These are extraordinary times. The events we have been a part of and witnessed this year have been filled with the toughest of challenges, news we hope to never see and hear again in our lifetimes, and issues that require the best of everyone to make meaningful progress. I cannot think of a more critical time, within my lifetime, that demanded a call to action for all leaders to serve. I could not be more proud of the members of the Law Practice Division and those who serve within our leadership to not only provide their usual tireless devotion to practice management and the profession but also respond with resources that help all lawyers deal with the complex issues of the pandemic and systemic racism in our society.
Our Division leadership had the foresight to ensure that diversity and inclusion is a core value of LP. Specifically, the Division values social, economic and geographic diversity and inclusion within its own active participants, striving to instill an appreciation for, and the value of, contributions brought to the Division by active members of different and diverse racial and ethnic classifications, individual backgrounds, education, life experiences and cultural perspectives. The Division is committed to fostering inclusion within its active membership by providing an equal opportunity to participate, succeed and lead. The Division strives to promote diversity and inclusion among, and provide diversity and inclusion education for, lawyers and their law firms and legal organizations as an opportunity for them to improve organizational decision making, increase productivity and achieve competitive advantage.
This is further fostered by the leadership of our Division’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee. They are committed to setting Division-wide expectations for an inclusive culture; supporting inclusion and retention efforts that focus on traditionally underrepresented groups; learning from and applying best practices in law firms and other legal organizations; measuring the Division’s successes and shortcomings, consistently assessing the Diversity & Inclusion Committee’s own impact; challenging the status quo when necessary; and communicating their mission, the action it requires and the success it promises.