4 Guidelines for Continuing Law Firm DEI Efforts After the Affirmative Action Decision

After the Supreme Court struck down race-conscious admissions at the university level in SFFA v. Harvard and SFFA v. UNC, an elephant in the room emerged: how would law firm diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts continue to persist? Soon after the decision, top law firms’ DEI programs became the new subject of attack, including Perkins Coie and Morrison Foerster.  

Despite this, DEI remains an essential workplace value. In fact, an overwhelming 80% of workers prefer an employer that values DEI. But as it stands, the legal profession continues to be one of the least diverse professions in the United States. Last year, over 84% of legal professionals identified as non-Hispanic, White, according to the ABA. Consequently, it is more critical now than ever that law firms strike a balance between legal compliance and continuing to foster a more diverse and inclusive workplace.  

Here are 4 guidelines for continuing DEI efforts under the recent ruling: 

1. Broaden Recruiting Efforts: Reconsider your law firm’s existing recruiting efforts. Many top law firms focus their recruiting efforts on prestigious law schools that are historically White and affluent. By widening recruiting efforts to include law schools with higher percentages of traditionally underrepresented communities, law firms can better diversify their applicant pool.

2. Eliminate Legacy Preferences: Legacy preferences can reinforce long-standing economic, social, and educational disparities between White and BIPOC employees by shutting them out of job opportunities and further privileging wealthy, white employees with more access to resources and institutional connections (NYSBA). Eliminating legacy preferences can help level the playing field and increase access to employment for underrepresented groups.

3. Foster community: Hiring is only the beginning of promoting a diverse workplace. Retention is just as critical for demonstrating your firm’s commitment to DEI. Law firms can retain diverse lawyers by providing them with mentors and sponsors who can offer guidance, support, and advocacy. This can help diverse lawyers navigate the law firm environment and develop their skills and careers. Overall, efforts to retain and support diverse employees can also help attract other applicants like them (Fisher Phillips).

4. Training staff: Consider providing discrimination, harassment, and bias training to existing staff. Training can help raise awareness of biases, provide tools to manage biases, promote a culture of inclusion, and reduce discrimination and prejudice. This can help create a more welcoming and supportive workplace for diverse employees to help promote retention.