Activist who succeeded in ending affirmative action targets law firms' diversity efforts
“As a firm, we have been a leader in efforts to promote diversity, equity and inclusion in the legal profession,” said Perkins Coie spokesperson Justin Cole. “Our commitment to those values remains steadfast. We will defend this lawsuit vigorously.” Image from Shutterstock.
A conservative activist who led the campaign against affirmative action in college admissions is suing two major law firms for fellowships that they offer to increase diversity in the legal profession.
Edward Blum, president of the American Alliance for Equal Rights, filed the lawsuits Tuesday against Perkins Coie in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas in Dallas and against Morrison & Foerster in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida in Miami. He alleges that both firms’ fellowships exclude “certain applicants based on their skin color,” which amounts to unlawful discrimination.
“Excluding students from these esteemed fellowships because they are the wrong race is unfair, polarizing and illegal,” Blum said in a statement published by the Washington Post. “Law firms that have racially exclusive programs should immediately make them available to all applicants, regardless of their race.”
Reuters and Bloomberg Law also have coverage.
Citing the 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause, the U.S. Supreme Court in late June struck down race-conscious admissions programs at Harvard University and the University of North Carolina in Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina and Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College.
“Eliminating racial discrimination means eliminating all of it,” wrote Chief Justice John Roberts in his majority opinion, joined by the high court’s five other conservative justices.
Blum founded Students for Fair Admissions, which brought the suits against the two universities. In his latest suits, he is also asking courts to permanently bar Perkins Coie and Morrison & Foerster from offering fellowships aimed at only diverse candidates.
In his complaint against Perkins Coie, Blum said the firm offers 1L and 2L diversity fellowships. The 1L program includes a paid summer associate position and a $15,000 stipend, while the 2L program includes a paid summer associate position and a $25,000 stipend.
“These prestigious positions are six-figure jobs that include five-figure stipends,” Blum said. “Yet applicants do not qualify unless they are ‘students of color,’ ‘students who identify as LGBTQ+’ or ‘students with disabilities.’ So between two heterosexual, nondisabled applicants—one Black and one white—the latter cannot apply based solely on his race.”
“This kind of rank discrimination was never lawful, even before SFFA v. Harvard held that colleges cannot use race in admissions,” added Blum, who claims that it violates Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866. The statute prohibits racial discrimination in contracts.
Similarly, in Blum’s complaint against Morrison & Foerster, he contended that the firm offers a “prestigious” 1L diversity fellowship that consists of a paid summer associate position and a $50,000 stipend. He said applicants must meet the following diversity requirement: “Membership in a historically underrepresented group in the legal profession, including racial/ethnic minority groups and members of the LGBTQ+ community.”
“In other words, if they are heterosexual, applicants are disqualified if they are white, Arab American, Asian American or otherwise not one of Morrison’s favored races,” Blum said in the complaint.
“As a firm, we have been a leader in efforts to promote diversity, equity and inclusion in the legal profession,” said Perkins Coie spokesperson Justin Cole in a statement published by Bloomberg Law. “Our commitment to those values remains steadfast. We will defend this lawsuit vigorously.”
Bloomberg Law reports that Morrison Foerster did not respond to requests for comment.
Many other BigLaw and midsize firms, as well as organizations such as the American Bar Association, offer similar diversity fellowship and scholarship programs. The ABA offers a $5,000 diversity scholarship, and ABA President Mary Smith told Bloomberg Law that promoting diversity in the legal profession remains a priority.
“We are undertaking a review looking at the [Supreme Court] decision and trying to figure out alternatives and ways to comply with the law but to ensure that we are promoting diversity, inclusion and equity in the legal profession,” Smith said.
Corporate diversity programs have also been challenged in the wake of the Supreme Court’s Students for Fair Admissions decision.
Last week, Activision Blizzard Inc. and the Kellogg Co. joined the list of the latest companies hit by claims that their efforts to diversify their workforces constitute illegal discrimination.
