Kean Miller Achieves Mansfield Rule Certification

Kean Miller announced today that the 155-attorney law firm has achieved Mansfield Rule Certification after completing the Mansfield Rule 3.0 certification program.  Kean Miller is the only Louisiana-founded law firm to achieve this important diversity and inclusion milestone.

“Kean Miller is dedicated to promoting a culture of inclusion and diversity.  The best evidence of this commitment is our 12-month effort to become Mansfield Rule Certified.  We are excited to continue to improve upon our diversity efforts as we pilot Mansfield 4.0.”, said Vic Suane, Chair of the firm’s Diversity and Inclusion Council 

Mansfield Rule Certification recognizes law firms that actively work to close gender and diversity gaps in the legal profession.  The program measures whether law firms have affirmatively considered at least 30 percent women, lawyers of color, LGBTQ+, and lawyers with disabilities for mission critical operations and decision-making, such as executive leadership, recruitment, and business development activities. The goal of the Mansfield Rule is to increase the representation of diverse lawyers in law firm leadership by broadening the pool of candidates considered for these opportunities.  

“Kean Miller has embraced Mansfield Rule as another pillar of our firm’s long-standing commitment to diversity and inclusion initiatives in the legal profession. Our internal partner education and outreach efforts have significantly increased awareness of the importance of diverse business development and marketing teams when vying for new client relationships.”, Linda Perez Clark, Managing Partner.

To achieve the Mansfield Rule objectives, Kean Miler established processes and procedures to track and analyze talent pipelines, and participated in candid knowledge sharing opportunities with law firms across the country.  

The Mansfield Rule is named for Arabella Mansfield, the first woman admitted to the practice of law in the United States, 150-years ago.  The concept of the Mansfield Rule and certification process evolved from the National Football League’s Rooney Rule of 2003 – an initiative that mandates the inclusion of diverse candidates in interviews for coaching and staff.  At the 2016 Women in Law hackathon, the legal community, in collaboration with Bloomberg Law and the Stanford Law School parlayed this concept into the Mansfield Rule.

Mansfield certification is managed by Diversity Lab, an incubator for innovative ideas and solutions that boost diversity and inclusion in the legal profession.  Ideas are created through their collaborations with more than 150 top law firms and legal departments across the country.  Diversity Lab leverages data, behavioral science, design thinking, and technology to further develop and test ideas, measure the results, and share the lessons learned.