Dinsmore Once Again Shows Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion Efforts with Mansfield 5.0 Certification
October, 2022 - Louisville, Kentucky
Dinsmore & Shohl LLP has earned The Mansfield Rule 5.0 Certification for 2022 marking the second time the firm has met the criteria for achievement. The Mansfield Rule is a rigorous, year-long certification program that aims to boost and sustain diversity in law firm leadership.
The Mansfield Rule, facilitated by Diversity Lab, asks law firms to consider at least 30% historically under represented lawyers – women lawyers, underrepresented racial and/or ethnic lawyers, LGBTQ+ lawyers, and/or lawyers with disabilities – when appointing to leadership roles, promoting to equity partnership, and more.
Firms participating in Mansfield 5.0 were asked, for the first time, to consider at least 30% underrepresented lawyers when hiring and promoting to C-level or other senior-level professional staff roles and for nominations to Chambers USA. They were also asked to track candidate pools in a more granular way to ensure that no underrepresented group was left behind.
The work at Dinsmore is not done yet. Over the summer, the firm pledged its commitment to The Mansfield Rule 6.0. The 6.0 version requires law firms to consider at least 30% historically underrepresented lawyers when appointing to leadership roles and promoting into the equity partnership, among a dozen other activities that focus on the path to leadership.
The firm’s 5.0 certification and 6.0 commitment follow a tradition of diversity-focused recognitions and initiatives for the firm. In May of 2021, Dinsmore partnered with Procter & Gamble and the Ohio Innocence Project at the University of Cincinnati Law School to create a fellowship for a diverse recent law school graduate to gain experience in civil rights litigation and policy-making. The same month, the firm launched its Pre-Law Minority Program to help students of color at four Kentucky universities. Dinsmore is also a member of Diversity Best Practices and is annually recognized by the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity as a Top Performer. Read Dinsmore’s 2020 Annual Report on Diversity & Inclusion here.
