What people say about Legal Innovators
“Legal Innovators is a game-changer.”
Richard Shore
Partner,
Gilbert LLP
Gilbert LLP
“We hope to continue hiring through Legal Innovators in the years to come—increasing the diversity of our legal team, strengthening our firm as an institution, and doing our part to remedy historic inequities that have long plagued the legal recruiting process.”
Richard Shore
Partner,
Gilbert LLP
Gilbert LLP
“Legal Innovators’ pursuit of bold and creative solutions, its determination to overcome problems others view as intractable, and its optimism that the status quo does not dictate the future, align perfectly with the values and philosophy that drive Gilbert LLP.”
Richard Shore
Partner,
Gilbert LLP
Gilbert LLP
“Innovation is not something we reserve for our client service. We’re really trying to innovate in the way we view ourselves ad how we attract and retain talent.”
Siobhan Handley
Chief Talent Officer,
Orrick
Orrick
“While we’re experimenting with a number of approaches, we’re especially impressed by Legal Innovators’ methodology and excited, not only to welcome the two Orrick Legal Innovators’ Fellows, but also to learn from their creative thinking and curriculum to ensure we improve the way we support diverse talent.”
Siobhan Handley
Chief Talent Officer,
Orrick
Orrick
“We’ve never really thought there weren’t people out there who could do the work at our firm. The problem was how we could connect with them, because the normal channels all law firms use, it’s not fulfilling the need.”
Richard Shore
Partner,
Gilbert LLP
Gilbert LLP
“Increasing opportunity and broadening diversity in Big Law is an important goal that will only happen by widening the pipeline of legal talent.”
Abid Qureshi
Global Recruiting Committee Chair,
Latham & Watkins LLP
Latham & Watkins LLP
“There’s societal reasons why you’ve got a lack of underrepresented folks at the top 25 law schools and a much larger percentage of historically underrepresented folks outside of the top 25. They’ve been really thoughtful about where there are law schools with diverse student bodies.”
Siobhan Handley
Chief Talent Officer,
Orrick
Orrick
“Our partnership with Legal Innovators allows us to engage with talented candidates in a novel way, while giving students the flexibility to pursue a path that’s the best fit for them.”
Abid Qureshi
Global Recruiting Committee Chair,
Latham & Watkins LLP
Latham & Watkins LLP
“Not everything you try is going to be successful, but that doesn’t mean that you stop what you are doing to drive diversity, equity, and inclusion. You continue with those things that work and you build on them.”
Paulette Brown
Senior Partner and Chief Diversity Officer,
Locke Lord
Locke Lord
“Legal Innovators offers an innovative solution to address the growing challenges in the legal industry of unsustainable costs associated with junior legal talent, training and integrating that talent, and finally, ensuring that the talent reflects diversity.”
Michael Bailey
General Counsel,
Bechtel Group, Inc.
Bechtel Group, Inc.
“I would rather hire law firms who hire Legal Innovators. Their model creates a win/win solution for clients and firms alike by offering quality legal help at a lower rate, but also helping to build the careers of young legal professionals with a focus on providing opportunity for diverse talent. This is exactly the direction we need to take to be successful in the law.”
Michael Bailey
General Counsel,
Bechtel Group, Inc.
Bechtel Group, Inc.
“We’ve always prided ourselves on providing high-caliber legal representation for our clients. Our drive for excellence leads us to seek out better ways to work with our clients and this relationship is an example of this type of collaboration. We believe this partnership represents a creative approach to bringing in a diverse and talented pipeline of trained legal talent adding them to our existing team to serve our clients.”
Ellen McLaughlin
Partner,
Seyfarth Shaw
Seyfarth Shaw
“In order to drive progress in increasing diversity in our profession, we must be open to fresh and innovative approaches. We look forward to creating new pathways for junior legal talent to experience in house legal culture and learn about the legal and regulatory matters unique to the aerospace and defense industry.”
Raja Maharajh
General Counsel,
Raytheon Technologies
Raytheon Technologies
“The collaboration between Linklaters and Legal Innovators will elevate not only our ability to offer our clients top junior talent but it also supports the firm’s goals to enhance diversity, equity and inclusion. We are proud to welcome our Legal Innovators cohort as part of Linklaters’ class of 2022.”
Tom McGrath
Head of Linklaters’ U.S. Global Practice
“At DWT, our vision is to foster a culture where all talented individuals—including those from communities traditionally underrepresented in the legal profession—can have, and can see, a path to success. Our partnership with Legal Innovators helps us advance that vision and further strengthen our commitment to building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive law firm.”
Yusuf Zakir
Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer,
DWT
DWT
“As a legal professional who has dedicated much of my career to fostering diversity and inclusion, I believe in Legal Innovators’ model.”
Paulette Brown
Former ABA President, Former Senior Partner and Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer at Locke Lord, Legal Innovators Advisory Board Member
“I have joined the advisory board because their mentorship model creates unparalleled value for law firms and their clients. Through Legal Innovators, it was learned through personal experience that firms can onboard new attorneys while mitigating risk and maximizing growth, resulting in legal teams that are better prepared to address their clients’ needs.”
Paulette Brown
Former ABA President, Former Senior Partner and Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer at Locke Lord, Legal Innovators Advisory Board Member
“Too often, exceptional young attorneys go unnoticed by big law firms because they haven’t gone to schools from which those firms traditionally recruit. Legal Innovators has created an alternative pipeline that connects law firms with some of the most promising and diverse legal talents.”
Joel Stern
Former CEO,
NAMWOLF
NAMWOLF
“Legal Innovators has developed an exciting new solution to the diversity challenges facing many law firms. With time, we hope this model contributes to a strengthened legal field informed by a wide variety of perspectives.”
William Henderson
Stephen F. Burns Chair on the Legal Profession at Indiana University
“We chose Legal Innovators because their unique talent management process produces a diverse pipeline of well trained and qualified candidates. The associates arrive at our firm having gone through rigorous preparation and are constantly improving their skills through Legal Innovators’ ongoing training program. We look forward to the lawyers working with us to provide excellent service to our clients and the mentoring Legal Innovators provides to the next generation of lawyers through this innovative approach.”
Robert Bodian
Managing Partner,
Mintz
Mintz
“We are thrilled to be the first Delaware law firm to partner with Legal Innovators. This partnership advances our firm’s DE&I Strategic Plan, and Young Conaway’s unwavering pledge to provide opportunities to highly qualified diverse attorneys. As part of that commitment, we will provide the support and resources needed for diverse junior talent to hone their legal skills and thrive at Young Conaway. We are confident that Legal Innovators’ partnership with law firms, such as ours, will have a meaningful impact on improving diversity outcomes in the legal profession, and look forward to welcoming our first Legal Innovators Fellow this month.”
Edwin Harron
Member, Executive Committee and Partner,
Young Conaway
Young Conaway