Diversity: Haynes and Boone, LLP

A Comprehensive Effort to Recruit and Retain

Effective recruiting and mentoring are foundations of diversity. To that end, we have established the Haynes and Boone Minority Scholars Program for first year students at SMU Dedman School of Law and the University of Texas School of Law. Haynes and Boone Scholars receive a monthly stipend, a summer clerkship at our firm, and a mentor to provide guidance during the student’s first year in law school.

Since 2003, Haynes and Boone has also participated in an initiative sponsored by the Houston Bar Association to provide a summer clerkship in our Houston office to a first year minority law student from one of the three area law schools in Houston (the University of Houston, South Texas College of Law, and Texas Southern University). For more information about this initiative, please contact the Recruiting Offices of one of these schools.

Minority and women lawyers at the firm also benefit from an environment that places strong emphasis on mentoring and training. In fact, in 2002, Haynes and Boone received the Minority Corporate Counsel Association’s prestigious Thomas L. Sager Award for sustained commitment to improving the hiring, retention and promotion of minority and women lawyers. This award is just one example of the recognition that the firm has received for its diversity efforts.

Groundbreaking Recruiting Programs

Haynes and Boone’s “1L Fast Track Program” is a truly innovative recruiting program. During the second half of the summer, Haynes and Boone invites a large group of first year law students, many of them minority law students, to spend a week at the law firm. This ground-breaking alternative to the traditional 6-week summer program provides “Fast-Trackers” with a unique opportunity to experience Haynes and Boone’s dynamic culture.

Diversity.  Living a Tangible Commitment

Haynes and Boone has long been recognized as a pioneer in the area of diversity and women initiatives. In fact, the firm appears in many “Top 100” rankings related to diversity and women issues. Although we are proud of this recognition, the firm views these accomplishments as small steps towards a greater journey.

Our diverse group women and minority attorneys play a pivotal role in our firm’s past, present and future development. We seek to attract and retain lawyers of varied backgrounds who reflect the global marketplace that we serve, and mirror the diverse communities in which we live.

Facilitating Dialogue via Targeted Networking Opportunities

Haynes and Boone believes that facilitating communication amongst minority and women attorneys is key to advancing diversity.

Every other year, minority attorneys at the firm are invited to an annual “Minority Retreat.” The Minority Retreat provides a forum for minority attorneys to openly discuss minority attorney retention and minority attorney development issues. During the two-day retreat, attendees participate in small break-out discussion groups, where they discuss ways to maintain and improve diversity at the law firm. After the break-out sessions, the attendees reconvene and share their discussions with all of the attendees. The Minority Retreat also offers attendees an opportunity to meet and get to know other minority attorneys at the law firm. Guest speakers, who are often client in-house attorneys, are also invited to the Minority Retreat to share their views on how diversity affects the practice of law.

A Record of Transparency and Accomplishment

Our diversity and women initiatives encourage our lawyers to draw upon their unique experiences and backgrounds to develop their careers. Here are a couple of key facts about our lawyers: 1) our lawyers come from 44 states and 24 foreign countries, and 2) Haynes and Boone attorneys are proficient in 22 foreign languages, including Spanish, Russian, French, Portuguese, and Chinese.

We strongly believe that cultural and ethnic differences enhance innovation and the delivery of quality legal services to a diverse marketplace. Our beliefs are reflected in our attorney workforce (17 percent of our lawyers of color and 31 percent are women), ranking us among among the top 20 law firms for overall diversity.

We believe that recognition for our diversity efforts helps build momentum to support our recruitment and retention of the widest and best cross-section of attorney talent.  That is why we are proud of such designations and rankings as these:

• In 2011, Haynes and Boone was designated as a Community of Respect® by the Anti-Defamation League for its commitment to respect and diversity.
• In 2011, Haynes and Boone was selected as the inaugural recipient of the AT&T Legal Department Diversity Award in the large law firm category. The award singled out a small, medium and large firm for their activities and accomplishments promoting diversity and inclusion in the legal profession.
• Haynes and Boone received eight new category rankings in the 2012 Vault Top 100 annual survey, with 13 total category rankings. The firm was ranked No. 19 for its overall commitment to diversity out of 100 of the nation's largest law firms. Specialized categories included No. 11 in diversity with respect to women, No. 18 in diversity with respect to minorities and No. 25 in regard to formal training, No. 6 in regard to hours and No. 15 in regard to office space.
• Haynes and Boone jumped up eight spots in MultiCultural Law Magazine’s 2010 ranking of the top 100 law firms for diversity, coming in at No. 38 among all American Bar Association firms, including the following specialized categories: No. 11 in the “Top 25 Law Firms for Hispanics,” No. 15 in the “Top 25 Law Firms for Native-Americans,” No. 80 in the “Top 100 Law Firms for Women,” No. 21 in the “Top 50 Law Firms for Partners” and No. 47 in the “Top 50 Law Firms for Associates.”
• Haynes and Boone ranked No. 56 out of more than 200 law firms in American Lawyer’s 2011 Diversity Scorecard.
• In 2011, Haynes and Boone received a Gold Standard Certification from the Women in Law Empowerment Forum. A firm's WILEF certification demonstrates that women represent a meaningful percentage of their equity partners, highest leadership positions, governance and compensation committees, and their most highly compensated partners.
• For the third consecutive year, Haynes and Boone earned the top rating of 100 percent in the Corporate Equality Index administered by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. The firm received top marks for its treatment of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) employees and consumers, 2009-2011.
• Haynes and Boone was awarded the 2010 Corporate Equality Award from Lambda Legal’s South Central Regional Office for its long-standing support of Lambda Legal and that organization’s efforts to protect the rights of lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, transgender people (LGBT) and those with HIV.
• The Houston office of Haynes and Boone was named a Community of Respect™ by the Anti-Defamation League’s (ADL) Southwest Region in 2010.
• In American Lawyer’s 2010 Midlevel Associate Survey, Haynes and Boone ranked No. 47 out of 137 law firms for its dedication to diversity.
• Haynes and Boone received the prestigious Thomas L. Sager Award in 2002, presented by the Minority Corporate Counsel Association in recognition of the firm’s commitment to diversity.

A Program of Active Advancement

The Attorney Diversity Committee develops initiatives that open doors and create windows of opportunity, with the goal of advancing the hiring, retention and promotion of diverse lawyers in our firm.  At Haynes and Boone, diversity is not just programs and statistics.  It is an important and integral part of our culture.  We have several sub-committees that focus on specific areas of diversity, including Women, Minority and LGBT initiatives.
 

The Attorney Diversity Committee is led by 14 firm partners and key members of management who advocate the importance and necessity of a diverse law firm. This is a reflection of our leadership’s insistence on the inclusion of diverse lawyers into firm governance as practice group leaders, committee leaders, and holders of key management roles.
 

Our lawyers also actively pursue leadership roles outside of our firm in state and local bar associations that support diversity in the legal workplace. For example, our lawyers are leaders in the following groups: the Texas Minority Counsel Program, the Dallas Asian American Bar Association, the Houston Hispanic Bar Association, and the Asian American Bar Association of Houston.