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Diversity Events + Partnerships

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Change from the Top
Morrison & Foerster hosted its second biennial Change from the Top diversity and inclusion event at the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco on October 10, 2019.
Change from the Top invites CEOs and general counsel from organizations across various industries to join MoFo partners in sharing best practices around diversity and inclusion. The program is designed to provide a unique opportunity for leaders across industries to discuss some of the biggest challenges they face in including diversity, LGBTQ+, and women in the hopes of helping organizations create and sustain more inclusive work environments. The program included three breakout session topics:

Diversity and inclusion in an increasingly global context
Diversity within the talent pipeline: from recruiting to board membership
Inclusion and how to promote/sustain a culture of allyship within your organization

These workshops covered concrete steps that organizations are taking to diversify their workforce, and the implications of the new California board - diversity requirements. The program featured author Safiya Umoja Noble, who presented on “Algorithmic Bias” — the problem of bias influencing artificial intelligence and other systems that rely on algorithms — and what organizations are doing to identify and reduce that bias.
The steering committee for Change from the Top 2019 included:



Alexis Amezcua, Litigation Partner
Rudy Kim, Litigation Partner
Fredo Silva, Corporate Partner




Christin Hill, Litigation Partner
Crystal Kaldjob, Finance Associate
Lily Li, Litigation Associate



MoFo’s inaugural Change from the Top event took place on January 30, 2017, in the firm’s New York office, with more than 100 CEOs and corporate executives in attendance. The event looked at ways in which corporate leaders can champion diversity within the organization, addressing such questions as: how to define diversity within a global context, how can we close the gender pay gap, and what best practices to follow to support diverse, LGBTQ+, and women talent in industries where they are underrepresented.


MoFo’s Dario de Martino, John Owen, Bernie Pistillo, and Tony Carbone catch up with alum Keith Wetmore.


MoFo’s Suzy Marinkovich, Purvi Patel, Alexis Amezcua, and Julie Park.


MoFo’s Diversity Summit
Since the early 1990s, the firm has hosted biennial professional development workshops designed for our U.S.-based attorneys of color and, in 2014, were expanded to include LGBTQ+ lawyers. The workshops gather diverse, LGBTQ+, and women associates from across the firm’s domestic offices for a two-day program of professional development, diversity-related trainings, speakers/panels, and opportunities to build firm relationships and network. They also provide an occasion to update associates on firmwide diversity, LGBTQ+, and women’s initiatives and solicit feedback. Past workshops have explored topics such as understanding and uncovering implicit bias, improving communication skills with clients, and building your personal brand.
Putting Our Stories to Work
The 2018 Diversity Summit welcomed over 130 MoFo lawyers and  staff to celebrate the personal stories and narratives that make us unique. The  theme, “Putting Our Stories to Work,” represented how we use storytelling to  draw connections among our colleagues and clients. When we bring our whole  selves to work, we enrich our collective experience and become stronger. At  MoFo, our diversity is the reason for our success.
The two-day event explored personal journeys to partnership,  successful mentor/sponsor partnerships, and professional development, with features such as  business development sessions on building your network and pitching to clients,  and effective communication workshops.
Welcoming Wetmore Fellows and LGBTQ+ Bay Area Associates
Something unique to the 2018 Summit was the special track  created for the Wetmore  Fellows and diverse, LGBTQ+, and women Bay Area associates. Fellows and summer  associates were asked to develop a pitch for the MoFo Foundation to donate money to a nonprofit of their choosing. The winning Fellow, Jamis  Barcott, who summered in our LA and SF offices, won $5,000 for the Indian Law Resource Center  (ILRC), a law and advocacy organization established and directed by  American Indians. Runners-up Michelle Sosa-Acosta, a 2L from our SF office, and  Amanda Sadra, a 1L Fellow from our LA office, each won $2,500 for College Track,  a nonprofit helping low-income high school students attend college, and Los  Angeles’ Downtown Women’s Center, an organization that fights  homelessness among women, respectively.
Client and Alumni Reception
Also new to the 2018 Summit was the client and alumni reception hosted after the first day of the Summit. Associates enjoyed networking with local clients and alumni, and MoFo alumnus and chair emeritus Keith Wetmore had a chance to meet the 2018 class of Wetmore Fellows, a program initiated under his leadership in 2012.
To read more on the 2018 MoFo Diversity Summit, visit our MoFo+ blog.



The Summit provides an opportunity for cross-practice networking for MoFo’s Purvi Patel, Craig Martin, and Cynthia Akatugba.



MoFo’s Craig Martin, Dean Atyia, Trevor James, and Anna Erickson White enjoy the Dogpatch WineWorks reception.


Out Leadership
Our LGBTQ+ lawyers across the firm actively participate in Out Leadership, a global advisory organization dedicated to driving LGBTQ+ equality and creating business opportunities for emerging leaders.
OutNext
We encourage our “rising star” LGBTQ+ attorneys to participate in the OutNEXT Global and regional summits, which include multi day leadership development trainings designed specifically for the next generation of LGBTQ+ leaders.
In 2015, New York litigation associate Katie Viggiani was a member of  the winning team at OutNEXT’s social justice hackathon. The team project  focused on providing homeless LGBTQ+ youth with LGBTQ+-friendly housing and  counseling resources through partnerships with public libraries, schools,  community centers, businesses, and search engines.


Diversity Events

<h4>Change from the Top</h4><p>Change from the Top invites CEOs and general counsel from organizations across various industries to join MoFo partners in sharing best practices around diversity and inclusion. The program is designed to provide a unique opportunity for leaders across industries to discuss some of the biggest challenges they face in including diversity and inclusion in the hopes of helping organizations create and sustain more inclusive work environments. </p><div data-reactroot=""><img src="https://media2.mofo.com/v3/images/blt5775cc69c999c255/bltbbf3059a12667d1a/627313cc0d4d8e1d7f10f1c6/191028-diveristy-events-img2.jpg?format=auto&amp;quality=60" alt="diveristy events"/></div><h4 dir="ltr">MoFo’s Diversity Summit</h4><p>Since the early 1990s, the firm has hosted professional development workshops designed for our U.S.-based attorneys with diverse experiences and perspectives. The workshops gather attorneys from across the firm’s domestic offices for a two-day program of professional development, diversity-related trainings, speakers, panels, and opportunities to build firm relationships and network. They also provide an occasion to update associates on firmwide diversity and inclusion initiatives and solicit feedback. Past workshops have explored topics such as understanding and uncovering implicit bias, improving communication skills with clients, and building your personal brand.</p><p>A recent Diversity Summit theme, “Putting Our Stories to Work,” represented how we use storytelling to draw connections among our colleagues and clients. When we bring our whole selves to work, we enrich our collective experience and become stronger. At MoFo, our diversity is the reason for our success.</p><p>The two-day event explored personal journeys to partnership, successful mentor/sponsor partnerships, and professional development, with features such as business development sessions on building your network and pitching to clients, and effective communication workshops.</p><h4>Partnership with Keep Company</h4><p>Keep Company is a coaching program specifically designed for parents and caregivers in the legal industry. Rooted in the science of behavior change, the program provides participants with resources to navigate work and family responsibilities. Our attorneys and business professionals are matched into groups based on their work functions, level of care, personal identity, and schedules to generate customized content facilitated by an expert coach on a biweekly basis for three months. </p>

<p>Events & Partnerships</p>

Diversity -  Events & Partnerships