Minority Corporate Counsel Association Names Ropes & Gray Thomas L. Sager Award Winner
Ropes & Gray is honored to announce that it has been awarded the Thomas L. Sager award for the Northeast Region by the Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA).
This prestigious award recognizes the law firm that demonstrates national leadership and the highest sustained commitment to improving the hiring, retention and promotion of women and diverse lawyers.
“We are proud to be recognized with this esteemed award. Creating an inclusive and diverse workplace is central to the culture of our firm and it is gratifying to know that we are headed in the right direction,” said Diane Patrick, labor & employment partner and head of the firm’s Diversity Committee. “This recognition challenges us, and the entire legal industry, to continue to build on our efforts to recruit, retain and advance people of diverse backgrounds at all levels.”
The Thomas L. Sager Award is presented annually in five U.S. regions. In addition to statistical data collected from law firms, the MCCA’s Board of Directors also examines areas including recruitment, retention, mentoring, promotion, pipeline initiatives, LGBT initiatives, women initiatives, work-life balance, collaboration with community and bar associations, and innovative practices that result in sustainable efforts to increase diversity.
Ropes & Gray was selected from peer firms in the Northeast region, which includes New York, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Northern New Jersey, Rhode Island and Vermont. The MCCA presented the firm with the award at MCCA Pathways to Diversity Conference Luncheon on September 10.
The MCCA was founded in 1997 to advocate the expanded hiring, retention and promotion of minority lawyers in corporate law departments and the law firms that serve them. The award is named after DuPont Senior Vice President and General Counsel Thomas L. Sager.
In addition to receiving the Sager Award, Ropes & Gray also recently has been recognized for its commitment to creating an inclusive and diverse workplace:
- Vault recently ranked the firm second for overall diversity, second for minorities, third for LGBT and fifth for women, making Ropes & Gray the only Am Law 50 firm to place in the top five in each of the four diversity categories.
- The firm received a 2012 “Gold Standard” award from the Women in Law Empowerment Forum for its record with regard to women’s achievement at the firm. The Women in Law Empowerment Forum, is a national organization that promotes education and networking opportunities for women at premier corporate law firms.
- For the fourth consecutive year, Ropes & Gray earned a perfect score of 100 percent in the 2012 Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index (CEI), which rates American workplaces on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender issues.
Ropes & Gray recently published its annual report on diversity initiatives, “Voices of Diversity and Inclusion.” This year’s report highlights the efforts of the firm’s Attorneys of Color Group, LGBT Forum and Women’s Forum, including notable events sponsored by these groups. To view the report, please click here.