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Law firms' ongoing initiatives to address diversity challenges have driven another year of progress, with the representation of minority attorneys continuing to improve across the board, albeit at a slower pace than in previous years. Here's our data dive into minority representation at law firms in 2023.
Attorneys of color now represent 27.6% of nonpartners at law firms, a new high-water mark for the industry. But progress has lagged higher up. Here's a more detailed look at the representation of minority attorneys at the associate and partner levels.
Data from Law360 Pulse's law firm survey reveals that while firms are continuing to diversify their attorney ranks, progress has slowed. Just 15.6% of firms top the benchmarks for the 2024 Diversity Snapshot ranking — a lower percentage than last year. Here’s the latest look at how diversity in law firms' headcounts compares with what it could be based on the potential marketplace of new hires.
Law360’s law firm survey shows that firms' efforts to diversify their equity partner ranks are lagging. But some have embraced a broader talent pool at the equity partner level. Here are the ones that stood out.
Kirkland & Ellis LLP has strengthened its corporate practice in Houston with a partner who came aboard following an in-house role at private equity firm Stonepeak.
FedEx Corp. is looking for a new legal department leader, as its current general counsel shared his plans to retire in September after more than four decades serving in various roles around the world with the package delivery giant.
American Vanguard Corp., a specialty and agricultural products company with operations in 21 countries, has replaced its chief executive officer with a group of executives that includes its top lawyer.
The owner of luxury fashion brands such as Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent and Balenciaga has promoted its U.S. general counsel, who previously was a longtime attorney for Tiffany & Co., to president of its Americas division, the French-based Kering said Monday.
Many lawyers of color say they are included in their law firm's client pitches but are not assigned to the resulting work, pointing to some firms' "window dressing" approach to diversity and inclusion, according to a report reviewed by Law360 Pulse that will be released publicly on Tuesday.
The Motion Picture Association on Monday named as its head of global litigation the former deputy director of Amazon's counterfeit crimes unit, who also spent eight years as a U.S. Assistant District Attorney in New York.
A former assistant general counsel at Morgan Lewis is the new dean of undergraduate students at Princeton University, where she previously held several administrative positions for about a decade, the New Jersey Ivy League school said Monday.
The Dow Chemical Co. asked an Ohio federal judge to recuse himself from a trade secrets suit brought by a Cleveland technology firm accusing it of misappropriating confidential information to recreate the firm's copyrighted software after the tech company showed the court a settlement offer without Dow Chemical's approval.
Law360 is pleased to announce the Rising Stars of 2024, our list of 158 attorneys under 40 whose legal accomplishments belie their age.
General counsel at companies involved in environmental litigation scored victories and suffered some setbacks this week, including the dismissal of a Baltimore city suit seeking climate damages as well as Marathon Oil's record-setting $241.5 million Clean Air Act settlement.
The executive director of the New Jersey State Commission of Investigation has died in a car crash in Mercer County, officials announced.
An attorney from HCA Healthcare credited for some of the provider's largest judgments is now the inaugural general counsel at Allia Group, a legal finance firm for healthcare insurer disputes.
The legal industry had another action-packed week as attorneys took on new roles and law firms reshaped practices following the holiday. Test your legal news savvy here with Law360 Pulse's weekly quiz.
The attorney who led Connecticut's Office of the Child Advocate for more than a decade is stepping down this fall to return to a legal nonprofit as its executive director.
Greenberg Traurig LLP has bolstered its corporate, investment management, and financial regulatory and compliance practices with a pair of new shareholders in New York who both came aboard from in-house roles at major investment firms.
Funding for legal technology companies totaled $2.422 billion in the first half of 2024, nearly matching the $2.443 billion in capital raised during the same period in 2023, a positive sign for the sector after years of declining investments.
Robert Dinerstein, chair of the American Bar Association's Commission on Disability Rights, joined Law360 Pulse for an in-depth conversation about the organization's #BeCounted campaign
President Joe Biden on Thursday nominated a senior Office of Management and Budget official and former Consumer Financial Protection Bureau attorney to the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission to replace one of two current CFTC members who themselves have been nominated for other offices.
A senior lawyer at The Walt Disney Co., who is a veteran C-suite leader who has had stints at other high-profile brands such as PayPal and Nokia, is set to begin as general counsel at Roku Inc. later this month, the streaming services company said late Thursday.
Despite the strong anti-ESG movement and one oil giant's legal move to smash an activist investor, shareholders still voiced their concerns over climate change this proxy season and saw some success in corporate annual meetings.
The former chief counsel for the U.S. Army Center of Military History has joined Shook Hardy & Bacon LLP as co-chair of the firm's growing art law practice, the firm announced Thursday.
Series
Ask A Mentor: How Can I Turn Deferral To My Advantage?Diana Leiden at Winston & Strawn discusses how first-year associates whose law firm start dates have been deferred can use the downtime to hone their skills, help their communities, and focus on returning to BigLaw with valuable contacts and out-of-the-box insights.
To make their first 90 days on the job a success, new legal operations managers should focus on several key objectives, including aligning priorities with leadership and getting to know their team, says Ashlyn Donohue at LinkSquares.
Female attorneys and others who pause their careers for a few years will find that gaps in work history are increasingly acceptable among legal employers, meaning with some networking, retraining and a few other strategies, lawyers can successfully reenter the workforce, says Jill Backer at Ave Maria School of Law.
ChatGPT and other generative artificial intelligence tools pose significant risks to the integrity of legal work, but the key for law firms is not to ban these tools, but to implement them responsibly and with appropriate safeguards, say Natalie Pierce and Stephanie Goutos at Gunderson Dettmer.
To safeguard against the many risks posed by generative artificial intelligence legal tools, in-house counsel should work with their information security teams to develop new data security questions for prospective vendors, vet existing applications and review who can utilize machine guidance, says Diane Homolak at Integreon.
Opinion
We Must Continue DEI Efforts Despite High Court HeadwindsThough the U.S. Supreme Court recently struck down affirmative action in higher education, law firms and their clients must keep up the legal industry’s recent momentum advancing diversity, equity and inclusion in the profession in order to help achieve a just and prosperous society for all, says Angela Winfield at the Law School Admission Council.
Law firms that fail to consider their attorneys' online habits away from work are not using their best efforts to protect client information and are simplifying the job of plaintiffs attorneys in the case of a breach, say Mark Hurley and Carmine Cicalese at Digital Privacy and Protection.
Though effective writing is foundational to law, no state requires attorneys to take continuing legal education in this skill — something that must change if today's attorneys are to have the communication abilities they need to fulfill their professional and ethical duties to their clients, colleagues and courts, says Diana Simon at the University of Arizona.
In the most stressful times for attorneys, when several transactions for different partners and clients peak at the same time and the phone won’t stop buzzing, incremental lifestyle changes can truly make a difference, says Lindsey Hughes at Haynes Boone.
Corporate legal departments looking to implement new technology can avoid hiccups by taking steps to define the underlying business problem and to identify opportunities for process improvements before leaping to the automation stage, say Nadine Ezzie at Ezzie + Co., Kenneth Jones at Xerdict Group and Kathy Zhu at Streamline AI.
Series
Ask A Mentor: How Can I Support Gen Z Attorneys?Meredith Beuchaw at Lowenstein Sandler discusses how senior attorneys can assist the newest generation of attorneys by championing their pursuit of a healthy work-life balance and providing the hands-on mentorship opportunities they missed out on during the pandemic.
There are a few communication tips that law students in summer associate programs should consider to put themselves in the best possible position to receive an offer, and firms can also take steps to support those to whom they are unable to make an offer, says Amy Mattock at Georgetown University Law Center.
Many attorneys are going to use artificial intelligence tools whether law firms like it or not, so firms should educate them on AI's benefits, limits and practical uses, such as drafting legal documents, to remain competitive in a rapidly evolving legal market, say Thomas Schultz and Eden Bernstein at Kellogg Hansen.
Dealing with the pressures associated with law school can prove difficult for many future lawyers, but there are steps students can take to manage stress — and schools can help too, say Ryan Zajic and Dr. Janani Krishnaswami at UWorld.
Corporate counsel often turn to third-party vendors to manage spending challenges, and navigating this selection process can be difficult for both counsel and the vendor, but there are several ways corporate legal departments can make the entire process easier and beneficial for all parties involved, says David Cochran at QuisLex.