Diversity

Law students support free speech but want LSAT and bar exams gone, new survey says

The vast majority of law students support free speech, and more than half say the LSAT and bar exams must go, according to a new survey released by the Buckley Institute at Yale University.

Jun 25, 2024 11:34 AM CDT

19 state AGs fire back after others demand ABA diversity standards change

Nineteen state attorneys general signed a letter calling on the American Bar Association, Fortune 100 CEOs and other organizations to retain “their commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.”

Jun 20, 2024 3:58 PM CDT

Florida lawyer seeking permanent retirement can’t sue in federal court, judge concludes

Updated: A federal judge has tossed a lawsuit by a Florida lawyer who wanted to permanently retire from the bar while facing possible discipline following a misdemeanor conviction for brandishing a baseball bat.

Jun 18, 2024 3:52 PM CDT

Justice Thomas questions associational standing; would his view end diversity challenges?

Justice Clarence Thomas took a dim view of associational standing in a concurrence last week to the U.S. Supreme Court’s abortion drug mifepristone decision, a stance that could interfere with diversity challenges.

Jun 18, 2024 12:14 PM CDT

LSAC president reflects on challenges facing legal ed as she shifts to lead Association of American Law Schools

As Kellye Testy of the Law School Admission Council prepares to leave her post June 30 and start the very next day as executive director and CEO of the Association of American Law Schools, she talked with the ABA Journal about the changes and the challenges facing legal education.

Jun 17, 2024 9:09 AM CDT

Kaufman Dolowich fired associate after rejecting his disability accommodation request, suit alleges

A fired associate at Kaufman Dolowich in Philadelphia has sued the law firm for alleged disability discrimination.

Jun 13, 2024 2:53 PM CDT

This BigLaw firm is tops for culture, most important factor to surveyed law students, new report says

Culture is the most important factor for Yale Law School students when deciding which law firm offer to accept, according to a new report by Yale Law Women+.

Jun 11, 2024 1:42 PM CDT

Federal judge halts disaster aid program for minority farmers

A federal judge in Texas has blocked an Agriculture Department disaster relief program from giving preferences to minority and female farmers, siding with a group of plaintiffs who allege that the program illegally discriminates against White male farmers.

Jun 11, 2024 12:25 PM CDT

Retired D.C. Circuit judge talks about his memoir on navigating a legal career through blindness

Judge David Tatel retired late last year after nearly 30 years on the federal appeals court. In all that time, he never saw a single piece of paper nor an attorney arguing before him. Vision: A Memoir of Blindness and Justice shares his journey.

Jun 11, 2024 8:35 AM CDT

Florida Supreme Court rules against prosecutor ousted by governor

The Florida Supreme Court has ruled against the elected prosecutor in the Orlando, Florida, area in a challenge to her suspension from office by the state’s governor.

Jun 7, 2024 8:56 AM CDT

‘The Originalism Trap’ author wants to see originalism dead, dead, dead

Originalism is the ascendant legal theory espoused by conservative legal thinkers, including the majority of U.S. Supreme Court justices. But far from being an objective framework for constitutional interpretation, says author and attorney Madiba K. Dennie, its true purpose is to achieve conservative political aims regardless of the historical record.

Jun 5, 2024 9:04 AM CDT

21 state AGs sign letter demanding changes to ABA diversity standard for law schools

The attorneys general of 21 states are urging the council for the ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar to change a law school accreditation standard that encourages diversity in admissions and hiring.

Jun 5, 2024 9:00 AM CDT

Appeals court blocks Fearless Fund from awarding grants to Black women

A panel on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit ruled Monday that an Atlanta-based venture capital firm should be temporarily blocked from issuing grants reserved for Black women-owned businesses, saying that doing so would likely discriminate against business owners of other races.

Jun 4, 2024 12:50 PM CDT

City sued for paying hundreds of Black residents $25,000 in reparations

Evanston, a Chicago suburb, has been credited with launching the country’s first government-funded reparations program for Black Americans. It has paid out nearly $5 million to 193 of the town’s Black residents over the past two years. But now a conservative advocacy group has filed a class-action lawsuit to kill the program, arguing that it discriminates against the suburb’s non-Black residents.

Jun 4, 2024 11:10 AM CDT

Judge cites ‘utter lack of specificity’ as he tosses suit alleging NYU law review favors minorities

A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit Thursday alleging that the New York University School of Law illegally used racial and sexual preferences to select some members of its law review.

Jun 4, 2024 9:03 AM CDT