Akin Gump Receives Perfect Score on Human Rights Campaign 2008 Corporate Equality Index
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(Washington, D.C.) – Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP has received a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) 2008 Corporate Equality Index. The firm is one of only 30 law firms and 195 companies nationwide to receive a 100 percent rating.
“We are proud to be recognized for our success in fostering a diverse and inclusive workforce,” said R. Bruce McLean, Akin Gump’s chairman. “We are very pleased that the legal community as a whole is increasing its efforts to improve workplace equality.”
The Corporate Equality Index rates employers on a scale from 0 to 100 percent on their treatment of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) employees, consumers and investors. Each year, HRC invites the largest and most successful public and private companies in the United States to participate in the rating process.
The Index, which this year rated 519 businesses, measures the extent to which employers protect their GLBT employees. Ratings are based on factors such as non-discrimination policies, diversity training, and benefits for domestic partners and transgender employees. Akin Gump’s score was based on a variety of factors, including the firm’s inclusive health care and family leave benefits to employees with same-sex partners, diversity training and GLBT employee groups.
“I am proud to practice at a law firm that has been an industry leader in GLBT equality issues,” said David Carlin, co-chair of the Washington office’s diversity committee and a member of the firmwide diversity committee.
Akin Gump attorneys have long been active in GAYLAW, the D.C. bar association for GLBT attorneys. An Akin Gump partner served on GAYLAW’s board of directors, and the firm has been a long-standing sponsor of GAYLAW’s programming, particularly its annual awards reception and its programs for GLBT summer associates. The firm has supported the efforts of and provided pro bono assistance to the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network. Akin Gump has also supported Lambda Legal. The firm is a regular participant in Lavender Law, a nationwide annual convention of GLBT law students and attorneys, and has sponsored GLBT-focused recruiting events at various law schools.
About Akin Gump’s Diversity Initiatives
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP has maintained a long-standing commitment to diversity and inclusiveness at all levels. The firm continually works to assure the recruitment, retention and promotion of women and minorities by embracing a culture of inclusiveness and equal opportunity.
Akin Gump’s success in the global market, and in meeting internal objectives of excellence in mentoring, supervision and professional development, depends on ensuring that the firm achieves and maintains a critical mass of diversity in both its partnership and its associate population.
The firm’s efforts also extend to the broader community in which its attorneys practice. Lawyers in all Akin Gump offices are committed to diversity-related community outreach, with lawyers involved both personally and professionally in a wide array of activities and pro bono engagements that benefit minority groups and organizations.
To learn more about Akin Gump’s commitment to diversity, please click here.
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Founded in 1945, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, a leading international law firm, numbers more than 900 lawyers with offices in Austin, Beijing, Dallas, Dubai, Houston, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, New York, Philadelphia, San Antonio, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, Taipei and Washington. The firm has a diversified practice and represents regional, national and international clients in a wide range of areas, including antitrust; appellate; banking and finance; capital markets; communications and information technology; corporate and securities; corporate governance; employee benefits; energy; entertainment and media; environmental; financial restructuring; global security; government contracts; health; insurance; intellectual property; international trade; investment funds; labor and employment; land use; litigation; mergers and acquisitions; private client services; private equity; privatization; project development and finance; public law and policy; real estate development and finance; Russia/CIS; tax; and technology.
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