ABA Section of Business Law
ABA Section of Business Law
Business Law Today
November/December 1999
Beyond the millennium, III
How the Section will meet the future
By MICHAEL E. FLOWERS
Flowers is a partner at Bricker & Eckler LLP, in Columbus, Ohio. He is chair of the Section of Business Law.
Editor’s note: This page is part of an occasional series on topics of importance to the Section’s leadership.
As the Section of Business Law moves into the new millennium, it has two goals: first, to attract and retain a dynamic membership that mirrors the composition of the practicing bar, and second, to provide this increasingly more diverse group of business lawyers with an even wider array of services and other membership benefits.
Through implementing its recently adopted comprehensive diversity plan, the Section will appeal to lawyers of color, women lawyers and younger lawyers to become involved in Section activities. By including all business lawyers, regardless of background or practice setting, Section leaders intend to guide, encourage and train a diverse group of members to sustain and improve the Section.
Following the success of the Section’s Business Law Fellows Program, which targets and supports younger lawyers, the Section will implement its Business Law Ambassadors Program. Through this program, the Section will annually invite and support five business lawyers of color to participate in the Section’s substantive work. These lawyers will fully participate in wide-ranging Section activities and will serve as Section ambassadors to other bar associations comprised primarily of lawyers of color. As a result, the Section of Business Law will be able to better communicate to a wider audience the depth and breath of the projects and leadership opportunities that it offers.
New services being offered in the coming year will provide greater benefits to Section members. For example, members attending the Section’s spring meeting from March 22-26, 2000 in Columbus, Ohio will have an opportunity to participate in the Section’s first-ever Career Forum. Here, members can confidentially meet and exchange career information with prospective legal employers and legal professional search representatives.
Continuing the Section’s commitment to deploy more services through the Internet, the Section plans to unveil an electronic resume bank and job-posting service. From the convenience and privacy of their offices, Section members will be able to learn about employment and career-advancement opportunities and to present their credentials to prospective employers.
Section leaders will continue to support the efforts of its Committee of Corporate General Counsel members. These individuals have committed themselves and challenged their law firms to practice more diverse, inclusive hiring, promotion and retention strategies. To further these goals, the Section hopes that its members will copy the Section’s diversity plan as a foundation for constructing an individually crafted plan that will address their unique circumstances.
Further, the Section will continue its sponsorship of seminars and forums, with such groups as the Securities and Exchange Commission, that are focused on raising the level of awareness of lawyers of color and women lawyers about the career and professional opportunities available to business lawyers.
By providing unique opportunities for an increasingly more diverse and talented group of business lawyers, the Section of Business Law will be well positioned to thrive in the new millennium.
