A Woman-led Law Firm Providing Personal Representation for Sexual Assault Survivors

Attorney Karen Barth Menzies founded KBM Law so she could provide personal, individual legal representation for the survivors of sexual assault and sexual abuse. “I spent my career litigating cases all over the country in a complex setting known as ‘mass torts,’” Karen says, “I represented thousands of clients, against a giant, multi-national corporations.” Many of Karen’s big cases focused on children’s and women’s issues, and that led her to begin working with sexual assault survivors.

Karen says, “The survivor’s cases allow me to really connect on an individual basis with my clients in a way the mass tort cases did not. It reminded me of why I became a lawyer – so I could provide a voice for somebody who otherwise wouldn’t be able to have their story told.”

When Karen started working with survivors, she was a partner at a large plaintiff firm, but she soon realized that fighting for justice in assault cases wasn’t a 9 to 5 job. “You have to be available when they need you,” Karen says, “and for a survivor, that’s not often during business hours.” That type of client service wasn’t necessarily compatible in mass tort cases with thousands of clients. Karen knew that giving her cases the attention they deserved meant she would have to open her own law firm.

At the end of 2022, attorney Karen founded KBM Law, and she is proud to give survivors the option of working with a women-led law firm. Karen says, “Working with a woman-led firm means having the perspective of a woman who has had her own experiences, both personally and professionally. Those experiences impact how I work, what issues get my attention, and how I communicate — not just with opposing counsel and the court, but with my clients.”

Within weeks of founding KBM Law, Karen filed lawsuits on behalf of the survivors of high-profile sexual predators in the music industry. For the survivors, having an experienced attorney at their side when they made their legal claims was empowering, and Karen is proud to help amplify their voices and tell their truths to the world. “For me,” Karen says, “there is no looking back. This is where I want to put my energy, my efforts, and my ability to fight powerful defendants on behalf of survivors. This is now my focus for the rest of my career.”

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