Company: Greenberg Traurig, LLP
Diversity Team Name: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Team
Diversity Team Leader(s): GT’s Executive Committee and Shareholder and Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer Nikki Lewis Simon
Website: www.gtlaw.com
What Makes this Diversity Team Stand Out
Building on its already strong program, in 2020 Greenberg Traurig (GT) doubled its commitment to a more equal world with its Social, Racial and Economic Justice Plan. Our DE&I team expanded programming by launching several new Social, Racial, and Economic Justice Action Plan initiatives, including the following:
- Committed $5 million over five years to address the causes and effects of systemic racism
- Joined in creating the Law Firm Anti-Racism Alliance
- Observes the Juneteenth holiday in the United States
- Sponsored GTDRIVES for Social Justice “Day of Giving,” raising $100K+ for 30+ social justice-focused nonprofits
- Incentivizes and rewards associates by considering billable hours for diversity and inclusion-related work
- Launched the GT Justice Initiative involving attorneys firm-wide to augment GT’s current justice-oriented pro bono work
- Launched the GT Listening Tour for business staff
As part of GT’s Social, Racial and Economic Justice Plan, the firm launched its Social Justice Action Academy (SJAA), which includes the following:
- Equality Toolkit: Provides education, resources, and information to equip the GT community to be leaders within the firm.
- Courageous Conversations: This series of internal and external programs shares personal experiences with social injustice and racism, as well as new offerings to impact positive change.
- Webinars and Trainings: Our internal SJAA library includes curated webinars and training sessions that focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion topics.
- GTDRIVES: Dynamic Dialogues: This podcast informs business leaders, in-house counsel, and others about developments in diversity, equity, and inclusion.
- Listening Tour: Launched the virtual a listening tour for business staff in offices worldwide. We wanted to hear directly from employees about DE&I topics.
- Law Student Recruitment: Sponsored or participated in several programs to increase diversity in the legal industry or address many of the associated challenges.
- Affinity Groups: GT Affinity Groups proved to be essential support systems for their members as attorneys adapted to working remotely.
Ranking & Accolades
- In 2020, GT attorneys received more than 170 diversity awards, hosted or participated in 150+ events, and received and responded to 100+ surveys. The firm was also recognized in the following ways:
- “Top Chief Diversity Officer,” Chief Diversity Officer Nikki Lewis Simon, The National Diversity Council, 2020
- MANSFIELD 3.0 Certified by The Diversity Lab, Sept. 2020
- Diversity, Women’s & LGBT Scorecards, The American Lawyer/National Law Journal, 2020 placements:
- ✓ No. 1: Number of African American Partners and Attorneys; Latino Attorneys Overall
- ✓ No. 2: Latino Partners; LGBT Partners
- ✓ No. 4: Minority Attorneys
- ✓ No. 5: Asian American Partners
- ✓ No. 6, Female Partners Overall
- Score of 100%, Corporate Equality Index, Human Rights Campaign Foundation, 2017-2018, 2020-2021 and Equidad MX LGBTQ+ Survey, 2020
