Kean Miller is pleased to announce that the Firm has achieved Mansfield Certification for the fourth year in a row following the completion of a twelve-month Mansfield Rule 6.0 certification process. Mansfield Certification, awarded by Diversity Lab, recognizes law firms that actively work to close gender and diversity gaps in the legal profession. To achieve 6.0 certification, Kean Miller maintained processes and procedures to track and analyze talent pipelines, monitor business development teams, and participate in candid knowledge sharing opportunities with law firms across the United States.
“Diversity and inclusion are foundational to our Firm’s culture. We are proud to be recognized by the premiere legal diversity program as a legal partner that actively supports and advances attorneys who have traditionally been unrepresented in the profession. We look forward to continuing our involvement with Diversity Lab and participating in Mansfield 7.0.” said Vic Suane, Chair of the Firm’s Diversity and Inclusion Council.
The Mansfield Certification program measures whether law firms have affirmatively considered at least 30% of women lawyers, lawyers from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, lawyers with disabilities, and LGBTQ+ lawyers for top leadership roles, senior-level lateral hiring, promotions into the equity partnership, and participation in client development opportunities. The goal of the Mansfield Rule is to increase the representation of diverse lawyers in law firm leadership by broadening the pool of candidates considered for these opportunities.
The Mansfield Rule is named for Arabella Mansfield, the first woman admitted to the practice of law in the United States more than 150 years ago. The concept of the Mansfield Rule and certification process evolved from the National Football League’s Rooney Rule of 2003 – an initiative that mandates the inclusion of diverse candidates in interviews for coaching and staff opportunities. At the 2016 Women in Law hackathon, the legal community, in collaboration with Bloomberg Law and the Stanford Law School, parlayed this concept into the Mansfield Rule.
Mansfield Rule certification is managed by Diversity Lab, an incubator for innovative ideas and solutions that boost diversity and inclusion in the legal profession. Since their launch six years ago, they’ve grown from 42 firms to 360+ firms participating annually. Diversity Lab leverages data, behavioral science, design thinking, and technology to further develop and test ideas, measure the results, and share the lessons learned.
