Originally published in Student Lawyer magazine, October 2003 (Vol. 32, No. 2). All rights reserved.

Officially Speaking

Diversity Is an Important Goal of the ABA

by Michael Pellicciotti

For many years, the ABA and the Law Student Division have strongly encouraged diversity in law schools and the legal profession. As students, many of us know that our education is improved when we are exposed to the different thoughts and experiences of colleagues from various backgrounds. As future lawyers, many of us know that an effective legal system largely depends on a bar and bench whose members are drawn from a broad cross-section of society.

The Law Student Division also benefits from a diverse leadership. Although we have had much success in this regard, we cannot rest on our laurels. This is why the Division's Board of Governors recently adopted a Diversity Action Plan, which among other things encourages diverse leadership in the Law Student Division. This involves reaching out to student organizations and providing support to students who want to join our ranks.

The ABA as a whole offers services that promote diversity in the profession. Law students can benefit from programs such as the Minority Judicial Intern Program, sponsored by the Section of Litigation and the Council on Legal Education Opportunity, and the Judicial Clerkship Program, sponsored by the Commission on Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the Profession and the Judicial Division. In addition, the Commission on Mental and Physical Disability Law sponsors a mentor program for law students with disabilities. To learn about these and many other diversity-related opportunities at the ABA and the Law Student Division, visit www.abanet.org/lsd/diversity.

Last summer the U.S. Supreme Court issued its ruling in Grutter v. Bollinger. In the majority opinion, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor relied significantly on amicus briefs that explained the importance of diversity in America's law schools.

Though not officially endorsing any side in Grutter v. Bollinger, the Law Student Division helped circulate an amicus brief organized by students at Georgetown University Law Center. More than 10,000 law students at almost 150 schools signed the brief, which supported the University of Michigan's efforts to diversify its law school. As this experience showed, the Law Student Division can reach and unite thousands of law students across the country for matters important to them, especially on short notice.

In the meantime, the Law Student Division is continuing to fulfill its mission by supporting diversity at law schools. Our Diversity Committee is looking for ideas on how student groups can best implement diversity programs. Please contact the committee's chair, Joan Walker, at walkej@cooley.edu with your ideas.

I, too, want to hear your thoughts about issues that are important to law students, so feel free to e-mail me. I hope you enjoy this issue of Student Lawyer and that you're off to a good start with the school year.

Michael Pellicciotti
Gonzaga University
Chair, ABA Law Student Division
michaelp@abanet.org