Tag Archives: Bias

Jun 11 2018
ABA Model Rules, California MCLE, CLE, Elimination of Bias, Ethics & Professionalism, Ethics Codes, Illinois MCLE, Malpractice, MCLE, New Jersey MCLE, New York MCLE, Online CLE

New CLE on How Firms Can Increase Gender Diversity

Virtually every large law firm and publicly held corporation claims it is committed to gender diversity. Yet, most gender diversity programs have accomplished very little in the way of significant change.

3 Steps to Increase Diversity in Law Firms

Progress toward gender diversity depends on three key actions:

(1) Specifying specific numerical goals

(2) Providing meaningful financial incentives to achieve them

(3) Adopting and enforcing a clear strategy for how that is to be done

Join Andi Kramer and Al Harris for this thoughtful and poignant program about overcoming gender bias in the legal profession to create a more successful and profitable law firm. Andi and Al will mainly address why diversity benefits law firms & organizations, the gender achievement gap in the legal profession, what men can do and what legal organizations can do to end gender bias. To learn about what steps you can take to create a more diverse firm, please click here: What Men & Organizations Can Do to Close the Gender Achievement Gap in Law.

Further topics covered in this CLE course:

  • The moral & business rationale for diversity
  • Unconscious & implicit bias
  • ABA Model Rule 8.4(g)
  • Blind auditions
  • Thinking slow
  • Getting involved
  • Valuing difference
  • Hiring & assignments
  • Professional development
  • Compensation & promotion
  • Leaves & retention

Andrea S. Kramer is an attorney and a partner in the international law firm of McDermott Will & Emery, LLP. The managing partner in the Chicago office of Nixon Peabody, Al is a frequent writer and lecturer on the financial markets, financial regulation, corporate governance and diversity in the legal profession.

This CLE course is offered in the following states:

  • Alaska (AK)
  • Arizona (AZ)
  • California (CA)
  • Connecticut (CT)
  • District of Columbia (DC)
  • Illinois (IL)
  • Maryland (MD)
  • Massachusetts (MA)
  • Michigan (MI)
  • Missouri (MO)
  • New Hampshire (NH)
  • New Jersey (NJ)
  • New York (NY)
  • North Dakota (ND)
  • Pennsylvania (PA)
  • South Dakota (SD)

Attorney Credits offers CLE for attorneys in Illinois and around the country. For more information about CLE in Illinois please click the following link: IL CLE.

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May 31 2018
ABA Model Rules, CLE, Elimination of Bias, Ethics & Professionalism, Ethics Codes, Illinois MCLE, Online CLE

New IL CLE Requirement: Diversity & Inclusion + Mental Health & Substance Abuse

Illinois attorneys now have a new IL MCLE requirement. Please note that the Professional Responsibility requirement has been modified. All Illinois attorneys are now required to complete a minimum of 1 hour of Diversity & Inclusion and 1 hour of Mental Health and Substance Abuse.

New Professional Responsibility Requirement

  • 1 hour of Diversity & Inclusion
  • 1 hour of Mental Health and Substance Abuse

This Illinois MCLE rule change does not affect the total number of hours required to fulfill the Professional Responsibility requirement, which remains at 6. These two new hours are considered count towards your Professional Responsibility requirement. The total number of MCLE credits required in each 2 year compliance period also remains at 30.

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May 21 2018
ABA Model Rules, California MCLE, CLE, Elimination of Bias, Employment Law, Illinois MCLE, Litigation, MCLE, New Jersey MCLE, New York MCLE, Online CLE

New CLE: Age Bias Against Younger & Older Attorneys

There are many CLE programs that discuss bias in the legal profession – but many of these programs focus on bias based on race or sex. There are very few programs that tackle the growing issue of age bias in law firms. And it’s not just older attorneys that are being discriminated against because of their age, “millennial” attorneys also face bias in the legal workplace.

Lawyers: Overcoming Age Bias

Andie and Al also provide you with advice and techniques you can use to avoid or overcome bias against other and in your own professional capacity.

In this CLE course Andie and Al help you to understand the stereotypes surrounding younger and older lawyers and the biases that result from these stereotypes. Andie and Al will mainly discuss how age discrimination manifests in the legal profession, unconscious stereotypes, what law firms & legal organizations can do and what you can do to overcome your own biases. To access the course please click here: Ending the Discriminatory Consequences of Age Bias in the Legal Profession.

These topics will also be covered:

  • The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA)
  • Age discrimination before & after Gross v. FBL Fin. Svcs. Inc.
  • Mandatory retirement
  • Clear evidence of age bias
  • The daunting problem for older & younger female attorneys
  • Younger lawyers
  • Stereotypes & scripts
  • The ABA Mission Statement
  • ABA Model Rule 8.4(g)

Andrea S. Kramer is an attorney and a partner in the international law firm of McDermott Will & Emery, LLP. The managing partner in the Chicago office of Nixon Peabody, Al is a frequent writer and lecturer on the financial markets, financial regulation, corporate governance and diversity in the legal profession.

This CLE course is offered in the following states:

  • Alaska (AK)
  • Arizona (AZ)
  • California (CA)
  • Connecticut (CT)
  • District of Columbia (DC)
  • Illinois (IL)
  • Maryland (MD)
  • Massachusetts (MA)
  • Michigan (MI)
  • New Hampshire (NH)
  • New Jersey (NJ)
  • New York (NY)
  • North Dakota (ND)
  • Pennsylvania (PA)
  • South Dakota (SD)

Attorney Credits offers CLE for attorneys in Illinois and around the country. For more information about CLE in Illinois please click the following link: IL CLE.

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May 16 2018
California MCLE, CLE, Elimination of Bias, Illinois MCLE, MCLE, New Jersey MCLE, New York MCLE, Online CLE, Texas MCLE

New CLE on What Women Lawyers Can Do to Combat Bias

There’s a reason that women are sorely unrepresented in upper leadership. America’s workplaces – especially legal offices – are riddled with bias against women leaders. As a result, women seeking to advance in their legal careers face both biases that prevent them from reaching the upper echelon of their firms and careers.

Gender Bias in the Legal Profession[1]

Female and male attorneys experience a sharp disparity in their career achievements: compensation earned, management positions held, and first chair opportunities made available. This disparity is primarily the result of one factor: the discriminatory operation of gender stereotypes in all legal organizations—even the very best intentioned ones.

In this thoughtful and fast moving program, Andrea S. Kramer and Alton B. Harris discuss the extent of and reasons for the achievement disparity between female and male lawyers, and how gender stereotypes and gender bias prevent women from advancing in their legal careers as far and as fast as men. Andie and Al mainly discuss the ABA’s response to increase diversity & inclusion, the root of the gender bias problem and what women can do to overcome gender bias. To access the course please click here: What Women Can Do to Advance Their Legal Careers Despite Gender Bias.

Andie and Al also talk about:

  • ABA Model Rule 8.4(g)
  • ABA Resolution 302
  • Men and #MeToo
  • Communal & agentic stereotypes
  • Biases that flow from gender stereotypes
  • The Goldilocks dilemma
  • Impression management
  • Seeking make allies
  • Encouraging organizational change

Andrea S. Kramer is an attorney and a partner in the international law firm of McDermott Will & Emery, LLP. The managing partner in the Chicago office of Nixon Peabody, Al is a frequent writer and lecturer on the financial markets, financial regulation, corporate governance and diversity in the legal profession.

This CLE course is offered in the following states:

  • Alaska (AK)
  • Arizona (AZ)
  • California (CA)
  • Connecticut (CT)
  • District of Columbia (DC)
  • Illinois (IL)
  • Maryland (MD)
  • Massachusetts (MA)
  • Michigan (MI)
  • New Hampshire (NH)
  • New Jersey (NJ)
  • New York (NY)
  • North Dakota (ND)
  • Pennsylvania (PA)
  • South Dakota (SD)

Attorney Credits offers CLE for attorneys in Illinois and around the country. For more information about CLE in Illinois please click the following link: IL CLE.

[1] Rewrite the Script: Overcoming Gender Stereotypes Holding You Back

iframe.dri.org/DRI/course-materials/2017-WITL/pdfs/06_Harris.pdf

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Feb 12 2018
ABA Model Rules, California MCLE, CLE, Competence Issues, Criminal Law, Elimination of Bias, Employment Law, Ethics & Professionalism, Ethics Codes, Illinois MCLE, MCLE, New Jersey MCLE, New York MCLE, Online CLE

CLE Course: Understanding How Unconscious Bias Affects Your Legal Cases

We are all biased.  There is no way around it.  Bias has been hardwired into our brains during our species existence on this planet. Bias stems from a biological survival response triggered by a dangerous or stressful event where a split-second judgement is required as part of the flight or fight response.

Unconscious Bias

Unconscious biases are social stereotypes about certain groups of people that individuals form outside their own conscious awareness.

In this CLE course, you will learn how illegal and unconscious bias affects your cases. Richad Huver provides a lively discussion about how lawyers must identify & deal with biases, how bias affects your decision-making & cases, how to spot illegal & unconscious bias and the common types of bias that lawyers must deal with in their everyday practice. To access the course please click here: We’re All Biased: Understanding How Your Bias Affects Your Cases.

Richard also addresses:

  • Snap judgements
  • Bias & decision-making
  • The amygdala
  • Bias & the biological response
  • The two brain systems
  • Illegal bias
  • Stereotypes
  • Harvard’s Project Implicit
  • Cognitive bias
  • Availability bias
  • Anchoring bias
  • Recency bias
  • The ostrich effect
  • The bandwagon effect
  • The placebo effect
  • Confirmation bias
  • Information bias
  • Choice-supportive bias
  • Zero risk bias
  • Survivorship
  • Outcome bias

Richard’s three decades of litigation experience and leadership roles in the legal community, including President of the San Diego County Bar Association, have proven invaluable in his burgeoning mediation practice. Richard received an Outstanding Trial Lawyer award in 2000 and the President’s Award in 2001 from the Consumer Attorneys of San Diego.

This CLE course is offered in the following states:

  • Alaska (AK)
  • Arizona (AZ)
  • California (CA)
  • Connecticut (CT)
  • District of Columbia (DC)
  • Illinois (IL)
  • Maryland (MD)
  • Massachusetts (MA)
  • Michigan (MI)
  • Missouri (MO)
  • New Hampshire (NH)
  • New Jersey (NJ)
  • New York (NY)
  • North Dakota (ND)
  • Pennsylvania (PA)
  • South Dakota (SD)

Attorney Credits offers CLE for attorneys in California and around the country. For more information about CLE in California please click the following link: CA CLE.

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Jan 16 2018
California MCLE, CLE, Competence Issues, Elimination of Bias, Ethics & Professionalism, MCLE, Online CLE, Substance Abuse

CA CLE: Don’t Forget the Legal Ethics, Bias and Competence Issues by the California MCLE Deadline

Under the CA MCLE Rules, California attorneys are required to complete 25 hours CA MCLE every 3 years. Of those 25 required CA CLE hours, attorneys must complete at least 12.5 hours for participatory credit. OR put another way you CANNOT complete more than 12.5 hours of self-study credit.[1]

CA MCLE Requirement – Specialty Credits

  • 4 Legal Ethics
  • 1 Competence Issues
  • 1 Elimination of Bias

California attorneys must also complete certain 6 hours of certain specialty credits.  Each three year compliance period California attorneys must complete 4 hours of Legal Ethics, 1 hour of Competence Issues, 1 hour of Elimination of Bias. Please note that California attorneys in Group 2 (Last Names H-M) must report MCLE compliance by February 1.[2]  For more information about California please click here: CA CLE.

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Dec 07 2017
ABA Model Rules, CLE, Elimination of Bias, Ethics & Professionalism, Ethics Codes, MCLE, Online CLE

NY CLE: Diversity, Inclusion & Elimination of Bias Required in 2018

Change is coming to the New York CLE requirement in 2018. On January 1, 2018, a new category of CLE credit will be required in New York: “Diversity, Inclusion and Elimination of Bias.” This follows suit with state like Illinois and California that also have a diversity/bias requirement.

Diversity, Inclusion and Elimination of Bias

Starting on January 1, 2018, New York attorneys will be required to complete 1 hour of “Diversity, Inclusion and Elimination of Bias.”

This CLE rule change will not add to the current experienced attorney biennial CLE requirement of twenty-four (24) credit hours, nor does it change the requirement that experienced attorneys earn at least four (4) credit hours in Ethics and Professionalism. New York attorneys will still be required to completed 24 total NY CLE hours, including 4 hours of Ethics & Professionalism and 1 hour of Diversity, Inclusion and Elimination of Bias. For more information about New York CLE please click here: NY CLE.

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Sep 21 2017
CLE, MCLE, New York MCLE, Online CLE

New Diversity, Inclusion and Elimination of Bias CLE Requirement for New York in 2018

Change is coming to the New York CLE requirement. Starting in 2018, a new category of CLE credit will be required in New York: Diversity, Inclusion and Elimination of Bias. This follows suit with state like Illinois and California that also have a diversity/bias/discrimination requirement.

Diversity, Inclusion and Elimination of Bias

Starting in 2018, New York attorneys will be required to complete 1 hour of “Diversity, Inclusion and Elimination of Bias.”

This CLE rule change will not add to the current experienced attorney biennial CLE requirement of 24 hours, nor does it change the requirement that experienced attorneys earn at least 4 hours in Ethics and Professionalism. New York attorneys will still be required to completed 24 total NY CLE hours, including 4 hours of Ethics & Professionalism and 1 hour of Diversity, Inclusion and Elimination of Bias. For more information about New York CLE please click here: NY CLE.

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Aug 03 2017
ABA Model Rules, CLE, Elimination of Bias, Ethics & Professionalism, Ethics Codes, Illinois MCLE, MCLE, Online CLE

New CLE: Achieving Gender Diversity in the Law Firms

In a recent case, a U.S. Magistrate Judge sanctioned an attorney for telling opposing counsel it wasn’t “becoming of a woman” to raise her voice during a contentious deposition. Yes, we have made strides when it comes to creating a level playing field for women in the legal profession… but there is still a long way to go.

Increasing Gender Diversity 

In this lively and thought-provoking program, Andrea S. Kramer and Alton B. Harris discuss how gender bias can prevent law firms and legal organizations from achieving their desired diversity goals.

In this incredibly insightful and practical discussion Andie and Al will mainly address gender disparity in achievement in the legal profession, why gender disparity exists in law firms, ending the gender disparity in law firms and what attorneys can do. Andie and Al will also provide specific action steps for addressing implicit biases and creating policies and procedures that can prevent bias from influencing decisions inside the firm. To access the course please click here: Achieving Real Gender Diversity in the Legal Profession.

The following topics are also covered:

  • ABA Model Rule 8.4(g)
  • State bar professional responsibility rules
  • The Muller-Lyer Illusion
  • Communal & agentic stereotypes
  • The Goldilocks dilemma
  • The moral & business rationale for creating diversity
  • Affinity bias
  • Unconscious bias
  • Being proactive
  • Impression management
  • What male lawyers can do to be a part of the solution

Andrea S. Kramer is an attorney and a partner in the international law firm of McDermott Will & Emery, LLP. The managing partner in the Chicago office of Nixon Peabody, Al is a frequent writer and lecturer on the financial markets, financial regulation, corporate governance and diversity in the legal profession.

This CLE course is offered in the following states:

  • Alaska (AK)
  • Arizona (AZ)
  • California (CA)
  • Connecticut (CT)
  • District of Columbia (DC)
  • Illinois (IL)
  • Maryland (MD)
  • Massachusetts (MA)
  • Michigan (MI)
  • Missouri (MO)
  • New Hampshire (NH)
  • New Jersey (NJ)
  • New York (NY)
  • North Dakota (ND)
  • Pennsylvania (PA)
  • South Dakota (SD)

Attorney Credits offers CLE for attorneys in Illinois and around the country. For more information about CLE in Illinois please click the following link: IL CLE.

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Jul 25 2017
California MCLE, CLE, Elimination of Bias, Ethics & Professionalism, Ethics Codes, Illinois MCLE, MCLE, New Jersey MCLE, New York MCLE, Online CLE

New CLE: Gender Diversity in the Legal Profession

In a recent case, a U.S. Magistrate Judge sanctioned an attorney for telling opposing counsel it wasn’t “becoming of a woman” to raise her voice during a contentious deposition. Yes, we have made strides when it comes to creating a level playing field for women in the legal profession… but there is still a long way to go.

Achieving Real Gender Diversity

Andie and Al provide specific action steps for addressing implicit biases and creating policies and procedures that can prevent bias from influencing decisions inside the firm.

In this lively and thought-provoking program, Andrea S. Kramer and Alton B. Harris discuss how gender bias can prevent law firms and from achieving their desired diversity goals and potential profitability. Andie and Al will mainly address gender disparity in achievement in the legal profession, why gender disparity exists in law firms, ending the gender disparity in law firms and what attorneys can do. To access the course please click here: Achieving Real Gender Diversity in the Legal Profession.

The following topics are also covered:

  • ABA Model Rule 8.4(g)
  • State bar professional responsibility rules
  • The Muller-Lyer Illusion
  • Communal & agentic stereotypes
  • The Goldilocks dilemma
  • The moral & business rationale for creating diversity
  • Affinity bias
  • Unconscious bias
  • Being proactive
  • Impression management
  • What male lawyers can do to be a part of the solution

Andrea S. Kramer is an attorney and a partner in the international law firm of McDermott Will & Emery, LLP. The managing partner in the Chicago office of Nixon Peabody, Al is a frequent writer and lecturer on the financial markets, financial regulation, corporate governance and diversity in the legal profession.

This CLE course is offered in the following states:

  • Alaska (AK)
  • Arizona (AZ)
  • California (CA)
  • Connecticut (CT)
  • District of Columbia (DC)
  • Illinois (IL)
  • Maryland (MD)
  • Massachusetts (MA)
  • Michigan (MI)
  • Missouri (MO)
  • New Hampshire (NH)
  • New Jersey (NJ)
  • New York (NY)
  • North Dakota (ND)
  • Pennsylvania (PA)
  • South Dakota (SD)

Attorney Credits offers CLE for attorneys in California and around the country. For more information about CLE in California please click the following link: CA CLE.

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