “sponsors” and “mentors,” she said.

Mentors “see you for all the talent that you have,” and for Grillo, that was veteran Macomb County criminal defense attorney Steven Rabaut, for whom she served as a law clerk for multiple years.

Sponsors are different. They are “people who are talking about you and you’re not even there,” she said.

“When I know somebody, and I’m approached about somebody being on a board or an opportunity, I can think of the 12 people whom I’ve met in this organization who I feel would be perfect for this whole because I’ve known their work ethic and I can see them in that space, being able to pair people appropriately,” Grillo said. “As I’ve watched other women grow and develop in their leadership skills, it’s easy to say, person A is the perfect person to be on (another) board.”

Grillo is thankful she joined the WLAM a dozen years ago when Annemarie Lepore invited her. Lepore was an attorney at the time and now is a district court judge in Sterling Heights.

“What started as an introduction to an incredible community quickly became a lifelong commitment to an organization whose values align so closely with my own,” Grillo posted recently on her Grilllo Law Facebook page. “WLAM has long been a champion for equality in the judicial system for women, and I am beyond proud to lead an organization that continues to push for meaningful change.”

“When you find people who are aligned with you, who have the same goal setting as you, who want to move things forward, it’s great to work with them and see what we’re capable of,” she added in an interview,

Grillo has learned from leaders she has observed over those years.

“Everybody has a different take on what they’re trying to bring to the table. Each one of these leaders has taught me so much about how to be a better leader.

She believes the group, which has 726 members, is the largest affinity association in the state. The WLAM is also one of the oldest women’s associations in the nation, formed in 1919 before women could vote.

She said she is “super excited” about serving as president, especially because she is only the third president from Macomb County. Prior presidents from Macomb include the late Kimberly M. Cahill from in 1996-97 and Judge Angela Sherigan in 2011-13 (two terms).

It is believed to be the first time the annual meeting will be held in Macomb County, she said, as it was her choice as the new president after serving the past few years in other leadership posts in the WLAM.

“I get to showcase Macomb County,” she said. “I’m a Macomb County kid, I was a Macomb County (WLAM) president. I practice in Macomb County and am excited to bring the meeting here.”

The county Board of Commissioners this month passed a proclamation recognizing Grillo saying she “has served Macomb County throughout her career with perseverance and dedication and is hardworking and an inspiration to all women. Tanya Grillo’s leadership skills have motivated the advancement of women in law and has shown unwavering commitment.”

The board also noted the WLAM’s history by saying it “publicly honors and acknowledges the history and significance of the Women Lawyers Association of Michigan and honors Tanya Grillo as its President for 2025.”

Grillo has been a sole practitioner in Mount Clemens for the past 11 years mostly working in criminal defense and driver’s license restoration, but also has served in multiple administrative roles.

For the past five years, she has run the 56-member roster for court appointed attorneys and the $1.5 million budget for three-judge bench at 46th District Court in Southfield. For two years, 2021 to 2023, she simultaneously ran the same system for 38th District Court in Eastpointe.

This year, she began serving as the administrative hearing officer for the city of Mount Clemens.

From 2017 to 2019, she served as a regional director of the Michigan Indigent Defense Commission, overseeing Macomb, Oakland, Lapeer and St. Clair counties.

Last year, she was one of 17 female leaders to be nominated for the Macomb Foundation’s annual Athena Award.

In December 2022, she and attorneys Laura Polizzi and Angela Medley were among a dozen metro-Detroit lawyers who were sworn in to practice at the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C.

Grillo grew up in St. Clair Shores, attending Lakeview High School, and earned a bachelor’s degree at Central Florida University before getting her law degree from Cooley Law School.