"We are proud to participate in this and other innovative programs, which make meaningful change and help us to continue to hold ourselves accountable in meeting concrete and measurable goals that align with our firm’s inclusive culture," Miller Canfield CEO Michael McGee said. "As we have known for a long time, law firm diversity is not only good for the attorneys who practice here, but is also increasingly important to the clients we serve. Like us, they recognize that firms who take diversity seriously do so not only because it’s the right thing to do, but because data has proven that law firm diversity leads to superior client service, stronger client service teams and the highest quality of legal representation."

Launched in 2018 with 10 of the country’s top law firms participating, the program required each firm to identify diverse groups of new partners and principals to participate as protégés. Each participant worked closely with a core team of sponsors that include high-level firm partners, in-house legal executives and an external coach. At each step of the program, participants were assisted by their core team of sponsors, and subsequently scored as to their progress with business development, and setting and/or achievement of long-term and short-term career goals related to advancement into senior level leadership positions. Of all the participating firms, Miller Canfield’s attorneys collectively earned the highest scores.

A longtime leader in law firm diversity, Miller Canfield was in 2018 the only Michigan-based firm to meet Diversity Lab’s high standards to earn Mansfield Plus Certification, which requires that one third of candidates must be women, minorities and LGBTQ attorneys when the firm is making lateral hiring and promotion decisions.