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Summer 2012
A Note from the Chair — What’s New from the
Diversity Committee
I hope you enjoy the summer issue of our newsletter. We have had a busy and productive spring. In
March, we held our first Diversity Committee retreat in Boston, which
featured Vernā Myers as our keynote speaker and workshop leader, a cocktail
party for the firm and dinner with the Policy Committee, and an extensive “to
do” list for Committee members. In May we learned the firm had been named
once again to the Yale Law Women’s Top Ten Family Friendly Firms and in
June we learned that the firm had received its gold certification from the
Women in Law Empowerment Foundation — an organization devoted to tracking
the progress and achievements of women partners in law firms — for the
second year in a row. As to membership going forward, the Committee has
decided to put rolling terms in place for most of its attorney members —
this means that there will be regular openings for three-year terms for
attorneys in all of our offices. If you have an interest in serving on our
Committee, please let me know.
As a reminder, all of our employees should know about
resources available to all firm personnel. MIATTY, the affinity group for
our firm’s attorneys and senior professionals of color, is co-chaired by
Diversity Committee members Tyrone Thomas and Fred Hernandez. The Lesbian,
Gay, Bisexual and Transgender group maintains a distribution list and you
should contact John Koss or Randy Greenblatt for information about the
group and other resources available to the firm’s LGBT community.
I invite each of you to share with me or any member of the
Diversity Committee any ideas that you have for continuing to make the firm
a welcoming and supportive environment for all of us.
Jen Rubin
In This Edition
Diverse Attorney Spotlight: Narges Kakalia
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Those who work with Narges Kakalia know her for her
commitment to pro bono matters and her wide-ranging practice. She’s taken
on everything from representing an art museum in an antiquities theft
case, to representing a major bank in an antiterrorism finance case.
Narges came
to Mintz Levin right out of law school. In fact, she is the first and
only Member in the New York office who is entirely
homegrown, starting her work with the firm in the
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inaugural New York Summer
Associate class.
Her devotion to pro bono work has deep roots. While attending
law school at night, Narges worked at the Sanctuary for Families Center for
Battered Women’s Legal Services. Once at Mintz Levin, she quickly became
the go-to person for New York pro bono work.
One pro bono victory that particularly stands out for Narges
involved a woman who escaped from Burma into the United States. Most of her family
had been killed by the Burmese military for being of the Karen ethnicity,
and she lived in refugee camps for most of her life. Once in the US, she
had no documents to prove her identity. The challenge for Narges was to
gather affidavits and statements that could support this woman’s claims. It
was one of the first cases in which Narges took the lead role, and after
months of effort, she finally won asylum for her client. The client went on
to work for the United Nations and is now herself a champion of human rights
for other refugees.
When she is not at the office,
Narges enjoys gardening, cooking, and spending time with her family at the
beach.
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Meet Our Diversity Scholars!
Rachel Gholston
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Rachel Gholston, a
rising second-year student at the Columbia University Law School, is this
year’s Richard Mintz Diversity Scholar. At Columbia, she is a member of
the National Black Law Students Association, and also a member of the NHK
Japanese Language Exchange. As an undergraduate, Rachel studied at
Harvard College, graduating with a B.A. in History. She completed a
citation in French and received the 2011 Harvard Foundation Award. While
at Harvard, Rachel was a member of the Harvard Black Pre-law Association,
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and participated in the
Radcliffe Mentor Program. In addition, Rachel spent time working as an
intern for the Harvard College Women’s Center and as a mentor and debate
coach for the charity Debate Mate. While studying abroad in Dakar, Rachel
interned for Reseau Siggil Jigeen, a network of organizations promoting
gender equality by working to pass, revise, and amend laws in Senegal.
Rachel is currently working as a Summer Associate in the New York office.
Sara Loop
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Sara Loop recently
completed her first year at the Thomas Jefferson School of Law in San
Diego, California. By year’s end, Sara had received Center for
Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction (CALI) Awards in two of her courses
by achieving the highest grade in each, and also ranked in the top 4% of
her class overall. In addition, Sara is currently a member of the Phi
Alpha Delta Law Fraternity and is active on the Thomas Jefferson Law
Review. Before law school, Sara graduated from Virginia Tech with a B.A.
in Philosophy. At Virginia
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Tech, Sara was a Dean’s
List student and a member of the Virginia Tech Concert Choir and Women’s
Chorale. Sara has previously worked as a Case Manager and Assistant Case
Manager at ADR Services, Inc. in Los Angeles. She is participating in
the San Diego Diversity Fellowship Program, and is working as a Summer Law
Clerk in the San Diego office.
Daniel Woofter
Having completed
his first year at Georgetown University Law Center, Daniel Woofter is
currently participating in the Boston Lawyers Group 1L Summer Diversity
Clerkship Program. During this 10-week program, Daniel will split his
time by working for five weeks as a Summer Associate in the Boston
office, and for the remaining five weeks in the office of Massachusetts
Attorney General Martha Coakley. As an undergraduate, Daniel attended the
Boston Conservatory of Music, graduating magna cum laude with a Bachelor
of Music in Opera Performance in 2009. Prior to
this summer, Daniel spent time working as an intern at the Law Office of
Thomas Shanahan, PC, and also worked part-time for the IOLTA Committee of
Massachusetts. In addition, Daniel has previously worked for the Boston
Symphony Orchestra and on a multitude of political campaigns.
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Diversity Committee Retreat Summary
The Diversity Committee held its inaugural retreat in March. The goals of the retreat were to
assess the Committee’s progress on its various diversity initiatives,
strengthen communications between Committee members through team-building,
and reinforce the Committee’s mission by generating new ideas for the
Committee’s initiatives to promote diversity and inclusion. The retreat was
held during one and a half days at the firm’s offices in Boston.
Approximately 25 members of the Committee attended the retreat.
The retreat began with a presentation by the chair of the
firm’s Diversity Committee, Jen Rubin. Her presentation outlined the
Diversity Committee’s programs and achievements during the past year. In
addition, she presented the state of diversity at the firm, which included
comparative statistics regarding the representation of diverse attorneys at
Mintz Levin as compared to peer law firms.
The following session featured guest speaker Vernā Myers, a
former law firm attorney turned consultant, who is consistently recognized
for her expertise on law firm diversity issues. Ms. Myers’s presentation was extremely interactive. The first
portion required Committee members to split up into smaller groups and
discuss questions they had answered about their personal and ethnic
backgrounds, as well as their identity. Many Committee members were
surprised by how much that exercise facilitated further discussion
throughout the retreat by building a sense of trust and common purpose
amongst Committee members. The second portion of Ms. Myers’s presentation
served as a launching pad for the remaining programs during the retreat.
During that portion, Ms. Myers offered concrete ideas for structuring the
Committee’s discussions and meetings in a manner that would increase
effectiveness in accomplishing the Committee’s goals. One major theme
Committee members took away from that presentation was the power of having
each attorney at the firm commit to one act — small or big — to promote
diversity and inclusion at the firm. This has led to the Committee’s
adoption of the firm’s Do One Thing program, a program that encourages attorneys to
“do one thing” to promote diversity and inclusion at the firm.
The next program consisted of a cocktail reception in the
firm’s Boston office during which all attorneys in the Boston office had
the opportunity to meet and talk with the Committee’s members. The first
day of the retreat ended with a dinner with Vernā Myers and the Policy Committee.
Detailed discussions regarding the firm’s diversity
initiatives were the focus of the second day of the retreat. A lively panel
discussion took place, involving a question and answer session with key
representatives of the firm’s recruiting, marketing, associate development,
and human resources personnel. Following that discussion, the firm’s
marketing Committee led another open discussion, concentrating on the
Committee’s mission.
The retreat ended with a docent-led art tour highlighting the
diverse history of some of the firm’s artwork and closing remarks by Jen Rubin.
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Do One Thing
The Diversity Committee is launching a
new initiative — Do One Thing! We want to
encourage our community here at the firm to create cultural change through
actions of diversity and inclusion. It’s simple — we’re just asking each of you to
do one thing to support an inclusive environment.
Here are some ideas to get you started:
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Join a
diverse bar association and represent the firm — speak at
one of their events, join a committee of that bar association and/or land
a seat on their board |
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Join a
local community organization and meet people with a different set of
experiences to promote diversity of thought |
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Represent
the firm by speaking on a diversity panel at a law school |
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Attend
an internal diversity event |
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Take someone you don't know well to lunch to learn more about her or him |
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Be an advocate
for your diverse colleagues |
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Represent
the firm in your community (learn about the community and tell our story) |
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Initiate
a community service project to benefit a nonprofit that promotes
diversity in the legal profession, works for equality, or serves a
multicultural/diverse community |
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Host an
office jeans day or small event for a cultural or religious holiday. |
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Do One Thing
Testimonials
David Salisbury: "In an effort to provide broad exposure to the firm’s practice groups, I worked with our Diversity Fellowship Law Student, Sara Loop, introducing her and securing projects from Members in the San Diego office, representing a variety of practice areas."
Dawn Saunders: "The women in the San Diego office are spread out amongst the various sections and do not have an opportunity to interact much in the office. I organized an outing for the women attorneys and patent agents in the San Diego office to get together for wine and a flower arranging class. It turned out to be a really fun event and helped us all connect and get to know one another in an informal setting where we could laugh and chat about real life, which I know will translate into a better work environment."
Tyrone Thomas: “I put together an inter-practice diverse
group of senior associates to go to a local DC networking event about a
month or so ago just to create cross-branding of folks who normally don’t
operate together.”
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Recent Events
Event Recap: Fifth Annual Boston Spirit Magazine LGBT Executive
Networking Night
On March 28, 2012, Mintz Levin
sponsored the Fifth Annual Boston Spirit Magazine LGBT Executive Networking
Night. The event drew nearly 1,500 guests — primarily executives from
Boston-area businesses including Fidelity Investments, TJX, TD Bank, John
Hancock, State Street, and Partners Healthcare. The keynote speaker for
this year’s event was Chaz Bono, who greeted Mintz Levin attendees at a VIP
reception prior to the event. Prior to Chaz’s speech, Jen Rubin introduced
Mintz Levin and highlighted for attendees Mintz Levin’s longstanding
commitment to diversity and its LGBT employees. The night was a perfect mix
of fun, team-building, and client development — and, of course, a fabulous
time was had by all!
Event Recap: Equality Matters: “Hot Topics” in the Law
Impacting the LGBT Community
Mintz Levin hosted an informative cross-disciplinary
program and networking reception focused on the latest developments in the
law impacting the LGBT community. Speakers at the event included Robert
Falk, General Counsel, Human Rights Campaign, who provided updates on HRC’s
latest initiatives at the federal level, including insight and commentary
on the likely impact of President Obama’s historic endorsement of same-sex
marriage; current legal challenges to the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA);
and the complex issues that DOMA raises for LGBT couples and families. Also
speaking were Peter Miller and Reena Thadhani, Members in Mintz Levin’s
Private Client practice, who discussed cutting-edge and practical issues
faced by same-sex couples with respect to their estate, gift, retirement,
and life insurance planning, and Doug Hauer, a Member in Mintz Levin’s
Immigration practice, who provided insight into evolving immigration law
issues for same-sex couples. Based on the interest in this inaugural
event, we look forward to hosting more programs geared towards the LGBT
community in the future.
» Please click
here to see a video of this event.
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