ABA Section of Business Law

Our mini-theme: Update on Diversity

Many of us are undergoing organizational efforts to improve diversity and may experience differing views and feelings about it. You may feel as if the social order as you know it is being attacked, or you may feel cautiously hopeful that the work environment may change for the better.

Whatever feeling you may have about it at this point, you are definitely a part of the diversity discussions at your work place. This demand on diversity is powerful and must be acknowledged because it comes from our clients and our customers with a strong united voice and their hands at the purse strings.

In this issue of BLT, you will see an article by a diversity training expert on how best to train your organization for diversity. She says diversity training should be done top-down, that is, our mostly all white male executive committees must first be trained and lead the efforts. You will also hear from a partner at a major minority law firm, who says the age of "diversity" language in marketing materials and symbolic minority partners is coming to an end. Better believe it! Didn't you hear about certain documents called "Diversity in the Workplace — a Statement of Principle" or "A Call to Action: Diversity in the Legal Profession" signed off by hundreds of your major clients? Then, finally, you will read an article by a corporate general counsel and the director of ABA's Office of Diversity Initiatives about the diversity pipeline. They say each of us must actively participate in diversity pipeline initiatives because a diverse legal profession will foster greater public trust in the law and help to ensure fairness in our justice system.

We hope that these articles will help you as you become involved in the dialogues on diversity.

Pamela Dashiell Boston

Donna Nance Atlanta

June Towery Atlanta