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The recent landmark ruling by the Supreme Court on affirmative action in college admissions has raised concerns about its impact on efforts to improve diversity within Big Law firms. In a decision that struck down race-based admissions policies at Harvard College and the University of North Carolina, the court’s ruling could narrow the recruiting pipeline for major law firms, which traditionally recruit from a limited number of elite law schools.
Dennis Quinio, the diversity chief for global law firm Allen & Overy, expressed concern that the ruling “could negatively impact the number of students from underrepresented groups who are able to attend law schools.” This, in turn, would make it more challenging to bring diversity into law firms and the legal profession as a whole.
While some law firm leaders have stated that the Supreme Court’s decision will not affect their diversity, equity, and inclusion priorities, others worry that the recent surge of diversity initiatives following the 2020 killing of George Floyd and the subsequent reckoning may not be sustained.
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Lauren Jackson, assistant dean of career services at Howard University’s law school, suggests that the court’s decision will now highlight the true commitment of organizations to diversity. The numbers indicate that progress has been made, as people of color accounted for 28% of law firm associates last year, up from 23% five years earlier, according to a National Association of Law Placement survey. However, these numbers significantly dwindle at the partner level, with only 11% of partners being people of color, up from 8% in 2017.
The potential loss of affirmative action may provide law firms with an excuse to backtrack on current diversity initiatives, warns Tsedale Melaku, a City University of New York professor who has studied legal industry diversity. Melaku believes the ruling creates a legal opportunity for existing inequalities to persist.
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Despite the concerns, some prominent law firms have affirmed their commitment to prioritizing diversity in recruiting and retention. Gibson Dunn & Crutcher and Greenberg Traurig, two of the country’s 15 largest law firms, have clarified that they will continue focusing on diversity. Zakiyyah Salim-Williams, chief diversity officer at Gibson Dunn, believes that while the decision may lead to changes in how things are done, it will not alter a culture that is focused on diversity. Salim-Williams notes that clients increasingly expect outside law firms to meet ambitious diversity standards.
Nikki Lewis Simon, the chief of diversity, equity, and inclusion at Greenberg Traurig, also expressed the firm’s commitment to working with various organizations and educational institutions to support the growth of underrepresented communities in the legal profession.
The Supreme Court’s decision, which saw a split along ideological lines, concluded that race-based admission policies violate the Constitution’s equal protection clause. However, the court’s liberal wing criticized the majority opinion’s “color-blind” approach. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, in a dissenting opinion, emphasized that despite the absence of formal race-linked legal barriers, race continues to significantly impact the lived experiences of Americans. She expressed concern that the ruling exacerbates rather than improves the situation.
While progress has been made since the National Association of Law Placement began measuring diversity in 1991, there is still ample room for improvement. Black lawyers, for example, accounted for less than 6% of law firm associates last year, up from just over 4% in 2017, according to the NALP. The percentage of Black partners showed a slight increase to just over 2% during the same period.
Assessing the data is crucial for law firms to honestly evaluate their progress and identify areas for improvement, according to James Gray, an expert in diversity and inclusion. By recognizing the existing disparities, law firms can actively work towards creating a more diverse and inclusive legal profession.
The Supreme Court’s ruling on affirmative action in college admissions has raised concerns about the potential narrowing of the diversity pipeline for Big Law firms. The decision poses challenges to efforts aimed at improving diversity within law firms and the legal profession. While some firms remain committed to their diversity initiatives, there are concerns that the ruling may have a negative impact on sustained progress in creating a more diverse and inclusive legal industry.
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