Michael Lefkowitz

• Use my voice and influence to foster an inclusive firm culture that welcomes, respects and celebrates individuals regardless of their race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, religion, or disability.
• Actively participate in industry events focused on DEI to educate myself and ultimately the firm on emerging DEI trends, best practices, and legal developments, ensuring that the firm remains at the forefront of DEI efforts in the legal profession.
• Engage in outreach and DEI partnerships. I will actively seek partnerships with diverse professional organizations, law schools, and community groups to promote diversity in the legal profession. Through mentorship programs, workshops, and speaking engagements, our firm will inspire and support aspiring lawyers from underrepresented backgrounds.
• Support employee resource groups. I will encourage the formation of employee resource groups (ERGs) that cater to the needs and interests of diverse communities within our firm. These ERGs will provide a platform for networking, mentorship, and support, fostering an inclusive and community-driven environment.

• Continue the firm’s quarterly unconscious bias training program to raise awareness about unconscious biases and provide our attorneys and staff with the tools to make objective decisions in their interactions with all of our employees, clients, colleagues, and the broader legal community.
• Establish metrics to track our firm’s progress on DEI initiatives. We will regularly review and report our progress to help us identify areas for improvement and hold ourselves accountable for achieving our diversity and inclusion goals.
• Recruit and retain diverse talent. We will actively seek out diverse candidates for employment, internships, and clerkships and, in doing so, ensure that our recruitment process is unbiased, inclusive, and provides equal opportunities for all candidates. We will also implement retention strategies to support the career advancement and growth of diverse attorneys within our firm.
• We will advocate for diverse representation in legal conferences, seminars, and panels and actively participate in or organize events that promote diverse voices, ensuring that our firm contributes to a more inclusive and representative legal community.
• Review and update our policies, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, promotion, and work allocation processes to identify and eliminate any biases or discriminatory practices.
• Promote equal pay and advancement opportunities. We will champion pay equity and transparency, ensuring that all employees are compensated fairly and equitably based on their skills, experience, and contributions. We will proactively identify and remove any barriers to advancement for underrepresented individuals, providing equal opportunities for professional growth and leadership roles within our firm.
• Continue to provide our Diversity Committee with all that is required to keep the firm on the forefront of all diversity protocols.

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