Welcome to the LCLD INSIDER, our monthly newsletter to Members and supporters of the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity. This publication is for you, and we welcome your feedback and ideas, as well as any news you might be interested in passing along. We also encourage you to share the INSIDER with your support staff, diversity directors, and public relations and/or marketing departments to keep them better informed about what LCLD is doing. Thanks again for reading, and for your membership in LCLD.
-Robert Grey, Executive Director
Last Call for the LCLD Annual Meeting
Time's running out to register for LCLD's Second Annual Meeting, to be held September 14-16, 2011 in Washington, D.C. Featured speakers will be Cory Booker, Mayor of Newark, NJ, and John Pepper, former CEO of Procter & Gamble. If you're planning to attend, don't wait any longer to reserve your place: Click here to register NOW!
Cory Booker, One of America's Rising Stars
As Mayor of Newark, New Jersey since 2006, Cory Booker has earned a reputation as one of our country's most innovative and effective public servants. Under his leadership, the city has reduced crime, created jobs, and brought a sense of renewal to streets where hope was once in short supply. A dynamic speaker, Booker is a graduate of Stanford University and Yale Law School. He's also a former Parade All American football player. In his official role as defender of the city, Booker also is engaged in a long-running feud with TV personality Conan O'Brien, whose public jibes at Newark prompted Mayor Booker to ban the lanky comedian.
John Pepper and What Really Matters
John E. Pepper's record as a values-driven chief executive has made him one of the country's most respected business leaders. After a 40-year career at Procter & Gamble, including two years as CEO, Pepper now serves as Chairman of the Walt Disney Company and as CEO of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati. His much admired 2007 book, What Really Matters: Service, Leadership, People, and Values, includes a chapter on the "single, most positive change" he saw at Procter & Gamble during his tenure: "the dramatically increased diversity of our employees."
LCLD Fellows Visit Coca-Cola
On August 1, LCLD hosted a group of some 30 LCLD Fellows at Coca-Cola headquarters in Atlanta, courtesy of Coke's General Counsel Geoff Kelly, who also serves as Vice -Chair of LCLD's Talent Development Committee. The Fellows were treated to a day-long learning program, which included a tour of the World of Coke, meetings with the company's Legal Department, and a presentation by Coke's Senior VP Jerry Wilson, author of Managing Brand You. The visit "was an eye-opening experience," says Michael Vercher, a partner at Christian & Small (Birmingham, AL), one of the attending Fellows. "It wasn't just about practicing law. It was about how the various parts of a diverse global company work together-and how the legal department contributes to the success of the organization."
LCLD in the News
On August 2 LCLD Chair Rick Palmore was honored by the National Bar Association with its Pinnacle Award during the organization's 86th Annual Convention in Baltimore. Referencing Palmore's work with LCLD, NBA President Demetrius Shelton said that Rick has "developed unique initiatives that have impacted the highest levels of corporate America."
Two LCLD stalwarts, Laura Stein and Robert Kayihura, were announced as members of the Legal Services Corporation's Pro Bono Task Force, which will assist low-income Americans facing foreclosure, domestic violence, and other civic legal problems. Michele Mayes, General Counsel of Allstate and Chair of LCLD's Partnerships & Teams Committee, addressed the American Bar Association convention in Toronto about the tough job market in the U.S., and its effects on the diversity of the legal profession. Read more here.
Welcome new Members!
Two more law firms have joined LCLD since the first of August:
- Bingham McCutchen, LLP
- Jenner & Block
Our upcoming Annual Meeting will be a great time to get to know our new Members, and to reconnect with friends and colleagues. To everyone who hasn't registered yet: Do ithere today.
