Few Disabled Lawyers Practice in BigLaw, Says President of Blind Lawyers Group
Disabled lawyers usually opt for government jobs or solo work, according to a Denver lawyer who is president of the National Association of Blind Lawyers.
NABL president Scott LaBarre tells the National Law Journal that lawyers with disabilities are underrepresented in BigLaw. He opted for solo practice after working as a summer associate at Lindquist & Vennum and for Popham, Haik, Schnobrich & Kaufman, now part of Hinshaw & Culbertson.
Firms large enough to hire summer associates are “kind of looking for people who look like them,” said LaBarre, who handles employment and disability cases. “There are a lot of questions about whether you’ll be able to be a good long-term fit. We run into the same stereotypes and misconceptions that we do throughout society. In terms of getting into that market, it’s traditionally been very difficult.”
Washington, D.C., lawyer Matthew Famiglietti, who has cerebral palsy, said he interviewed with a lot of law firms, but he saw a change in the face of interviewing lawyers when he walked into the room. Now he handles special education law and employment cases as a solo.
“What’s nice is that I’ve [since] beaten a few law firms who turned me away,” Famiglietti told the NLJ.
