As part of the IADC’s strong commitment in promoting diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in the legal profession, the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Committee (“Committee”) created the “IADC Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Award” (“the Award”). The Award recognizes persons (i.e. individuals, groups of people, as well as artificial entities such as law firms, organizations, companies, and/or countries) who have not only championed diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging within the legal profession, but also who have taken purposeful, tangible action(s) that have yielded positive outcome(s) in achieving diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in the legal profession and/or in significantly advancing understanding of the need for diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in the legal profession. The establishment of the Award raises awareness of the value of and need for a diverse, equitable, and inclusive legal profession. The Award also inspires others, both inside and outside of the IADC, to take tangible action(s) and achieve positive diverse, equitable, and inclusive outcomes in the legal profession. In other words, what gets recognized gets repeated.
Criteria for the IADC Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Award
Non-exhaustive criteria to consider include whether the person, group of people, law firm, organization, or company has:
- Been a trailblazer in taking tangible action to promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in the legal profession.
- Provided mentoring opportunities and/or programming promoting diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in the legal profession.
- Provided substantial support for inclusive, equitable, and/or diversity-related educational and/or professional development opportunities in the legal profession.
- Contributed and/or implemented creative and/or innovative initiatives, programs, and/or policies that have positively affected the advancement of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in the legal profession.
- Through any discipline (including literature, art, science, law, research, and/or development), significantly advanced understanding of and/or created awareness about the importance of a diverse, equitable, and inclusive legal profession.
- Defined diversity in the broadest sense to ensure inclusion of different groups of individuals, including people of different ages, races, and ethnicities, abilities and disabilities, genders, religions, cultures, and sexual orientations.
Nomination Process
Any active IADC member is eligible to nominate an potential award recipient. Nominations will be accepted from now until Friday, March 10, 2023. Vetting of the proposed Award recipients will be by the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Committee’s “IADC Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Award Committee” (consisting of the Vice Chairs of Diversity of the IADC Substantive Law Committees, the Chair of the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Committee, and all of those that hold a leadership position on the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Committee), which will present a recommended and ranked slate of three potential recipients to the President and Board of the IADC for the ultimate determination of the Award’s recipient.
Thus, the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging Committee invites active IADC members to identify proposed nominees using the form below: