"There is a need to measure progress by the meaningful inclusion of Black women lawyers at leadership ranks in every part of the legal profession. Notwithstanding decades of well-intentioned declarations, Mansfield Rules certifications, lofty goals, commitments, studies, conferences, lawsuits, and excuses, there is [an] inexcusable single-digit representation of Black women lawyers at the highest leadership ranks in law firms, corporations, government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and law schools and universities. Black women have extraordinary qualifications and immeasurable corporate value, despite confronting a unique set of challenges. Increasing Black women lawyers in leadership is manifestly required and will dramatically and significantly produce greater: 1) equitable compensation, recognition, business development, and promotion; 2) participation in the development of visionary organizational policy and strategic planning; 3) identification of invisible discriminatory practices—including macro-and micro- aggressions; and 4) critical outcome determinative sponsorship—not just mentorship—of recent Black women lawyers and law students. The Power Reimagined Institute addresses this," said Associate Dean for Trial Advocacy and Professorial Lecturer in Law Alfreda Robinson in the inaugural Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) Assessment Report "The State of Black Women in the Law."
The National Bar Association was founded in 1925 and is the nation’s oldest and largest national network of predominantly Black attorneys and judges. It represents the interests of approximately 66,000 lawyers, judges, law professors, and law students. The NBA is organized around 23 substantive law sections, 10 divisions, 12 regions, and over 80 affiliate chapters throughout the United States and around the world. The National Bar Association Womens Lawyer Division (NBA WLD) partnered with Kanarys, Inc. in 2022 to launch an initiative to obtain targeted DEIB data analytics regarding members of the NBA WLD, affiliate chapters, and other Black women's legal organizations and networks across the country. The assessment was open from August 8, 2022, to October 24, 2022.
To read the entire report, please view State of Black Women in the Law DEIB Assessment Report here.