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Minority Male Partners at Shook Hardy & Bacon


Compared to 4.37% Nationally


5.34%


SH&B offi cials admit the fi rm’s success in hiring, retaining, and promoting of ethnic and racial minority and LGBT attorneys has yet to reach desired levels. T e offi cials, how- ever, vow to remain committed and resolute. “My concern is that we don’t want to plateau. We want


to keep improving. T at’s what we’re trying to do here,” says Muehlberger. “Every year we’ve made a little more progress, but we have miles to go.” Many American law fi rms, according to Carew, do not


have diversity committees and do not have positions commit- ted full-time to enhancing inclusion, such as SDI director. SH&B has seemingly made real, comprehensive progress due to its early foray into diversity and inclusion eff orts. “If you talk to people that were here then and now, you


can tell there is defi nitely a diff erence of how we have this conversation. When we instituted the checklist, we said ‘Here are the things we can do’,” says Carew, emphasizing the fi rm’s success in moving beyond the education and awareness stage of diversity and inclusion. “Now the conver-


Minority Female Partners at Shook Hardy & Bacon


Compared to 2.07% Nationally


22.7% 3.88%


sation is very diff erent. We’ve done A, B, and C. We’re now focusing what we can do moving ahead.” For other law fi rms, the checklist serves as a paradigm.


According to Carew, the fi rm is routinely contacted with requests for insight into similar initiatives at other law fi rms and corporations. “We’ve shared it with well over 60 companies,” says


Carew. “T at’s part of the reason we put it on our website— so people can go check it out themselves.” Considering the totality of SH&B’s diversity and inclu-


sion eff ort, the checklist is only one, albeit apparently critical, aspect of its grand scheme. Other initiatives include sponsor- ing networking events, participating in pipeline programs, recruiting lateral talent, and creating a presence at local law schools in order to entice prospective attorneys. SH&B’s diversity and inclusion success, according to Carew, is the product of wide-ranging, assorted eff orts. “Someone may ask if we’ve achieved what we have because


“ My concern is that we don’t want to plateau. We want to keep improving. That’s what we’re trying to do here. Every year we’ve made a little more progress, but we have miles to go.”— JIM MUEHLBERGER


MCCA.COM


of the checklist. Yes and no. T ere are many initiatives,” says Carew. “What the checklist has done is enable us to have the conversation take place.” Regardless of the causes, SH&B has cre-


ated a cohesive environment that is rare among American law fi rms. T e fi rm’s attorneys readily commend the SH&B leadership and wherewithal that has enabled them to thrive at the highest industry levels with rich cultural experience. “I think it’s night and day at Shook compared


to other fi rms. I’m from the East Coast. I have no ties to the Midwest. A lot of my friends were going to fi rms in New York or D.C. But I saw this fi rm making a huge push towards diversity,” says Adam, emphasizing his personal eff ort to draw in diverse talent through the recruiting process. “I knew I’d have opportunities here that I wouldn’t have elsewhere. A lot of that push is client-driven but it is also altruistic.” D&B


Brian Dabbs is a freelance writer and editor based in Washington, D.C.


JULY/AUGUST 2013 DIVERSITY & THE BAR® 33


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