Silver Sponsor

About Duane Morris

www.duanemorris.com

Duane Morris LLP, a law firm with more than 900 attorneys in offices across the United States and internationally, is asked by a broad array of clients to provide innovative solutions to today’s legal and business challenges.

Evolving from a partnership of prominent lawyers in Philadelphia a century ago, Duane Morris’ modern organization stretches from the U.S. to London and across Asia. Throughout this global expansion, Duane Morris has remained committed to preserving its collegial, collaborative culture that has attracted many talented attorneys. The firm’s leadership, and outside observers like the Harvard Business School, believe this culture is truly unique among large law firms, and helps account for the firm continuing to prosper throughout changing economic and industry conditions.

Our Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Mission Statement

Duane Morris is committed to being a law firm that includes people of diverse backgrounds and fully utilizes their talents to provide legal services of the highest quality. The firm will employ effective methods of recruitment of a diverse array of talent, and we will support their success and advancement within the firm.

Duane Morris is committed to fostering understanding, communication and respect among all people in the firm, including people of different races, religions, ages, genders, ethnic and cultural backgrounds, national origins, sexual preferences or orientations, medical conditions or disabilities, and marital, veteran or family statuses. The firm believes it should capitalize on the strength emanating from these differences. Drawing on the talents of all of the firm’s personnel helps to create an optimum workplace, one which can attract and retain diverse personnel and clients, allowing it to enter and serve varying markets and approach services to its clients more creatively. Duane Morris has the ability to meet these challenges and recognizes the beneficial impact a successful diversity program will have on firm morale, productivity, strategies and success.

The Executive Committee of Duane Morris has appointed a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee to facilitate the implementation of this Mission Statement.

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Platinum Sponsor

About MassMutual Life Insurance Company

www.massmutual.com

MassMutual was founded on May 15, 1851. And from the beginning, we’ve had a single purpose: to help people secure their future and protect the ones they love. More than 170 years later, that commitment remains our guiding principle. It’s behind everything we do and every decision we make. It’s how we continue to deliver products and services to help our policyowners and customers achieve their financial goals and protect those who matter most. 

As a mutual company, we operate for the benefit of our members and participating policyowners. We manage the company with a focus on their long-term interests and are not subject to the expectations of Wall Street analysts or stockholders. Throughout our history, this focus on the long-term has helped us provide financial and retirement security to millions of people. 

We believe diversity includes the broadest possible range of cultures, backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives, while inclusion means creating an environment where all people and ideas are valued. Our goal is to welcome everyone — customers, employees, suppliers, and visitors alike. Our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion does not waver and is not negotiable. 

Additional Information

At Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, (“MassMutual”), we believe diversity includes the broadest possible range of cultures, backgrounds, experiences and perspectives, while inclusion means creating an environment where all people and ideas are valued. Our goal is to welcome everyone — customers, employees, suppliers and visitors alike. Our passion for diversity and inclusion is not only about doing the right thing; it also helps us achieve our purpose to help people secure their future and protect the ones they love, inclusive of race, gender, age, abilities, place of birth, religion and who they love.

We place a strong emphasis on relationship-building activities, like engaging diverse employees in mentoring and networking opportunities and efforts that drive business impact. Our Business Resource Groups (BRGs) are internal diversity, equity and inclusion champions who support recruitment, community outreach, awareness and education, brand recognition, marketing, retention and professional development. We currently have eight national BRGs representing African Americans, Asians, Latinx, members of the LGBTQ community, individuals with disabilities and their caregivers, armed forces members, veterans and military family members, young professionals and women leaders.

At MassMutual our commitment to getting better is why we’ve signed onto initiatives like the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion and Paradigm for Parity and participate in the Boston Women’s Workforce Council. Through these initiatives, we’re joining businesses across the nation seeking to advance diversity and inclusion in the workplace. It’s all part of our longstanding commitment to do what’s right for our customers, our workforce, and our communities

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Gold Sponsor

About Wiley Rein LLP

www.wiley.law

Wiley is a preeminent law firm wired into Washington. As a trusted advisor to Fortune 500 corporations, trade associations, and individuals across all industries, we provide strategic guidance on complex legal and regulatory matters that define the national and global landscape.

With the current administration shaping policy directives, regulatory enforcement, and legislative agendas, our highly respected attorneys and public policy advisors offer unmatched insights into the evolving priorities of agencies, regulators, and lawmakers.

We are the firm of choice in DC for many of the most innovative, influential, and transformational companies, business groups, and nonprofit organizations. From artificial intelligence (AI), autonomous vehicles, and blockchain technologies to government contracts, international trade, and telecom, media & technology (TMT), we integrate deep industry knowledge with sophisticated understanding of Washington’s regulatory and legislative environment.

Our interdisciplinary approach allows us to anticipate challenges, craft policies, and deliver solutions that empower emerging innovators and established industry leaders to thrive in an era of rapid evolution and heightened scrutiny.

Why did you decide to become a NBA-CLS sponsor?

Wiley is honored to serve as a Gold Sponsor of the National Bar Association – Commercial Law Section, supporting its work to advance inclusivity in the legal profession and foster meaningful connections between in-house and outside counsel.

Additional Information

Wiley is home to a dynamic group of attorneys dedicated to our clients, our work, and our community. At Wiley, we aim to leverage our collaborative culture to celebrate the collective strength of all people – all under one umbrella.

Wiley is committed to inclusion and engagement, fostering a culture where all employees are encouraged to bring their unique perspectives to the table. The firm’s dedication to pro bono work and community service underscores its commitment to making a positive impact beyond the legal profession.

Wiley also invests in the next generation of legal leaders through strategic pipeline initiatives. We offer scholarships for pre-law and 1/2L law students who have demonstrated financial need, academic achievement, leadership, and resilience. These programs provide critical exposure to the legal field and help build pathways to success.

Our affinity groups play a central role in promoting connection and growth within the firm. These member-founded groups—including AANHPI Lawyers, Black Lawyers, Latinx Lawyers, LGBTQ+ Lawyers, Parents-in-the-Law & Allies, Veterans, Military Families & Allies, and the Women’s Forum—meet regularly to foster mentorship, inclusion, and professional development.

Our efforts have earned national recognition. We once again received a perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index and were named a Top Performer and Compass Award recipient by the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity—our fourth time receiving this honor. We also continue to be recognized among the Washington Business Journal’s top corporate philanthropists.

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Platinum Sponsor

About Perkins Coie

www.perkinscoie.com

Perkins Coie is a leading international law firm that is known for providing high value, strategic solutions and extraordinary client service on matters vital to our clients’ success. With more than 1,200 lawyers in offices across the United States and Asia, Perkins Coie provides a full array of corporate, commercial litigation, intellectual property, and regulatory legal advice to a broad range of clients, including many of the world’s most innovative companies and industry leaders as well as public and not-for-profit organizations.

Perkins Coie is frequently recognized for its leadership in the legal profession including being named among the “100 Best Companies to Work For” for 20 consecutive years by Fortune and achieving the #1 U.S. employer ranking among the 2021 “Best Workplaces in Consulting & Professional Services” by Great Place to Work®. Perkins Coie received the Mansfield 4.0 Certification Plus for Diversity Leadership from Diversity Lab (2021), was ranked one of the “Best Workplaces for Diversity™” by Great Place to Work® and Fortune, and earned a top rating of 100 percent in the Corporate Equality Index by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation for the 14th year in a row.

Why did you decide to become a NBA-CLS sponsor?

Perkins Coie proudly supports the tireless efforts of the National Bar Association in establishing a space for Black attorneys to gather, connect, and support each other in the legal profession. It is an organization that shares in our own commitment to expanding the pipeline of African Americans entering the legal profession as well. Diversity is a long-standing core value at Perkins Coie and we share the same acknowledgment of NBA-CLS that no corporation or institution could achieve true success without it.

Additional Information

Perkins Coie is leading the way towards inclusion through programs like the Black Boardroom Initiative which hopes to nearly triple the ratio of Black executives on the boards of major public companies by 2028. Backed by some of Washington’s biggest firms, including Amazon, Microsoft and Starbucks, the initiative seeks to build and maintain a pipeline between executive participants and public companies to help address a critical diversity, equity, and corporate governance challenge. It is the latest response to call for more balanced leadership at a time of escalating concerns about social justice and racial equity.

Perkins Coie introduced a new policy providing partnership-track associates and counsel up to 50 hours of billable-equivalent credit for time spent actively participating in diversity and inclusion-related work. Eligible work includes helping organize significant internal and external D&I related events, participating in D&I related speaking engagements, mentoring diverse lawyers or law school students, leading office D&I committees or national resource groups, and participating in the recruitment of diverse lawyers.

The Perkins Coie Diverse Attorneys’ Hotline is a resource through which diverse associates and counsel can provide feedback, voice concerns, and elevate any challenges they experience as barriers to their career advancement. It provides attorneys with a safe place to go if they do not feel comfortable talking about their concerns with their supervising attorney or practice group leader.

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Gold Sponsor

About Alston & Bird

www.alston.com

The NBA-CLS provides an outstanding platform for networking and relationship building for in-house and outside counsel interested in promoting diversity and inclusion in the legal profession.  The talent that is showcased in the NBA-CLS is world-class, and we support the annual conference to celebrate and promote that talent.

Why did you decide to become a NBA-CLS sponsor?

The NBA-CLS provides an outstanding platform for networking and relationship building for in-house and outside counsel interested in promoting diversity and inclusion in the legal profession.  The talent that is showcased in the NBA-CLS is world-class, and we support the annual conference to celebrate and promote that talent.  

Additional Information

Alston & Bird has been a leader in law firm diversity and inclusion for many years, paving the way with ground-breaking initiatives and programs.  It is not by chance that Alston & Bird has built a reputation as one of the country’s best employers, appearing on Fortune magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” for twenty-six consecutive years.  We have received national awards and recognition for our diversity and inclusion, including scoring 100% on the Human Rights Campaign Corporate Equality Index for 20 consecutive years.

Alston & Bird has gone beyond a one size fits all blueprint when it comes to inclusion. We understand that creating and maintaining an inclusive environment where everyone feels that they can succeed, that they belong, and that they matter is critical to attracting and retaining top talent.  We accomplish this goal with initiatives that include embedding Practice Group Diversity Partners in each of the firm’s practice groups to work to ensure everyone has equal access to meaningful work, client teams, and mentoring. The firm also provides up to 50 hours of billable credit toward associate bonus thresholds for diversity & inclusion leadership activities. Our Firmwide Diversity & Inclusion Committee, led by our full-time Diversity & Inclusion Partner, is dedicated to enabling meaningful, long-term changes that ensure the firm is second to none in attracting, developing, nourishing, and retaining top talent at the firm.

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