Katten Recognized for Making Strides Towards More Diversity and Inclusion

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Sep 04, 2019, 17:31 ET

CHICAGO, Sept. 4, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Katten announced today that the firm has been certified for meeting the standards of the Mansfield Rule 2.0, which directs law firms to consider at least 30 percent women, LGBTQ+ and minority attorneys for significant leadership roles.

"Diversity is one of Katten's core values. We continue to be committed to not only maintaining a diverse and inclusive work environment, but also providing all of our attorneys opportunities for career growth," said Chief Diversity Partner Leslie D. Minier. "We recognize that the strength and success of our law firm requires the inclusion of people with different insights and experiences, resulting in more creative solutions to the legal and business challenges facing our clients."

The Mansfield Rule, a winning idea from the 2016 Women in Law Hackathon hosted by Diversity Lab in collaboration with Bloomberg Law and Stanford Law School, was inspired by the NFL's Rooney Rule, which requires NFL teams to interview at least one minority candidate for head coach vacancies. The rule was named after Arabella Mansfield, the first woman admitted to practice law in the United States.

Last year, Katten met the benchmarks of the pilot program, ensuring that women and attorneys of color make up at least 30 percent of the candidate pool for firm leadership and governance roles, equity partner promotions and senior lateral positions with the aim of increasing representation of female and diverse lawyers in law firm leadership.

The program's second iteration expanded the candidate pool to include LGBTQ+ attorneys, measured consideration for participation in client pitch meetings, and requested appointment and election processes be transparent to all attorneys at the firm.

Katten is currently participating in the third version of the Mansfield Rule, which broadens the candidate pool to add attorneys with disabilities.

Katten is a full-service law firm with nearly 700 attorneys in locations across the United States and in London and Shanghai. Clients seeking sophisticated, high-value legal services turn to Katten for counsel locally, nationally and internationally. The firm's core areas of practice include commercial finance, corporate, financial markets and funds, insolvency and restructuring, intellectual property, litigation, real estate, structured finance and securitization, transactional tax planning, and trusts and estates. Katten represents public and private companies in numerous industries, including a third of the Fortune 100, as well as a number of government and nonprofit organizations and individuals. For more information, visit katten.com.