GIBSON DUNN DIVERSITY VISION STATEMENT

Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher will deliver the highest quality legal services by fostering a culturally fluent, inclusive and open environment that welcomes individuals from diverse backgrounds and with different perspectives to achieve Gibson Dunn’s core values of excellence, fairness and individuality.

MANAGEMENT COMMITMENT

Gibson Dunn understands that visible and active leadership is essential to the success of our diversity initiatives.  In an increasingly global world, it is crucial that we incorporate diverse competencies, experiences and viewpoints into our workforce.  We are proud of our diverse partnership and look forward to developing a new and diverse generation of attorneys who will continue the long tradition of quality and excellence for which Gibson Dunn is known.   

DIVERSITY AT GIBSON DUNN

To manage our diversity efforts, Gibson Dunn maintains a two-tiered diversity committee system.  The Global Diversity Committee oversees the firm's strategic efforts.  Membership on the global committee includes Executive and Management committee members, partner chairs from each local office, partners representing the various affinity groups as well as the heads of the professional development, recruiting and diversity departments. 

In addition to the Global Diversity Committee, there are local diversity committees in each of our domestic offices and several of our overseas offices.  Our local office committees are open to all attorneys who are interested in the issue of diversity. 

The diversity committees are instrumental to our diversity efforts.  They are actively involved in our recruiting efforts for summer and lateral associate candidates.  They also serve as an important resource for our attorneys by providing our diverse and non-diverse attorneys alike a forum for addressing a wide range of issues involving diversity and work-life balance at the firm. 

RECRUITING

The firm encourages diverse law students to consider a career at Gibson Dunn.  We are very involved with several affinity groups on campuses around the country.  The firm annually provides financial support and mentoring to law student groups through a variety of different programs.  Gibson Dunn also offers hiring opportunities to students with a commitment to diversity through our 1L Hiring Program. 

Gibson Dunn understands that choosing a firm can be a difficult decision, and it is important to many law students that the firm they ultimately choose is supportive of diversity.  Some may have questions that specifically pertain to what it is like to be a diverse attorney at the firm.  As such, all Gibson Dunn summer associates are given a chance to learn more about the firm’s diversity efforts during their summer with us.  In addition, each local diversity committee makes great efforts to provide support to diverse summer associates and ensure that our summers have ample opportunity to ask questions and explore life as a diverse attorney at Gibson Dunn.

For more information about Gibson Dunn’s recruiting program, please click here. 

GIBSON DUNN ATTORNEY EXPERIENCE

Gibson Dunn's diversity efforts are not focused solely on recruitment.  We are committed to the retention and promotion of diverse attorneys. 

As part of our diversity strategic action plan, a Professional Development department was formed to oversee and coordinate the firm's mentoring and career development practices to ensure that our attorneys are amply supported throughout their careers. 

We believe that future coordination of the professional development and diversity efforts will lend additional support to our diverse attorneys.  The diversity and professional development departments are already working on joint initiatives to: 1) provide more comprehensive and frequent communications to associates about different firm policies; 2) help new and lateral associates better integrate into the firm; and 3) seek innovative client development programs.  The firm also has formal mentoring efforts in each office.  For more information about our professional development programs, please click here.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH

Gibson Dunn attorneys are active in the communities in which they practice.  The firm supports a wide range of community groups.  Gibson Dunn has joined forces with other firms, organizations and clients to further diversity initiatives. 

• Gibson Dunn is a 2010 national sponsor of Lambda Legal and the National Association of Women Lawyers. 
• Gibson Dunn's Orange County office has been instrumental in the recent formation of the Orange County Lavender Bar association. 
• The Firm is a signatory to the New York City Bar Association's Statement of Diversity Principles and a charter member of the NY Minority Networking Series and Los Angeles County Bar Association/Women Lawyers in Los Angeles Call to Action.   
• Gibson Dunn was one of the first firms to join the recently created Leadership Council on Legal Diversity. 

ORGANIZATIONS WE SUPPORT INCLUDE: 

• ABA Minority Corporate Counsel
• Asia Society
• Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund
• California Minority Counsel Program
• Committee of 100
• DirectWomen Board Institute
• Hispanic National Bar Association
• International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission
• Lambda Legal
• Legal Outreach
• Mexican American Bar Foundation
• Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund
• Minority Corporate Counsel Association
• Mount St. Mary's Pre-Law Scholarship
• National Asian Pacific American Bar Association
• National Lesbian and Gay Law Association
• Point Foundation
• Williams Institute

PROPOSTION 8

Gibson Dunn represents the plaintiffs in Perry v. Schwarzenegger, the successful federal challenge to California’s denial of marriage to gay and lesbian individuals. After a three-week trial, U.S. District Court Judge Vaughn Walker in San Francisco issued a landmark ruling in August 2010 holding that Proposition 8 is unconstitutional under both the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses because it fails to advance any rational basis in singling out gay men and lesbians for denial of a marriage license. 

Gibson Dunn’s Ted Olson spearheaded the firm’s efforts on this important civil rights case.  As a result of his work, Ted was recently named to TIME magazine’s annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.

PRO BONO

Gibson Dunn is committed to improving the communities in which we work.  Every year Gibson Dunn donates significant attorney time to pro bono work.  Our attorneys are encouraged to participate in a wide range of matters; many of which benefit diverse communities.  For  more information about our pro bono efforts, please click here.

HONORS

• Gibson Dunn ranked as one of Multicultural Law Magazine’s top 50 firms for diversity.
• Top score in the Human Right Campaign's Corporate Index for our LGBT friendly policies. 
• The Firm was also awarded Georgetown University Outlaw's inaugural Ally Award for our work on LGBT issues.

WOMEN AT GIBSON DUNN

Our women partners have led the Firm’s efforts to diversify our attorney ranks.  They have addressed a wide range of issues involving gender, professional development, and work-life balance at the Firm.   

• Three women, one of whom is an attorney of color, sit on the firm's Executive Committee and a woman partner sits on the five-member Management Committee. 

• Women partners have chaired or chair several  executive-level committees, including the Partnership Evaluation Committee, Lateral Partner Committee, Global Diversity Committee and the Associate Compensation Committee. 

• Women partners are the heads of our Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and Sao Paulo offices.

• Twelve women currently serve as practice groups leaders.  Three of those twelve are attorneys of color.

• Gibson Dunn’s 2010 partnership class included our first openly lesbian partner.

Women’s Initiatives – In addition to the firm professional development and mentoring programs, the women leaders of the firm have been very active in nurturing our junior women attorneys.  Their efforts include hosting in-house monthly lunches for women associates, sponsoring networking events with women general counsel and other women-focused client events and participating in women’s leadership groups.

Work-life Balance – The firm has several policies to help attorneys achieve work-life balance including Flex-Time, Parental Leaves, and reason-blind leaves of absence.  The firm has a Gender/Work-life Balance subcommittee, a part of the Global Diversity Committee.  The Professional Development and Diversity departments focus on several women-specific initiatives.

In the Community – Every year the Firm donates thousands of attorney hours and dollars to several different women and diversity focused organizations.  Organizations we have supported in recent years include:   

• Black Women Lawyers of Los Angeles, Inc.
• Mount St. Mary's Pre-Law Scholarship
• Colorado Women's Bar Association
• National Association of Women Lawyers
• DirectWomen Board Institute
• Women in Law Empowerment Forum
• International Women's Media Foundation

The Firm is a charter member of the Los Angeles County Bar Association Women Lawyers in Los Angeles Call to Action.  Additionally, the Firm is a sponsor of the 2010 Women's Conference, a project of California First Lady Maria Shriver, dedicated to empowering women.   

Honors – Gibson Dunn women have a long history of being trailblazers and have been recognized not only for their leadership and talent within the Firm, but externally as well.   

• Aulana Peters, retired former partner, was the first African American to serve as Commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission.  She was also only the third woman ever to do so.  
• Debra Wong Yang was honored by the Center for Asian Americans United for Self Empowerment (CAUSE) for her diversity work.  She was also named to the Committee of 100, an organization that serves as a voice in encouraging constructive relations between China and the United States.  Debra was the first Asian American woman to serve as an United States Attorney. 
• The Hollywood Reporter named Ruth Fisher to its annual list of Power Lawyers "spotlighting the 100 attorneys most influencing the entertainment business."
• Mary Murphy, Karen Manos, and Amy Forbes named by Chambers USA as 2010 Leading Lawyers in their respective practice areas. 
• The Daily Journal named Margie Lewis, Andrea Neuman, and Meryl Young to its annual list of Top Women Litigators. 
• Lisa Fontenot, Beth Ising, and Lois Herzeca named to the Board of Directors of Women in Law Empowerment Forum.
• California Lawyer named Andrea Neuman among its 2010 California Lawyer Attorneys of the Year.  She was also selected to The Recorder Attorneys of the Year and by The Daily Journal as a Top Female Litigator in 2009.
• Karen Manos elected Chair of the American Bar Association's Public Contract Law Section.
• Ashlie Beringer named a rising star and one of 10 intellectual property attorneys under 40 to watch by Law360.com.
• Jessica Brown on Board of Directors of the Colorado Women's Bar Association.