Advancing the Profession: An Imperative for the FBA

Where We Are Now

By most measures, the legal profession remains one of the least diverse professions in the nation.[1] That fact alone is startling. More fundamentally, it is difficult to conceive how lawyers can ensure equal access to justice if we cannot provide equal access to the profession itself.

Statistics related to the demographic composition of the legal profession paint a grim picture with too few strokes illustrating any substantial progress in recent years. Women have accounted for approximately 36 percent of lawyers[2] and less than a quarter of partners[3] in law firms for the past six years, even though they make up roughly half of the population nationwide. Representation of African-Americans and black lawyers has made virtually no gains since the Great Recession that negatively impacted our nation over a decade ago. While African-Americans and blacks comprise approximately 13 percent of the U.S. population, they account for only about 6 percent of lawyers and less than 2 percent of law firm partners. There are multiple Am Law 100 firms without a single black partner among their ranks.[4] Similarly, Hispanics account for nearly 18 percent of the U.S. population, but only about 7 percent of lawyers generally and less than 3 percent of partners in law firms.

Fortunately, there are some notable successes in terms of diversity and inclusion in the legal profession. For instance, while those who identify as Asian or Asian-American make up only 6 percent of the U.S. population, they comprise nearly 12 percent of associates and 4 percent of partners at law firms. In addition, the Association of Corporate Counsel reported that the percentage of women holding positions at in-house legal departments has reached a near 50-50 split with men on a global scale and that the number of minority lawyers working in-house across the nation mirrors the racial and ethnic composition of lawyers in the United States overall.[5]

Data related to lawyers with disabilities is limited. However, 0.53 percent of lawyers surveyed by the National Association for Law Placement Inc. (NALP) reported having a disability. Moreover, almost 3 percent of lawyers surveyed by NALP identify as being a member of the LGBT community, which was an increase over previous years.

By its structure and membership, the Federal Bar Association (FBA) is inherently positioned to broadly embrace and impact diversity issues in federal practice as a whole. Because the organization is where all of the components of the federal legal system come together, it has a unique and powerful voice—and responsibility—to ensure that federal practice and federal courts are welcoming and inclusive for all.

Where We Are Going

Recognizing that we must tirelessly and relentlessly work to ensure that our organization—and indeed, our entire federal legal community—fully reflects and includes the rich diversity of our nation, the FBA formed a Special Task Force on Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) to work with candor, reflection, and intention to understand where the FBA is today with regard to a diverse and inclusive culture in federal practice and to develop a concrete plan of action for sustainable progress toward where we aim to be. This task force is composed of a cross-section of FBA members from across the country and builds on the work of an earlier D&I task force chaired by Hon. Donovan W. Frank and Robie A. Beatty in 2011.

The task force, which will become a permanent FBA standing committee in 2020, has developed a strategic plan to provide structure, action, and partnership in the FBA’s commitment to drive and lead unequivocal and meaningful diversity and inclusion in every part of our legal community. Critically, this plan does not define the boundaries of action. Rather, it is a foundation from which we expect growth and development inside and outside of the organization as we continue to advance our commitment to diversity and inclusion into—and for—the future.

The FBA’s D&I strategic plan is founded on the recognition that diversity can only be realized through active and meaningful inclusion. In short, the presence of diversity is not enough. It requires relentless and active inclusion at every level. It oftentimes requires dismantling old systems to break down habitual and implicit barriers that will no longer be tolerated. It requires the majority to open the doors that have long been closed to others—and to do so with a genuine invitation to stand on equal footing. Inclusion is not only bringing everyone to the table, but ensuring that every individual is welcomed and empowered with an open pathway to fulfill his or her full potential in the profession. Inclusion resonates across gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, disability, and other human characteristics that society has used to marginalize people over time.

In formulating the D&I strategic plan, the task force was keenly aware that the FBA is by no means the first organization to address these issues with a comprehensive and institutional commitment to change. Indeed, countless judges, attorneys, and organizations have been leading the path to progress for years. Because of our composition and structure, the FBA is uniquely positioned to learn from, support, and build on the work that is being done in courts, law firms, and other organizations around the country. Our members are federal judges and lawyers from all practices and all levels of the federal court system. We span public and private arenas, organizations that are large and small, and generations ranging from law students to seasoned professionals. We are a broad umbrella and a common thread that connects judges; public, private, and in-house lawyers; law schools; and beyond. In short, this organization is powerfully situated—and bears critical responsibility—to ensure that federal practice and federal courts truly reflect the rich diversity of the nation we serve.

The task force also recognizes that our federal courts and our corporate legal communities have brought bold and thoughtful leadership to the imperative of diversity and inclusion in our profession and our justice system as a whole. A core component of the FBA’s D&I strategic plan therefore involves ongoing guidance from and partnership with leading federal judges and corporate counsel in the form of judicial and corporate counsel advisory panels. By learning from and collaborating with leading federal judges and corporate counsel from around the country, our collective effort toward true diversity and inclusion in the federal legal community will be critically strengthened. We are grateful for the support and guidance of these many leaders as we bring the FBA’s D&I strategic plan to life, and we look forward to our continued work with these incredible leaders.

We Are in Motion

Several of the action items in the FBA’s strategic plan are already in motion. At the March 2019 Leadership Training, the keynote luncheon featured a preview of the D&I plan, followed by a session on implicit bias led by Magistrate Judge Evelyn Furse. At the Annual Convention in Tampa, Fla., a CLE session titled “The Demand for Diversity in Federal Practice: What We Know, Where To Go, How To Grow” addressed the demand for D&I, best practices, and how to achieve actionable data, improvements, and results. The panel included task force Chair Tara Norgard, task force member and FBA ADR Section Chair-Elect Bryan Branson, and general counsel from several corporations that have demonstrated their commitment to diversity and inclusion. Also at the Tampa Annual Convention, the task force hosted its first Bar Leadership Forum. As part of the task force’s efforts to further the goal of building external partnerships to advance diversity and inclusion in the FBA, the FBA has appointed liaisons to national affinity bar organizations and other organizations that share the FBA’s commitment to diversity. The Bar Leadership Forum brought together leadership from the FBA and leadership from these affinity bars and other organizations to meet each other, discuss their organizations, and talk about the work each organization is doing and how the FBA and these organizations can support each other’s goals. This event was a tremendous success, with numerous members of FBA leadership attending and expressing their support, along with representatives of a variety of affinity bars and other organizations.

You will continue to see this work evolve throughout the organization—and we ask you to be a part of it. For example, in 2020 the FBA will begin collecting demographic data with membership renewal and new enrollment. Your self-reporting will be key to the success of this initiative. The FBA needs metrics to better understand where we are today in terms of the diversity of our organization’s members and leaders and to hold ourselves accountable for getting where we need to be. We also will ask that all chapters, sections, and divisions of the FBA to reflect on their own efforts to cultivate diversity and inclusion and to create an action plan for advancing that commitment in the future. These are but a few examples of the work that is underway and that will continue. You can learn more about the FBA’s D&I strategic plan, and how you can become involved in this work, at http://www.fedbar.org/About-Us/Diversity-Statement.aspx.

We welcome your ideas and your participation as we finalize and launch the plan in the coming months. The work of inclusion is an imperative for the FBA and it can only succeed if it is embraced and carried forward by each one of us at every level of our organization—and throughout the profession.

[1] Institute for Inclusion in the Legal Prof., IILP Review 2017: The State of Diversity and Inclusion in the Legal Profession (2017), http://www.theiilp.com/resources/Pictures/IILP_2016_Final_LowRes.pdf.

[2] Am. Bar Ass’n, National Lawyer Population Survey: 10-Year Trend in Lawyer Demographics (2019), https://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/administrative/market_research/national-lawyer-population-demographics-2009-2019.pdf.

[3] Nat’l Ass’n for Law Placement, 2018 Report on Diversity in U.S. Law Firms (Jan. 2019), https://www.nalp.org/uploads/2018NALPReportonDiversityinUSLawFirms_FINAL.pdf.

[4] Vivia Chen, Am Law Firms With Zero Black Partners—How Is This Possible in 2019?, Am. Law. (June 6, 2019, 6:05 PM), https://www.law.com/americanlawyer/2019/06/06/am-law-firms-with-zero-black-partners-how-is-this-possible-in-2019.

[5] Ass’n of In-House Couns., 2015 ACC Global Census: A Profile of In-House Counsel (2015), https://www.acc.com/sites/default/files/resources/vl/purchaseOnly/1411926_2.pdf.

About the Authors

Lisa M. Kpor is a litigation attorney at Holland & Knight LLP. Her litigation experience includes a broad range of legal issues, including shareholder oppression actions, financial services litigation, product liability disputes, and complex breach of contract suits. She is a member of the FBA’s D&I Task Force.  

Katherine Earle Yanes is a partner in the Tampa, Fla., law firm Kynes Markman & Felman PA. She concentrates her practice in the areas of criminal defense, appeals, and postconviction relief and has successfully represented defendants at the trial, appellate, and postconviction phases of criminal litigation in federal and state courts as well as in government investigations.

Tara Norgard is a partner with the intellectual property law firm of Carlson Caspers. She litigates and advises clients in the areas of trade secrets and patents in federal trial and appellate courts around the country. She is a nationally recognized leader for meaningful advancement of D&I in the legal profession and serves as chair of the FBA’s D&I Task Force.

Tara Norgard

Lisa M. Kpor

Katherine Earle Yanes

About the FBA

Founded in 1920, the Federal Bar Association is dedicated to the advancement of the science of jurisprudence and to promoting the welfare, interests, education, and professional development of all attorneys involved in federal law. Our more than 16,000 members run the gamut of federal practice: attorneys practicing in small to large legal firms, attorneys in corporations and federal agencies, and members of the judiciary. The FBA is the catalyst for communication between the bar and the bench, as well as the private and public sectors. Visit us at fedbar.org to learn more.