In 2020, the five largest Denver-based law firms joined forces to form the Denver Law Firm Coalition for Racial Equity.
Purpose: The Coalition is working to advance diversity and equity within its member firms and the greater Denver legal community through knowledge-sharing, joint initiatives, and accountability measures.
How Does the Coalition Work?
In partnership with IAALS, Coalition firms collaborate to make informed, targeted investments to increase equity for diverse lawyers in Denver.
The Coalition goes beyond recruiting diverse attorneys. Though they compete for business, Coalition firms are united to make the Denver legal community a desirable place for diverse attorneys from across the country to build a lifelong legal practice and reach the highest levels of the profession. The result will be better for clients, lawyers, Denver, and the legal profession.
Download the IAALS report summarizing the analysis and recommendations that emerged from the Coalition’s November 2020 Convening of lawyers from across law firms, the judiciary, government, in-house counsel, law schools, and other DEI leaders.
How is the Coalition Different?
- Coalition representatives are empowered. Firms send managing members and heads of DEI, Recruiting, and Retention.
- Coalition firms share lessons learned and secrets of success. These include best practices as to diversity recruiting, retention, and promotion; demographic data across attorney levels; and detailed approaches to and outcomes of internal DEI initiatives.
- Coalition firms are accountable. The Coalition will track and measure outcomes of Coalition joint initiatives on a group basis. IAALS aggregates the data that firms share and reports back to the Coalition. Collectively, firms report outcomes and commit to improving equity for diverse attorneys across the Denver legal community.
The Coalition maintains a firm respect for and complies fully with federal and state antitrust laws. Click here to read our Antitrust Compliance Policy. Participation in the Coalition and its initiatives is not limited to individuals meeting any particular demographic criteria.
Events
Save the Date: April 2, 2024 (12:00 - 1:00 pm CT) - Virtual Meet & Greet with attorneys and recruiters from Coalition firms (details coming).
Save the Date: May 16, 2024 (5:00 - 10:00 pm CT) - In-Person Panel and Networking Reception with Denver representatives at the Chicago Athletic Association (details coming).
April 13, 2023 – Practice Denver – Panel Presentation and Happy Hour Mixer: Coalition representatives are hosting an in-person recruiting event for Chicago-area students this spring. The live event will feature a panel of attorneys discussing their experiences at their Coalition firms and in Denver, as well as a networking component with additional representatives from the firms and with a member of the Colorado judiciary. Each firm will open summer 2024 applications for rising 2Ls following the event.
May 20, 2022 – Practice Denver – Law Firm Happy Hour for Chicago Area Law Students: The happy hour is the second of three Practice Denver recruiting events that the Coalition will host this year for Chicago-area law students. Meet in-person with representatives from each of the five Coalition founding firms and continue conversations started at last month’s meet-and-greet.
April 7, 2022 – Practice Denver – Law Firm Meet & Greet for Chicago Area Law Students: Representatives from the Coalition’s five founding firms will present information on Practice Denver, the Coalition, and their individual firms. This meet-and-greet is the first of three Practice Denver recruiting events that the Coalition will host this year for Chicago-area law students. In-person events will follow in Chicago in May and August.
February 17, 2022 – Fireside Chat with Jerry Blackwell, lead prosecutor in the trial of former police officer Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd. Jerry spoke with humility and even humor about his career and the trial that transfixed the nation in the wake of George Floyd’s death.
November 11, 2020 – Denver Law Firm Coalition for Racial Equity Convening: Through the Convening, the Coalition and IAALS brought together management representatives from our firms; federal and state court judges; leading government lawyers and in-house counsel; law school representatives; and other diversity, equity, and inclusion leaders from across the legal community to collaborate, develop, and improve strategies to recruit, retain, and advance diverse attorneys in Denver.