Compiled for the LCLD Board of Directors every Wednesday, this digest is designed to brief you on the latest headlines about LCLD Members and organizations, as well as thought-provoking articles on diversity in the legal profession, talent development, mentoring, and leadership. Past issues of the Digest are also archived on the LCLD web site.
If you have questions about the Digest, articles you'd like to share, of if you would like to subscribe, please email Caitlin Puffenberger at cpuffenberger@lcldnet.com.
1. Deborah Broyles, Reed Smith Director of Diversity and Inclusion, Passes Away
Reed Smith, 9/13/16
Deborah Broyles, Director of Global Diversity and Inclusion at Reed Smith LLP, passed away on September 10. “She challenged all of us to step up and do the right thing, and create opportunities for the advancement of diverse lawyers,” said Sara Begley, Chair of Reed Smith’s Labor and Employment Group. “But she also challenged diverse lawyers to be resilient and reach their full potential — and when they weren’t, she’d let them know, and when we weren’t standing up and doing the right thing, she’d let us know.” Broyles served on the boards of the California Minority Counsel Program and HealthRIGHT 360 and just this year receive the California Diversity Council’s DiversityFIRST Award.
2. Vision 2020: Leadership Council on Legal Diversity Sets Out to Broaden West Virginia’s Horizons
The West Virginia Lawyer, July-September 2016
“LCLD has given us the tools to work together to make a tremendous impact on the pipeline and the profession, and it is imperative that we use the tools to begin today to work together to lead and to show the rest of the nation that we can get it right in West Virginia,” writes Marilyn McClure-Demers, 2014 Fellow and Associate General Counsel at Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company. Earlier this year, LCLD President Robert Grey met with the West Virginia State Bar, representatives of the West Virginia University College of Law, and LCLD Members based in West Virginia to discuss strategies for improving the diversity of the profession.
3. K&L Gates Honored for Diversity, Reveals Workplace Goals
Inside Counsel, 9/20/16
LCLD Member firm K&L Gates LLP was recognized for its commitment to inclusion by fellow Member Lockheed Martin; this is the first time the company has singled out one of its outside counsel for excellence in diversity. Valerie Jackson, Firm-Wide Director of Diversity and Inclusion, said the firm has worked hard to create an inclusive culture where its diverse teams can do their best work and achieve leadership positions. “For example, in two years, we more than doubled the number of women on the firm’s management committee, and this year over 54 percent of lawyers internally promoted to partner were women,” she said.
4. Massachusetts High Court Says Black Men Have Legitimate Reason to Flee Police
WBUR News, 9/20/16
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court threw out the conviction of an African-American man charged with unlawful possession of firearm, saying he should never have been stopped in the first place – even after running from the police. “The finding that black males in Boston are disproportionately and repeatedly targeted for FIO [Field Interrogation and Observation] encounters suggests a reason for flight totally unrelated to consciousness of guilt,” the court said. “Such an individual, when approached by the police, might just as easily be motivated by the desire to avoid the recurring indignity of being racially profiled as by the desire to hide criminal activity.” The court based its ruling in part on reports from both the American Civil Liberties Union and the Boston Police Department that found blacks were more likely to be stopped repeatedly and searched.
5. Morgan Stanley Introduces New Tool Kit to Effectively Integrate Gender Criteria Within an Investment Portfolio
Business Wire, 9/20/16
Morgan Stanley’s new Gender Diversity Tool Kit shows financial advisors how to integrate gender diversity criteria into their investment portfolios. “As an investment opportunity, gender diversity is about identifying the ways in which achieving balance in representation, empowerment, and economic opportunity is material for financial outcomes,” said Lily Scott Trager, Director of Investing and Impact. The tool kit provides multiple strategies for ensuring that portfolios are diverse, including minimizing exposure to companies with poor diversity records, seeking out companies that pursue workplace equity or provide access to capital for women, and investing in women- or minority-owned firms.
6. Guess How Much That Anti-LGBT Law is Costing North Carolina?
WIRED, 9/18/16
North Carolina legislation that requires a transgender person to choose a bathroom based on the gender listed on their birth certificate has cost state tax payers more than $395 million in legal fees and lost revenue since March. Boycotts from major corporations, cancelled sporting events, and lost tourism make up the bulk of that cost. “More and more companies are taking a look at their own values, and living those out,” said Laura Durso, Senior Director of the LGBT Research and Communications Project.
