Welcome to the LCLD Insider, our monthly newsletter. This publication is for you, and we welcome your feedback and ideas, as well as any news you might be interested in passing along. Please share the Insider with your support staff, diversity directors, and marketing departments to keep them better informed about what LCLD is doing.
- Robert Grey, President
In This Issue:
- LCLD Alumni Join the Leadership Ranks
- One Week Left to Nominate 2020 Fellows
- Two Weeks Left to Select 2020 Pathfinders
- Pathfinder Alumni, We Need Your Help!
- Driving Innovation: The Cummins Learning Experience
- January Regional Events
- Welcome, New Members!
- In the News
Did You Know?
There are more than 320 LCLD Member corporations and law firms—check out the Membership Map to see where they are located.
LCLD Alumni Join the Leadership Ranks
Please join LCLD in congratulating the following LCLD Alumni for their recent moves to leadership in the legal profession!
2013 LCLD Fellow Lori Baggett was recently named Managing Shareholder of the Tampa Office of Carlton Fields. She was previously a shareholder at the firm.
2019 LCLD Pathfinder Nathan Arrowsmith recently co-founded Tran Arrowsmith PLLC in Phoenix, AZ. The firm's practice areas include LGBT legal issues, fraternal organizations, and education and consulting. Nathan was previously an associate at Osborn Maledon, P.A.
One Week Left to Nominate 2020 Fellows
As a reminder, LCLD Members may submit nominations for the 2020 LCLD Fellows Program by next Friday, January 31, 2020.
The Fellows Program is a one-year, multifaceted, relationship-building and leadership-training experience for diverse lawyers with 8-15 years of practice experience and demonstrated leadership potential. As LCLD's flagship program, all Fellows must be handpicked by LCLD Members themselves.
Please be sure to review the program selection criteria and fees before nominating your Fellows here.
We also encourage you to review the Member Tool Kit for the Fellows Program and the 2020 Fellows Program Prospectus.
For questions about the Fellows Program, contact Nichole Velasquez, Fellows Program Manager.
Two Weeks Left to Select 2020 Pathfinders
As a reminder, LCLD Member organizations may select attorneys for the 2020 LCLD Pathfinder Program by Friday, February 7, 2020.
The Pathfinder Program is designed to connect in-house and law firm early career, high-potential attorneys for an eight-month professional development series that focuses on foundational leadership skills, professional networks and relationship building skills, and career development strategies applicable to both in-house and law firm practice.
Please note that many 2012-2015 1L LCLD Scholars are now employed by LCLD Member organizations and eligible to participate in the 2020 Pathfinder Program. We hope you will consider selecting them for your 2020 Pathfinders!
Please be sure to review the program selection criteria and fees before submitting your Pathfinder selections here.
We also encourage you to review the 2020 Pathfinder Program Prospectus, the Pathfinder Program Quick Reference Guide, and the Program Facilitator Guide.
For questions about the Pathfinder Program, contact Sarah Alexander, Pathfinder Program Manager.
Pathfinder Alumni, We Need Your Help!
LCLD is excited to announce the launch of this year's Pathfinder Alumni Survey. The survey takes less than 10 minutes to complete and helps demonstrate the value of the Pathfinder Program and the LCLD Alumni network. It also helps ensure that as LCLD grows, both the Pathfinder Program and the Alumni network continue to meet Pathfinders' needs.
Click here to begin taking the survey.
For questions about the survey, please email Caitlin Puffenberger, LCLD Communications Manager.
Driving Innovation: The Cummins Learning Experience
By Nichole Velasquez, Fellows Program Manager, LCLD
Cummins, Inc., a global giant in the manufacturing of engine technology, welcomed three dozen LCLD Fellows to its Indianapolis headquarters for the final Learning Experience of 2019.
Hosted by LCLD Member Sharon Barner, Vice President and General Counsel, the Learning Experience gave Fellows a rare inside look at an iconic, values-driven company whose support for civil rights, social justice, and the principles of diversity and inclusion dates from the early 20th century.
In their welcoming remarks, 2019 Fellow Chris Tucker and Dinesh Castellino, Deputy General Counsel of International & AGC Engine Business, shared the professional backgrounds and personal journeys that brought them to Cummins.
That spirit of warmth and openness continued in the next session, a fireside chat between LCLD President Robert Grey and Sharon Barner.
Prompted by Grey, Ms. Barner went beyond the outline of her career path to describe experiences in her youth that formed her approach to life and leadership. She recounted her childhood in Ohio, her work in a car factory that enabled her to attend college and law school, her early days as an attorney at a law firm where she became the firm's first African American on the Management Committee and the first African American Department Chair, and her work as a Deputy Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in the Obama administration. Read more.
On January 31, 2020, the next Learning Experience will be hosted by LCLD Member Katherine Adams, SVP and General Counsel of Apple Inc., in Cupertino, CA. Look out for an article for this Learning Experience this spring.
For questions about hosting a Learning Experience, please contact Nichole Velasquez, LCLD Fellows Program Manager.
January Regional Events
LCLD would like to thank the following Members and organizations for hosting and participating in regional events this month:
- LCLD Board Immediate Past Chair Laura Stein, Executive Vice President and General Counsel Corporate Affairs of The Clorox Company, who will speak to San Fransciso Bay-Area Fellows Alumni in the second session of the 2019 LCLD Sustainable Partnership Program on January 31, 2020. We also thank all of the attorneys and Fellows Alumni at LCLD Member organizations who will also speak, and we thank The Clorox Company, Coinbase, and HP Inc. for sponsoring the program.
- Vinson & Elkins LLP, which will host a 1L Winter Reception for LCLD Mentees at its New York office on January 30, 2020. The firm also hosted receptions at its Austin office on January 7, and its Dallas and Houston offices on January 6. We also thank Vinson & Elkins for hosting a Spring Group Mentoring Program (GMP) Event on January 13 at its Dallas office, where the Honorable Leonard Davis, former Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, spoke about effective courtroom advocacy.
- LCLD Member Therese Pritchard, Co-Chair of Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner LLP, and Ann Kappler, Senior Vice President, Deputy General Counsel and Head of External Affairs of Prudential Financial, Inc., who spoke to Fellows at a Leadership Lunch hosted at the Washington, D.C. office of Bryan Cave on January 24, 2020.
Please contact the following LCLD staff members for questions:
- Sustainable Partnership Program: Erin Hess, Alumni Program Manager
- Group Mentoring Program Events: Nancy Richardson, Program Manager
- Leadership Lunches:, Nichole Velasquez, Fellows Program Manager
Welcome, New Members!
Deborah Read, Managing Partner, Thompson Hine LLP. Thompson Hine LLP, a full-service business law firm with approximately 400 lawyers in 7 offices, was ranked number 1 in the category “Most innovative North American law firms: New working models” by The Financial Times.
For 6 straight years, Thompson Hine has distinguished itself in all areas of Service Delivery Innovation in the BTI Brand Elite, where it has been recognized as one of the top 4 firms for “Value for the Dollar” and “Commitment to Help” and among the top 5 firms “making changes to improve the client experience.” The firm’s commitment to innovation is embodied in Thompson Hine SmartPaTH® – a smarter way to work – predictable, efficient, and aligned with client goals.
Thompson Hine is deeply committed to advancing diversity in the legal profession. Fostering a culture that prioritizes diversity, equity, and inclusion enhances our creative abilities, fuels innovation, and pushes us in new directions.
Patrick Sexton, Executive Vice President, General Counsel, and Corporate Secretary, Cboe Global Markets. Cboe Global Markets is one of the world’s largest exchange holding companies, offering cutting-edge trading and investment solutions to investors around the world. The company offers trading across a diverse range of products in multiple asset classes and geographies, including options, futures, U.S. and European equities, exchange-traded products (ETPs), global foreign exchange (FX), and volatility products. Cboe’s subsidiaries include the largest options exchange and the third largest stock exchange operator in the U.S. In addition, the company operates one of the largest stock exchanges by value traded in Europe and is a leading market globally for ETP listings and trading.
Jonathan Skeeters, Chairman and Managing Partner, Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP. Bradley combines skilled legal counsel with exceptional client service and unwavering integrity to assist a diverse range of corporate and individual clients in achieving their business goals. With offices in Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and the District of Columbia, the firm’s over 550 lawyers represent regional, national, and international clients in various industries, including financial services, healthcare, life sciences, real estate, construction, technology, energy, insurance, and entertainment, among many others.
Bradley’s success derives from the ingenuity, intelligence, values, skills, and diverse perspectives of our people. At Bradley, maintaining a working environment that is rewarding, respectful, collegial, diverse, and inclusive is one of our core values.
Bart Volkmer, General Counsel, Dropbox. Our mission—designing a more enlightened way of working—is our north star for changing the way people think about work and it’s paramount that diversity, equity, and inclusion is a cornerstone of how we build the world’s first smart workspace.
Dropbox was recognized as one of Fortune magazine’s 100 Best Companies to Work for in 2018 and ranked #32 in Best Workplaces for Diversity in 2019. Additionally, Dropbox has been on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index for five years in a row. Through internal programs, external partnerships, and community engagement, we work hard to attract and retain diverse employees and to make Dropbox a great place to work for everyone and the world around us.
In the News
Deborah Read, LCLD Member and Managing Partner at Thompson Hine LLP, led her firm to adopt a new assessment model for its new and lateral recruits; the first summer associate class that went through the new process was the most diverse the firm has ever had, at 70 percent.
Tammy Albarran, 2015 Fellow and Deputy General Counsel at Uber Technologies Inc., was profiled in Corporate Counsel.
L to R: 2019 Fellows Divya Gupta, Mike Jackson, Clara Jimenez, Christine Kain, Alexandria Reyes, and Jennifer Goldstein (not pictured) co-authored an article called, "How Do You Manage Up?" as a resource for LCLD Pathfinders and Pathfinder Alumni in the December 2019 issue of Pathways for Pathfinders.
Ali Haque, 2018 Fellow and Partner at Bricker & Eckler LLP, was selected as part of the inaugural class for “Future 50,” a Columbus CEO project dedicated to creating meaningful change in the Columbus community.
Adine Momoh, 2013 Fellow and Partner at Stinson LLP, was profiled in Attorney at Law magazine’s 2019 Women in Law special issue, and discussed her personal commitment to diversity and inclusion.
Various LCLD Member organizations were featured in the news.
See What's Working at LCLD Member organizations. Read about innovative solutions for creating a more inclusive legal profession and find out if what's working for these organizations can work for yours, too. To submit an initiative, please email Caitlin Puffenberger, LCLD Communications Manager.
Read the latest issue of the LCLD Weekly News Digest on major issues in diversity and the legal profession. If you would like to receive the news digest via email each Wednesday, please contact Caitlin Puffenberger.
Jessica Sabesan
Senior Communications & Marketing Manager, LCLD Insider Editor
If you have any news or honors that are relevant to LCLD Members, please email Jessica Sabesan at jsabesan@lcldnet.com.
