Morrison & Foerster : Commitment to Diversity

Commitment to Diversity

Morrison & Foerster has a long history of promoting diversity. Long before the word became fashionable, the firm made a strong commitment to the idea, and the ideals, of diversity. Beyond equal opportunity and non-discrimination, the firm was among the first major law firms in the country to embrace diversity as a core value.

Thirty years ago, our partners believed that diversity was worth pursuing both as the right thing to do and because it would be invaluable to our clients. A diverse group of lawyers results in multiple perspectives, richer thinking, and more creative solutions to the challenges our clients face, and reflects the diversity of the real world of judges, jurors, and the legal system as a whole. Diversity among our lawyers and staff serves the firm’s overall institutional values, which emphasize excellence in client service, collegiality, respect for everyone, professional and business ethics, and duty to the profession and the community.

A commitment to diversity has become an integral part of the firm’s identity. We formally articulated our Diversity Mission Statement in 1992, and it continues to define the firm’s cultural values today.

Mission Statement

We at Morrison & Foerster will continue our work to break down barriers to equal opportunity, to value fully the differences among people in our organization while recognizing our similarities, and to create an atmosphere in which each individual can develop his or her potential to the fullest extent possible. We believe that diversity adds value to our organization by attracting the most talented people possible, by making the best use of the talents of those who work here, and finally, by enhancing our ability to attract, retain, and most importantly, serve our clients. We want our firm to act as a model of diversity which others will follow.

Awards, Recognition & Achievements

Vault Guide to the Top 100 Law Firms: Consistently ranked as a top law firm for diversity. For 2007–2008 we ranked: #5 Diversity – Minorities; #5 Diversity – Gays & Lesbians; #6 Overall Diversity; and #6 Best Firms to Work For

Minority Law Journal: Consistently ranked as one of the top 10 law firms in the country for diversity
(2001 and 2003–2008)

MultiCultural Law Magazine: Included in the Top 100 Law Firms for Diversity (2005–2008) and the inaugural Top 100 Law Firms for Women survey (2008)

NAPABA Diversity Award: Honored with the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association’s inaugural Diversity Award for the firm’s commitment to and success with diversity, especially in the recruitment, retention, advancement, and promotion of APA attorneys (2008)

Working Mother Magazine: Listed as one of the 50 Best Law Firms for Women (2007 and 2008)

National Law Journal's "Profiles in Power:" Drew S. Days III and Arturo González recognized as two of the 50 most influential minority lawyers in America (2008)

American Lawyer: Ranked on the “A-List” of the Top 20 Law Firms in the Country for our combined scores in diversity, pro bono, associate satisfaction, and economic success (2004–2008)

Minority Corporate Counsel Association: Received the Thomas L. Sager Award for sustained commitment to hiring, retaining, and promoting minority attorneys (2001 and 2003)

American Bar Association: One of six law firms selected to pilot the American Bar Association’s Minority Counsel Demonstration Program (1988)

Human Rights Campaign Corporate Equality Index: Have received a 100% Perfect Ranking annually since 2003 in this report on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender equality in corporate America

The Arc of San Francisco: Received award for “Successfully Employing Persons with Disabilities – 10 Years” (2002). The firm continues to partner with The Arc to employ persons with disabilities

Our Legal Professionals

11% of partners, 37% of associates, and 19% of counsel in U.S. offices are minorities
19% of partners, 47% of associates, and 37% of counsel are women
35% of the 2008 Summer Class were minorities, and 50% were women

Firm Leadership

Women and minorities have long held positions of leadership in the firm, including as Managing Partners of the firm and several offices; numerous department and practice group leaders; and chairs of the Partnership Review, Budget, Personnel, and Pro Bono Committees, and of The Morrison & Foerster Foundation. Currently:

Chair of the firm is openly gay
2 of the 3 firmwide Managing Partners for Operations are women
3 of the 10 Executive Committee members are women
38% of the firm’s Board of Directors are minorities and/or women
Managing Partner of the Singapore office is African-American
Co-chair of the Business Department is a minority woman
Head of New York Litigation is openly gay
Minorities chair or co-chair the Trial Practice, International Arbitration, and Technology Transactions Practice Groups
Women chair or co-chair the Antitrust, Emerging Company/Venture Capital, Financial Services, Intellectual Property, Patent, Appellate and Supreme Court, and Technology Transactions Practice Groups

Key Committees in Support of Diversity Efforts

Diversity Strategy Committee (DSC) includes the Chair of the firm, Managing Partners for Operations, Department Chairs, the Director of Attorney Recruiting, and the Professional Development and Diversity Manager. The DSC recommends diversity objectives to the Board of Directors and senior management and provides strategic direction on efforts to achieve these goals.
Firmwide Diversity Committee (FDC) includes lawyers and staff representatives from each office, reporting to senior management. The FDC oversees the implementation of formal diversity training programs in U.S. offices and monitors the progress of each office’s diversity plan.
Women’s Initiative Subcommittee of the DSC recommends steps that management should take to increase the development and advancement of our women attorneys.
Attorneys of Color Advisory Committee serves as a sounding board for the firm on issues relating to attorneys of color, assists in planning events for attorneys of color, and helps with recruiting efforts.

Key Diversity Initiatives, Programs, and Activities

Diversity Training Programs at the local-office level since 1993
Firmwide Attorneys of Color Workshops since the early 1990s
Annual educational sessions in celebration of Black History Month, Latino History Month, Gay Pride Month, and Asian Pacific Heritage Month
Outreach to minority and LGBT law students, and law students with disabilities
Women’s events and training programs

Promoting Diversity Through Scholarship

The firm and The Morrison & Foerster Foundation have funded many programs designed to support minority students.
The firm has allocated $100,000 for diversity scholarships in 2009.
Over the past three years, two first-year minority law students have received scholarships in honor of former partner and firm chair Steve Dunham, one of the firm’s diversity champions. The Morrison & Foerster Foundation gives a total of $35,000 per year to the University of Colorado Law School and the University of Denver College of Law to fund these scholarships. The schools then match the scholarships for the students in their second and third years.
The Foundation is contributing $30,000 over three years to the California Bar Foundation’s Diversity Scholarship Program for first-year law students from communities under-represented in the State Bar membership.
The Foundation makes annual contributions to the Kennedy-King Memorial College Scholarship for minority students transferring from junior college to complete their degrees.
The Foundation has made significant contributions to the Center for Youth Development Through Law, the IDEAL Scholars program at the Level Playing Field Institute, the SAGE Scholars Program at UC Berkeley, the American Bar Association’s Legal Opportunity Scholarship Fund, and the American Intellectual Property Law Education Foundation.
In all offices, the firm participates in diversity career fairs, social gatherings for diverse candidates who have received offers from the firm, and programs such as:
- Youth Scholars Program – minority high school students are recruited to work at the firm during school breaks; participants also qualify for college scholarships
- Colorado Pledge to Diversity Clerkship Program – exposes minority first-year law students to large law firms and in-house corporate departments
- Sponsors for Educational Opportunity Corporate Law Program – pre-law interns (admitted to law school but prior to starting their first year) are hired to work at the firm, where they observe and experience the day-to-day duties and responsibilities of corporate attorneys

Equal Employment Policy

It is the policy of Morrison & Foerster LLP to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and employees. The Firm does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, creed, ethnic or national origin, ancestry, age, disability (including persons infected with HIV or persons with AIDS), veteran status, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, domestic partner status, other categories protected by law, or in retaliation for opposition to any practices forbidden under this policy. The Firm also makes reasonable accommodation for employees with disabilities.

This policy applies to all areas of employment, including recruiting, hiring, training, promotion, compensation, benefits, transfer, and social and recreational programs, and includes the provision that no employee shall harass any other employee on any of the bases listed above.