Gerald Pauling Quoted in New York Law Journal
on Diversity at Law Firms

Chicago partner Gerald Pauling was quoted in an August 24, 2010 New York Law Journal article on diversity at law firms. The article discussed how clients have strongly encouraged outside counsel to improve diversity at their law firms for years, but now firms like Seyfarth are initiating the diversity discussion themselves. According to the article, Michele Coleman Mayes, general counsel of Allstate Corporation, a Seyfarth client, began working with the firm on a soon-to-be-launched "Allstate Diversity Scorecard" that would in her words, "permit us to give scores, in certain key categories, that focus at the end of the day on what the diversity profile of the firm really looks like." According to Mayes, firms that score high will get more legal work and those with low scores will see work shifted to other firms. Gerald, who was involved in the discussions with Allstate, said the firm has reached out to other clients on diversity issues as well. The article noted that he called the direct discussions with clients on how to build diversity initiatives "an evolution, because it puts us on the same side of the same issue to work together."