The American Bar Association is asking law firms to place less reliance on class rankings and grades when hiring law students for summer associate and full-time positions, in order to have more diverse staffs. It is recommending that law firms conduct a more thorough evaluation of potential candidates.
The House of Delegates, the ABA’s decision-making body, recently passed a resolution recommending that law firms consider a broader range of attributes when hiring law students. These attributes include history and special experiences, pro bono work, community service, participation in extracurricular activities, teamwork, and resilience as well as legal research and writing abilities.
“In order to create a more diverse and inclusive legal profession, it is crucial for law firms to reevaluate their hiring practices, particularly during the [on-campus interview] process,” reads a report on the resolution, which was submitted by the ABA’s Law Student Division.
While nonbinding, the resolution still shows the concern the ABA has with diversity in the profession,
“In 2021, 22% of equity partners were women and only 9% were people of color,” the ABA report noted.
When GPA is a dominant factor in picking candidates, the complete range of abilities and experiences like leadership traits, interpersonal and communication skills, dedication to one’s community, problem-solving and resilience that could be brought to a firm are overlooked, the report said.
By law firms taking the time to assess candidates through a more comprehensive lens, they can better find candidates who have the necessary qualities to succeed in the legal profession. This can also open the doors for more diversity.
The report also noted that diverse workspaces lead to better decision making, increased innovation, higher client satisfaction and higher employee retention and satisfaction. Also, clients are more satisfied as they find themselves happy to be helped and represented by a team that is relatable.
The resolution says the ABA should urge law firms to adapt holistic evaluation processes by hosting workshops and webinars to educate law firms, and encouraging law schools to promote holistic evaluation during the OCI process.
It also recommends recognizing and celebrating law firms that implement holistic evaluation practices.
