Diversity Matters

The newsletter of the ISBA’s Diversity Leadership Council

2009 Articles

The 2008 ISBA Diversity Survey By Albert J. Klumpp June 2009 Last spring more than 2,500 ISBA members participated in a survey conducted by the ISBA’s Task Force on Diversity.
California Proposition 8 update By Sepi Ghafouri June 2009 Last summer, the Supreme Court of California became the second state high court in the United States to end years of marriage inequality.
The Call to Action: Advancing Women Attorneys in Leadership in Chicago By Jane DiRenzo Pigott & E. Lynn Grayson June 2009 The Chicago Bar Association (“CBA”) issued a Call to Action (“CTA”) in 2004 with 10 law firms acting as leadership signatories:
Checks and balances at work: The ADA Amendments Act of 2008 By William D. Goren June 2009 The Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008 overrule several United States Supreme Court decisions that had narrowed considerably the scope of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
Chicago Urban League, et al. v. State of Illinois, et al.: Summary of Cook County Circuit Court’s April 15, 2009 opinion By Lisa T. Scruggs, Sandi J. Toll, & Shyni Varghese June 2009 In a decision issued by Cook County Circuit Court Judge Martin S. Agran, the Court announced that Plaintiffs in the Chicago Urban League et al. v. State of Illinois and Illinois State Board of Education case have stated a valid claim of discriminatory disparate impact under the Illinois Civil Rights Act of 2003.  
The Coalition of Women’s Initiatives in Law Firms: From dream to reality By Pamela M. Belyn June 2009 In the summer of 2008, a group of more than 30 women’s initiatives in Chicago law firms came together to form the Coalition of Women’s Initiatives in Law Firms—the first organization of its kind in the United States. The Coalition’s mission is to benefit member firms by providing positive avenues of communication, collaboration and guidance that help member groups to enhance the recruitment, retention and promotion of women lawyers and support the building, implementation and continued relevancy of women’s initiatives in law firms.
Diversity Task Force—Report from the Chair By Alice M. Noble-Allgire June 2009 As I write this column, Lynn Grayson and I are putting the finishing touches on a comprehensive report to the Board of Governors detailing the activities of the Task Force on Diversity during the past two years and offering a plan of action to chart the course for the ISBA’s diversity efforts into the future.
The Legal Balance: Resources for women attorneys and a safe haven to discuss diverse personal and professional concerns and perspectives By Erica Zalokar June 2009 This spring, a new resource, The Legal Balance, will be made available to women attorneys here in Chicago.  
A new path to equality: The Challenge to Section 3 of DOMA in Gill, et al. v. OPM, et al. By Paul M. Smith, Daniel I. Weiner, & Lindsey C. Harrison June 2009 On March 3, 2009, the Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD) commenced a challenge to Section 3 of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), 1 U.S.C. § 7, in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts.  
Reflections on World AIDS Day By Yolaine Dauphin June 2009 According to The Skeptic’s Guide to the Global AIDS Crisis, a book authored by Dale Hanson Bourke, approximately 8,500 people die of AIDS every day.
Remarks as prepared for delivery by Attorney General Eric Holder at the Department of Justice African American History Month Program June 2009 Remarks prepared by Attorney General Eric Holder.
A response to Attorney General Eric Holder’s remarks By Andrea Flynn June 2009  As lawyers, we are trained to tackle intellectual problems daily; however, a lack of diversity and troubled race relations cannot be easily analyzed and solved like a legal issue.