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MSBA Sees Strides in Diversity in Last 18 Years
~Challenges lie ahead~
By Janet Stidman Eveleth
When MSBA first explored
the issue of diversity in the legal profession in 1987, it uncovered problems
minority attorneys were facing at that time and created a Committee on
Minorities in the Legal Profession (CMLP) to address these concerns. In 2005,
MSBA’s Committee revisited this issue, conducted a survey of minority attorneys
to determine what progress had been made and published The 2005 Minority
Report. According to the report, minorities in Maryland have made many
strides in the legal community over the last 18 years, but challenges remain.
“MSBA’s Committee
deserves a great deal of credit for all of its hard work and for such a helpful
survey,” states J. Michael Conroy, Jr., MSBA President. “A lot of strides have
been made over the years, and things look much better for the future. There are
increasing sensitivities to perceptions about what many of our members must deal
with, and this is a good thing. We really cannot be too well-educated about
items that can cause discomfort to any of our members. We think this report will
go a long way toward making our Bar and legal system even better.”
In 1987, the legal
landscape was far different than today. The law climate of the ’80s seems
somewhat “antiquated” as compared to our high-tech e-market. Women and African
Americans were the “minorities” as opposed to our contemporary, multi-ethnic
culture. While African Americans were the focal point of MSBA’s 1987 study, with
few being found in law schools, law firm partnerships or leadership roles of the
profession, the 2005 survey’s focus was multi-cultural, encompassing African
Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans and other
ethnic groups.
Today, African American
and women attorneys have progressed to the point where many are major players in
the practice of law. The 2005 survey indicates their employment representation,
as well as that of Hispanic Americans and Asian Americans, has substantially
increased in larger law firms. The report shows minority attorneys now retain
certain advantages in developing business for law practices, regardless of the
type of practice setting. In addition, their representation on Maryland’s bench,
at all levels, has risen.
“Overall, the number of
minority attorneys has increased in the last 18 years,” reports Ericka L. Lewis,
CMLP Co-Chair. “The report shows a significant increase in the number of female
students of color who are graduating from law school and entering the legal
profession here in Maryland,” adds Stacey L. Martin, CMLP Co-Chair.
“African American and
Asian female attorneys now outnumber their male counterparts, which was
certainly not the case in 1987, and the number of Asians and Hispanics enrolling
in Maryland’s law schools has increased over the past 18 years,” Martin
continues.
“The percentage of
minority law school graduates in Maryland who become judicial law clerks upon
graduation is also now higher than the national percentage.” Lewis adds. “The
number of women judges has increased, too.”
Background
In 1987, MSBA convened a
statewide Conference on Minorities in the Legal Profession to examine problems
facing minorities in the legal profession and promote cooperation between legal,
government and private organizations. At this gathering, over 100 lawyers,
judges, business leaders, law school professors and other officials from all
parts of Maryland explored the involvement of minorities in key aspects of the
legal profession in the late 1980s.
Areas of concerns
included law schools, the bar exam, the attorney grievance process, the judicial
selection process, business relations and development and the area of employment
opportunities. After in-depth discussion over the two-day conference, a number
of recommendations were offered in each area. Priorities included: (1) a greater
minority presence for the attorney grievance process; (2) a greater
representation of minorities in the judiciary; (3) minority recruitment and
participation was urged for MSBA Sections and CLE programs; (4) enhanced efforts
to ensure that the bar exam was not biased or perceived to be biased against
minority candidates; (5) the development of criteria at both state law schools
to evaluate academic and social support programs for minority students; and (6)
an affirmative commitment to recruit and hire an increasing number of black
attorneys on the part of law firms of all sizes.
To pursue these
recommendations, MSBA created a Special Committee on Minorities in the Legal
Profession. This Committee was reinstituted in 2004-2005 and, after reviewing
the 1987 report and recommendations, it launched a retrospective study to
measure changes in attitudes and perceptions over the last 18 years. In addition
to the original areas of concern, the 2005 survey also included politics and
government. Although CMLP devised survey questions, the structure of the survey
was created by consultant Debbie Davidson-Gibbs, and it was implemented online
via MSBA’s website.
Challenges Ahead
The 2005 report data
indicates that, while strides have been made, minorities in today’s legal
profession are still underrepresented in Maryland’s law schools and in several
areas of law practice. Despite the achievements to date, “there is the
continuing issue of whether Maryland law firms and corporate offices are
embracing diversity in practice,” explains Lewis. “Information contained in the
report is a telling indication that much more still needs to be accomplished in
the area of employment of minority attorneys.”
“According to the
report, the number of minority associates at Maryland’s largest law firms,
compared to national figures, remains low,” she notes. “Several 2005 survey
respondents expressed concern and dissatisfaction with the assignments, firm
culture and the growth potential for minority attorneys at Maryland law firms.
These responses are signs that, although some progress has been made, we still
have a long way to go.”
In addition, Martin
states, “the average salary for female minority attorneys remains significantly
lower than the average salary for minority male attorneys and all non-minority
attorneys. Also, the number of African Americans enrolling in Maryland’s law
schools has decreased in recent years.”
The survey indicates
that minority attorneys still tend to begin their legal careers in government as
opposed to the private practice of law and questions whether the state’s
contested judicial election process is fair to minorities. It also expresses
concern over the low number of attorneys, especially minority attorneys, serving
in Maryland’s Legislature.
As part of its action
plan, CMLP hopes to: organize attorney visits to schools to encourage legal
careers; encourage young minority attorneys to teach law school courses; track
the tenure of minority associates in large law firms; host roundtable
discussions with minority associates in large firms to identify challenges faced
in obtaining partnership; and sponsor a Legislative Shadow Day where young
minority lawyers spend time with minority lawyer-legislators during the session.
In the last 18 years,
minorities have made steady progress in Maryland’s legal profession. “MSBA,
through its Committee on Minorities in the Legal Profession, raised Maryland’s
energy level with respect to diversity in the legal community. Now, even more
than in 1987, we must not let that energy die down into complacency,” states
Karren Pope-Onwukwe, former CMLP Chair. The report offers an action plan to
address the challenges that lie ahead.
Overall, the efforts of
MSBA and its Committee have gone a long way to ensure that the challenges of
minorities in the legal profession have been effectively addressed. MSBA’s
Committee will continue to address these challenges so that our profession
reflects the same principles of fairness and justice within our ranks that it
collectively affirms and promotes to the general public.
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