ATTORNEYS GATHER FOR FIRST-OF-ITS-KIND SUMMIT FOR BLACK LAWYERS
In honor of Black History Month and as part of its efforts to continue driving racial equity forward, Foley Hoag LLP, an internationally recognized law firm with offices in Boston, New York, Washington, D.C., Denver and Paris, held the inaugural Black Attorneys Collective (BLAC) Summit, featuring a keynote address from award-winning author, advocate, thought leader and strategist Glenn Singleton.
The summit, a first-of-its-kind event for Foley Hoag led by BLAC, the firm's affinity group for Black identifying attorneys, was aimed at increasing connection as well as raising awareness around sensitive diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) topics at the law firm and across the legal industry. It provided a unique opportunity for Black attorneys to gather in-person, build community and engage in pointed, necessary conversations about race, privilege and social justice specifically relating to the legal industry and personal experiences in legal careers.
"Diversity, equity and inclusion remain fundamental to our success as a global law firm, giving us a wealth of different perspectives from which to address our clients' most pressing issues across a wide spectrum of industries, geographies and cultures," said Rosa Nuñez, Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer at Foley Hoag. "We're striving to create an environment where each member of the Foley Hoag community feels a sense of belonging and support, and to do so we need to be willing to engage in difficult and honest conversations about how we as a firm – and, as an industry – can do more for Black lawyers and business services professionals."
As part of the Summit, award-winning author and advocate Glenn Singleton delivered a closed-door session for all summit participants as well as an open keynote address to Foley Hoag personnel, firm alumni, clients and law students. Singleton is the creator of Courageous Conversation®, a protocol and framework for sustained, deepened dialogue facilitating transformative racial equity. Singleton's agency advises top leaders in business, education and government, among other fields. Foley Hoag was proud to welcome him to its Boston office as part of the firm's commitment to being a leader in inclusive conversations in the workplace.
Since its founding in 1943, Foley Hoag has been on the cutting edge of advancing diversity within the legal industry and beyond. The firm has an ongoing commitment to disrupting legal industry trends that prevented it from representing the broader communities we serve and work with. In addition to actively hiring and retaining diverse attorneys and business services professionals, there are many ways that individuals are involved with DE&I at the firm, including service on the DE&I committee; planning and organizing DE&I-related presentations and events; participating in affinity groups or DE&I taskforces; representing the firm at recruiting events; DE&I-focused mentoring; and attending DE&I training. programs.
The firm also sponsors the annual Charles J. Beard II Fellowship – an annual fellowship for outstanding first-year law students from historically underrepresented backgrounds. The fellowship is named in honor of Charles Beard – a former partner at Foley Hoag and the first Black lawyer promoted to partner at a major Boston law firm.
Foley Hoag recently received several recognitions for its longstanding dedication to diversity, equity and inclusion, including features in Law360 Pulse Diversity Snapshot, The National Law Journal's LGBTQ Scorecard, and Vault Law.