Top U.S. Law Firms Taking DEI to New Levels, Running Illegal Diversity ProgramsBy Becky Noble
September 12, 2023
When the U.S. Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in college admissions in June, many felt that, for the first time, all Americans, no matter who they were, would have an equal chance of being judged on their merits, not the color of their skin. But in some cases, the Supreme Court decision became nothing more than an obstacle, something that must be gotten around to continue giving certain groups of people a leg up over others. While affirmative action is now forbidden at America's universities, in other places, not only is it still happening, they are not even trying to hide it. Those places would be some of the nation's top law firms.
https://twitter.com/aaronsibarium/status/1701604797382820263At five of the top law firms in the country, there are diversity programs up and running that favor minorities or exclude white applicants altogether for fellowships, paid internships, and other professional opportunities. Two of those firms, Morrison & Foerster and Perkins Coie, were both sued last month over offering fellowships to only minority applicants. Other firms, including Wachtell Lipton, Winston and Strawn, Baker McKenzie, Sidley Austin, and Susman Godfrey, continue to use race-based criteria when considering applicants for those same professional opportunities. Legal experts say, however, that continuing these practices may come back to bite these firms in light of the Supreme Court ruling. Applicants who are denied opportunities could very well be lawsuits in waiting.
You might think that law firms would know better. Kenneth Marcus was the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights at the Education Department in the Trump administration. He stated, "These law firms are all pushing the envelope." David Bernstein is a professor at George Mason University Law School, and went one further, observing:
I’d say that all of them violate Title VII and the 1866 Civil Rights Act, including the one that purports to be a scholarship, but is quite obviously an employment bonus.
So who is offering what? Wachtell Lipton and Baker McKenzie offer diversity fellowships to "underrepresented groups" in the form of summer associate jobs. Baker McKenzie adds on a $10,000 bonus. Susman Godfrey offers "students of color" a summer clerkship and a $3,000 bonus. The biggest winners in the ethnic lottery are at Winston and Strawn, which offers summer associates who happen to be "racial/ethnic minorities" a whopping $50,000 "scholarship." Sidley Austin offers a mentorship program preferably to "Black/African American, Latino/Hispanic, Asian, South Asian, Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander, American Indian/Alaska Native, Middle Eastern/North African," or "multiracial" law students.
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Source:
https://redstate.com/beckynoble/2023/09/12/top-us-law-firms-taking-dei-to-new-levels-running-illegal-diversity-programs-n2163721
