For the sixth consecutive year, Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC has been named among the "Top 100 Law Firms for Diversity" by MultiCultural Law, a magazine focused on diversity in the legal profession. The Firm also received its third consecutive ranking on MultiCultural Law's list of "Top 100 Law Firms for Women."
"Baker Donelson and the legal profession as a whole have made progress in the area of diversity, but our goal is to continually ask how we can better achieve more meaningful, measurable and lasting results," said Ben Adams, chairman and chief executive officer of Baker Donelson. "Our consistent recognition by MultiCultural Law is evidence of the success that approach has yielded in improved inclusion of diverse legal talent on our team."
The latest development in the Firm's Diversity Initiative is the creation of its Advisory Board for Minority Associates. "Retention of diverse attorneys has been at the forefront of the Firm's Diversity initiatives," says Mark A. Baugh, chair of Baker Donelson's Diversity Committee. "This Advisory Board was created specifically to focus on identifying and implementing steps to enhance our retention of minorities."
Donna D. Fraiche, chair of Baker Donelson's Women's Initiative, notes that the Advisory Board will also work toward increasing representation of women and diverse attorneys in leadership positions. "Providing a solid support and mentoring structure is crucial to helping female and minority attorneys grow and move into leadership positions. Improving advancement to shareholder, practice group leader and other management positions is a tremendous part of achieving true diversity in the profession," she said.
The Advisory Board for Minority Associates is the latest in a number of enhancements the Firm has added in recent years to an already well-established Diversity Initiative.
- Baker Donelson Diversity Scholarship: Launched in the spring of 2008, the Firm's Diversity Scholarship program awards up to three scholarships annually to diverse students who have completed their first year of law school.
- Inclusion Training: In 2009, all of the Firm's more than 1,000 employees attended mandatory inclusion training sessions focused on the importance of recognizing and accepting the value of diverse backgrounds and perspectives.
Baker Donelson strives to create a welcoming and inclusive environment for all employees and welcomes people of all races, genders, ages, languages, ethnicities, cultural backgrounds, disabilities, sexual orientations and religious beliefs to assist our clients in achieving their legal goals. The Firm understands and salutes the unique perspectives and approaches that are provided by differences in educational background, socio-economic background, personality profile, geographic location, job duties, marital and family status. For more information on Baker Donelson's Diversity Initiative, go to http://www.bakerdonelson.com/diversity/.