What Biglaw Is Saying About The Unrest Sweeping The Nation

First, permit us to confirm that, to our knowledge, none of our personnel has been injured by the violence. Just as importantly, we wish to confirm unequivocally that our law firm stands squarely behind the calls for equal justice and fair treatment for all of our citizens both within our law enforcement system and otherwise. The highly publicized events of recent weeks and months speak for themselves and are deeply disturbing. Perhaps not surprisingly, those vivid television images triggered long simmering grievances that are now playing out on this nation’s streets and around the world.

We practice law and strive to provide exemplary service to our clients in communities all over the world. In every office, we have worked hard to partake and become a positive influence in that local community. In the U.S. right now, doing so means standing up and affirming our values.  While neither we nor anyone else in our industry is perfect, our firm has long been recognized as a leader in providing equal opportunity where it did not always exist. Indeed, the fact that our firm has several dozen women and minorities in either elected or appointed leadership positions distinguishes us among our peers. While we still of course have work to do, we are proud of that track record in an industry that struggles with these issues. Our firm commitment to sustaining a truly diverse and inclusive organization also necessitates our standing up to speak out against the type of gross societal injustices highlighted by recent events. We categorically reject that in every form. That same commitment to justice also requires us to categorically reject the violent behavior among some that is working to undermine the causes that precipitated the protests in the first instance. It is important to remain focused on the underlying issues and not permit that focus to be hijacked by violent actors with their own agendas.

Given the pandemic, these are challenging times for all of us. Recent events compel us today to reaffirm that our law firm globally embraces the fundamental values of fair and equal treatment of people everywhere without regard to race, gender, religion, sexual orientation or physical condition. We have no qualms in reaffirming those to be the fundamental values of our firm. While we appreciate that these disturbing events potentially impact us all, we are also cognizant of the fact that they are likely to be especially painful for our ethnically diverse personnel. We want you to know that your law firm respects that and will continue to work to share and address these legitimate concerns as priorities. Moreover, SPB will also undoubtedly play a more granular role in many of our U.S. communities as we assist our local, state and federal governments in successfully navigating the storms before us. That is a part of our culture and tradition as well. In closing, be safe, be well and be proud to be a part of an institution that holds and attempts to model these values every day. Again, we are not perfect, but we set upon the path to become a better law firm in this regard a long time ago. These events will only serve to intensify our resolve to continue these critical efforts. Indeed, this is work that is never finished.