We
are committed to promoting diversity in all aspects of our practice
through the active recruitment, development and retention of lawyers
and legal professionals with diverse backgrounds and life
experiences.
At
Kaufman Dolowich & Voluck (KDV), we take our role as citizens of
the legal community very seriously. We are passionate advocates for
our clients and dutiful stewards of the law. Equally important,
we are committed to advancing our clients’ interests and our
practice through the hiring, retention and promotion of lawyers and
legal professionals from all backgrounds. To us, diversity is not an
end, it is a means by
which to achieve the high standards to which we subscribe.
Our
Diversity and Inclusion Initiatives
Our
efforts to promote diversity and inclusion in all aspects of our
practice are led by Partner and Chief Diversity & Inclusion
Officer Katherine
S. Catlos.
Based in our San Francisco office, Katherine focuses her practice in
the areas of employment and privacy law, and she brings a wealth of
professional and personal insights to promoting the benefits of our
firm’s diverse workforce, both internally and externally.
Katherine
led Kaufman Dolowich & Voluck, LLP’s initiative to
achieve Mansfield
Rule 4.0 certification
in 2021. KDV is one of only 118 firms nationwide to achieve
this status. Additionally, KDV was one of only 64 law firms to
achieve Mansfield 2.0 certification in 2019, and one of only 100 law
firms to achieve Mansfield
3.0 in
2020.
Other
examples of Kaufman Dolowich & Voluck’s recent diversity and
inclusion initiatives include:
-
In
April 2022, a KDV Associate was sponsored to participate in the 2022
National Employment Law Council Academy for advanced skills training
and mentoring for minority employment defense lawyers. She is
partnered with an experienced attorney mentor, and also learns by
interacting with lawyers from major corporations, and leading
minority labor and employment defense lawyers.
-
In
February 2022, KDV hosted a Black History Month Open Forum. Staff
from across the nation gathered to have an open discussion about
diversity today in their lives, in the law industry, and at the
Firm. We reviewed history, celebrated the country and the Firm’s
achievements, and recognized what work can be done to further the
Firm’s diversity goals.
-
In
February 2022, KDV’s Women’s Initiative presented a session
entitled “Gender Bias and Gender Diversity in Law” reviewing
current law, real-life ethics, and held open discussions on handling
sexist or gender biased remarks in law industry settings, direct
confrontation tools, positive male partnerships, and advocacy
considerations.
-
During
the year, members of KDV’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee join
Diversity Lab’s Mansfield
Rule 5.0 Knowledge Sharing Calls to
learn as a community to move the needle on diversity and inclusion
more effectively.
-
In
August 2021, KDV’s firmwide co-managing partner Ivan Dolowich was
honored by the Holocaust Memorial & Tolerance Center of Nassau
County. The Center uses the history and lessons of the Holocaust to
teach about the dangers of antisemitism, bullying, racism, and all
manifestations of intolerance. “Their mission is as relevant and
important today as it has ever been, as we see antisemitism and
racism prevalent throughout the country. I will continue to do
whatever I can to support efforts to address these critical issues,”
said Dolowich.
-
In
June 2021, KDV hosted a robust seminar in which Dr. Richard Harvey,
Associate Professor, Industrial-Organizational and Experiment
Programs, St. Louis University, presented a live webinar
to our nationwide team about collective identity and its social
group phenomena.
-
In
December 2020, KDV’s D&I Committee hosted an “Unconscious
Bias Training” in which Professor Kimberly Norwood, Professor of
Law at Washington University School of Law, presented a webinar
which was designed to raise consciousness about what implicit biases
are and how they can negatively influence individual decision
making.
-
In
June 2020, KDV’s D&I Committee hosted a “D&I Town Hall
Forum” which was an interactive forum provided and open to
everyone in the firm to learn about the firm’s Mansfield
achievements and participate in an open discussion to ask questions
and engage in a dialogue about diversity and inclusion in today’s
current environment.
-
In
April 2018, KDV’s Women’s Initiative co-sponsored “A
Conversation with Pamela Ryckman, author of Stiletto Network” with
another multinational insurance carrier in New York City. More than
200 KDV attorneys, clients and others spent an inspiring afternoon
with the author discussing the topic of empowering women to work
together.
-
In
January 2018, KDV’s Women’s Initiative hosted Dr. Arin Reeves,
author of “One Size Never Fits All”. Her presentation focused on
recognizing and understanding the differences between how women and
men communicate, work, develop business and lead in law firms.
-
In
November 2017, KDV’s Women’s Initiative partnered with a global
insurance provider to host a screening of the documentary film
“Balancing the Scales,” which delves into the challenges facing
women lawyers. In the film, lawyer and filmmaker Sharon Rowen
highlights inspiring stories of women lawyers of all ages who work
to help women and girls worldwide.
-
KDV
has also co-hosted multiple programs with the PLUS Women’s
Networking Initiative that have attracted speakers with national
reputations.
Our
firm has hosted, co-hosted and participated in many other diversity
and inclusion-focused events with our clients as well. We encourage
all of our attorneys to foster relationships with our clients, and we
believe strongly in the value of forging personal connections that
extend beyond the business setting. As a lawyer working at KDV, you
will have access to our firm’s leaders and our clients’ key
stakeholders, and we will provide you with the opportunity to build
the career, relationships and reputation you desire.
We
Encourage Our Lawyers to Be Leaders in Their Communities
In
addition to these types of firm-wide initiatives, many of our lawyers
are personally involved with organizations of their choosing that
promote diversity and inclusion both within and outside of the
practice of law. We encourage all of our lawyers to assume active
leadership roles in these and other types of professional
organizations.
We
employ lawyers who are now, or were, actively involved with
organizations including:
-
Armenian
Bar Association
-
Black
Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles
-
California
Minority Counsel Program
-
Chinese
American Bar Association of Greater Chicago
-
Filipino
American Lawyers Association
-
Florida
Association of Women Lawyers
-
Garden
State Bar Association
-
Hispanic
Bar Association of New Jersey
-
Hispanic
National Bar Association
-
Korean
American Lawyers Association
-
Minority
Corporate Counsel Association
-
New
Jersey State Bar Association
-
Association
of the Federal Bar of New Jersey
-
National
Association of Women Lawyers
-
National
Bar Association
-
New
Jersey Statewide Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
-
Polish
American Leadership Political Action Committee (PAL-PAC)
-
Queens
Bench Bar Association
Are
You Interested in Joining KDV?
We
believe that our law firm should reflect the diverse world we serve.
If we sound like your type of firm, we encourage you to get in touch.
Visit our Careers
page
to learn more about working at KDV.
