In light of ongoing protests against racial injustice, Miller Canfield is pleased to announce that it has joined the Law Firm Antiracism Alliance.

The Alliance was formed in June 2020 to "leverage the resources of the private bar in partnership with legal services organizations to amplify the voices of communities and individuals oppressed by racism, to better use the law as a vehicle for change that benefits communities of color and to promote racial equity in the law," according to its charter.

Today is June 19 – Juneteenth – a date often overlooked and traditionally not widely celebrated nor recognized for its historical significance. 

Recent social unrest however, has caused a collective awakening of sorts. This awakening has given way to a reckoning over the insidious nature of racism. From this reckoning will come necessary changes in how we deal with one another as human beings, and all of this will be good.

Big congratulations to Michelle Crockett, who was recently named among Michigan Lawyers Weekly's Leaders in the Law, Class of 2020, and was also appointed to serve on the Board of Directors for the Detroit Regional LGBT Chamber of Commerce.  

Michelle is Miller Canfield's Hiring Chair and the firm's Diversity and Professional Development Principal, as well as a litigator in our Employment and Labor Group.

We are proud to share that for the second year in a row, Miller Canfield is named among major law firms nationwide that have earned Mansfield Plus Certification recognizing a commitment to improving diversity in hiring and promotion practices. Fifty-one U.S. firms met the high standards to achieve certification from Diversity Lab, the leading incubator for innovative solutions to foster diversity and inclusion in law firms.

Named for Arabella Mansfield, the first woman admitted to practice law in the United States the Mansfield Rule firms affirmatively consider women and minority attorneys—at least 30 percent of the candidate pool—for leadership positions and senior-level recruiting. Mansfield Plus Certification indicates that the firm also has achieved representation of at least 30 percent women and minorities in a large number of key leadership roles and lateral hiring.

Miller Canfield is pleased to announce that it has earned top scores in the OnTrack for Leadership law firm diversity and inclusion program. 

Miller Canfield partnered with Diversity Lab, the national incubator for law firm diversity programs, to pilot the OnTrack for Leadership program to support the retention, advancement and business development efforts of women and minority attorneys. The program combines teamwork and a custom technology platform, based on behavioral science and data often used in games and social media, to drive and sustain engagement and to ensure that sponsorship and mentorship are provided in an equitable and effective manner at key inflection points in the careers of women and minorities. 

Miller Canfield is proud to be recognized by OutFront Kalamazoo for the firm's support of the LGBTQ community.

OutFront Kalamazoo serves the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community of greater Kalamazoo and its friends and allies. Every year, OutFront honors local community members and businesses that support the LGBTQ community, and has chosen Miller Canfield to receive the 2019 Business/Retail Award.

Miller Canfield is the only firm in Michigan to be named among 41 major law firms nationwide that have earned Mansfield Certification from Diversity Lab, the national incubator for innovative ideas and solutions to boost diversity and inclusion in law, and is one of just 27 to earn the Mansfield Certified Plus designation for 2018.

We are proud to be one of the law firms pioneering the Mansfield 2.0 rule to close the gap in leadership roles for women and minorities in law firm hiring. In 2017, we were among several dozen of the nation's leading firms to adopt the original Mansfield Rule, named for the first woman admitted to practice law in the United States, Arabella Mansfield.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently announced that it will launch two new training programs: Leading for Respect (for supervisors) and Respect in the Workplace (for all employees). The EEOC is offering these programs as an alternative to harassment prevention; the training will be conducted by EEOC Training Institute staff.

According to the EEOC, the programs will focus on respect, acceptable workplace conduct, and the types of behaviors that contribute to a respectful and inclusive workplace. The Commission also noted that the programs are customizable for different types of workplaces and include a section for reviewing the employers’ own harassment prevention policies and procedures.

It might be hard to believe, but one of my favorite times of the year is February. It’s not because of Michigan’s winter weather. Nor is it because I’m a hopeless romantic who just loves Valentine’s Day. It’s because February is the time of year my colleagues from all over the world come to Michigan to gather for the firm’s annual meeting.