NYC Bar's 2009 Diversity Benchmarking Report

The New York City Bar has released its 2009 Diversity Benchmarking Report. The report tracks diversity within the 94 law firms that signed on to a Statement of Diversity Principles in 2004. In an article in their newsletter about the report, the City Bar has framed the results as surprising given the economic downturn:

In a 'jobless recovery,' it is often those at the bottom of the power pyramid who are hurt first – through cut hours, cut paychecks, and layoffs.  In New York City law firms, that bottom rung is the most diverse, with greater representation of women and minorities than at the top levels of legal practice.

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While still underrepresented, the numbers of women, minorities, openly gay, and disabled attorneys practicing in New York have continued to grow. Though not increasing dramatically, gains have "stayed the course" and did not diminish or reverse.

Some stats from the report, as summarized in the article, include:

• "While the overall number of women attorneys at the NYC firms has risen only one percent since 2004--from 35% to 36%--there has been a sharp increase in promotions of women to partner.  The incoming class of partners in 2009 was 33% female, compared to 21% in 2004."
• "Women attorneys represent 45.2% of associates, and only 17.8% of partners."
• " For 2008, the overall voluntary turnover rate was 37% higher for women than men . . ."

Microsoft Women & Minority Initiatives

Earlier this fall Microsoft hosted a Summit for Women and Minority Law Students on careers in intellectual property practice areas. The Summit included a panel discussion with women and diverse attorneys who represent Microsoft in various capacities, a report from Microsoft's deputy general counsel on Microsoft's internal diversity program and ongoing commitment to the corporate Call to Action to diversify outside legal representation.

Most impressive fact: Microsoft Legal & Corporate Affairs's executive's bonuses are tied to their outside counsel meeting diversity goals. And last year? Outside counsel failed to meet those goals and bonuses were reduced as promised. That's called putting your money where you mouth is. 

10 Ways to Combat Diversity Fatigue

By Dr. Arin N. Reeves

DIVERSITY FATIGUE (di.VUR.suh.tee fuh.teeg): According to WordSpy.com, a web site dedicated to tracking new terms that have appeared multiple times in major media, “diversity fatigue”—a form of mental exhaustion brought on by the constant attention required to create or increase diversity in work settings—is now an official part of the workplace lexicon. The concept of diversity fatigue first appeared in a New York Times (April 6, 1998) article on how the nation’s newspaper editors wanted to roll back the goals of increasing diversity in the newsrooms because “there’s a widespread sense of diversity fatigue.”

Since 1998, the term has picked up traction and support. An article in the May 31, 2006, edition of Time.com (the online version of Time magazine) asks, “Are Americans Suffering Diversity Fatigue?” The article goes on to state that, “It’s clear people are tired of walking on eggshells, afraid to offend those with different beliefs, ideas, and lifestyles. It’s grown exhausting, and they want their lives back. The idea of diversity seems to have worn out its welcome. It is now like a house guest who has stayed too long.” The term continues to receive high levels of attention, as evidenced by a dialogue on the October 12, 2006, episode of National Public Radio’s Talk of the Nation, entitled “Explosion of Diversity Training Leads to Fatigue.”

Toward Inclusive Meritocracies: Examining the Relationship between Merit and Diversity in Large Law Firms

by Arin N. Reeves, President, The Athens Group

(Ed. Note: This article was originally published in the 'Diversity Insider: Dedicated to Creating a Diverse Profession,' a publication for the 'DRI: The Voice of the Defense Bar.')

According to The American Heritage Dictionary, a meritocracy is a “system in which advancement is based on individual ability or achievement.” Many law firms pride themselves on operating as meritocracies embodied by this definition. Individual ability and achievement is carefully examined in future hires, and attorneys who have been deemed to be worthy of inclusion in law firms are rewarded and advanced based on their abilities as evidenced by their achievements in meeting billable hour requirements, generating revenues and contributing to a law firm’s overall profitability and reputation.

When the topics of diversity and inclusion are introduced into law firm operations, a “yes, but” reaction is often triggered in most firms. Yes, we are for diversity and inclusion, but we don’t want to violate our meritocracy. This “yes, but” reaction is based on a definition of merit where ability alone equals achievement. In other words, a lack of achievement has to mean a lack of ability. This definition of merit sets up diversity and inclusion as oppositional to a meritocracy and suggests that a law firm has to supplement the abilities of some groups to achieve while other groups achieve naturally.

What if law firms are environments where ability does not naturally equate to achievement? What if merit, in law firms, is not based on ability alone but requires ability to be paired with opportunity in order to result in achievement? If merit, in fact, is the sum of ability and opportunity, would unequal access to opportunity mean that law firms are, in fact, not operating as meritocracies? What if diversity and inclusion initiatives are focused on eradicating inequality in opportunity, would they not, then, be consistent with creating a true meritocracy?

Supply and Demand

I spend a fair amount of time considering why it is that women are so under represented in the partnerships of large law firms. I do this as a semi-professional endeavor but also due to my own self-interest as a junior associate who (1) intends to make partner in a few years and some day be involved in the management of my current firm and (2) wonders if there is something that I am not anticipating that will drive me from practice as has happened to so many partnership tracked women ahead of me.

One of the key pieces of this equation is child bearing/rearing -- I know this is no great revelation as anyone with a brain and eyes can see that more women leave practice due to child-raising conflicts than men.  However, I have also been a believer that programs for re-entry into the profession after having taken some time to have and raise kids is a critical part of solution to keeping women in the profession.

'Dear Sisters, Dear Daughters' - A New Mentorship Publication from the Multicultural Women Attorney Network

The ABA's Multicultural Women Attorney Network has published an exciting and unique new work to address the limited mentoring opportunities between multicultural women. Entitled 'Dear Sisters, Dear Daughters: Words of Wisdom from Multicultural Women Attorneys Who've Been There and Done That,' this publication is a compilation of letters from multicultural women attorneys who graduated from law school more than a decade ago.

These letters are directed at young women lawyers and law students, offering advice of a variety of topics including building a practice, raising children as a professional woman, overcoming stereotypes, building bridges with women of color, and directing one's own career. The diversity of topics covered is matched by the degree of diversity amongst the contributors themselves - some are still practicing, some are retired; some are mothers, some are not; some are members of the judiciary, some are academics. All are inspirational figures for women in the law.

Mablean Pehriam, Judge on Divorce Court for Fox Television, commented on this publication: "Every woman benefit from reading these letters. They speak of both our struggles and triumphs...As you read these pages, I hope that you too will be inspired, as I was to continue the struggle for justice and equality, using the law as a tool for change."

For more information on 'Dear Sisters, Dear Daughters: Words of Wisdom from Multicultural Women Attorneys Who've Been There and Done That.' visit:

http://www.abanet.org/minorities/mwan/dsdd.html

Money Talks: The free-market answer to more diversity in law firms

With all the talk about diversity being a good business practice for law firms, it is nice to finally see a client put some pressure on law firms to change. In the November issue of Corporate Counsel magazine there is a short story about General Motors and the demands it makes of its outside counsel to be more diverse.

Is the current legal community capable of representing the interests of our diverse citizenry?