City Bar Announces 2018 Diversity, Inclusion and Elimination of Bias (D&I) CLE Programming
With a new Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) and Elimination of Bias CLE category being implemented as of January 1, 2018, the New York City Bar Association has announced a variety of relevant programming to provide CLE credit to its members and the greater legal community.
The first five announced programs, many of which will be free for City Bar members, are “Inclusive Leadership = Intelligent Leadership: The Next Level of Leadership for 21st Century Legal Workplaces” on January 17, “Trial Reenactment: Constance Baker Motley, James Meredith, and the University of Mississippi” on February 12, “Outsmart Your Unconscious Biases” on March 8, “The Color of Law: The Role of U.S. Law and Policy in Racial Segregation in Housing” on March 23, and the “2018 Diversity and Inclusion Conference & CLE” on June 14.
The New York State CLE Board’s creation of a new D&I CLE credit category follows a February 2016 ABA Resolution recommending that states implement such a requirement; significant advocacy on the part of the City Bar’s President, John S. Kiernan, its Diversity & Inclusion Office (Gabrielle Lyse Brown, Director) and its Committee to Enhance Diversity in the Profession (Hon. Rosalyn Richter and Nate Saint-Victor, 2016-2017 Co-Chairs); and an overwhelming vote of approval by the State Bar’s House of Delegates. The City Bar believes this new requirement represents a significant step toward increasing the legal profession’s awareness of issues of bias and inclusion.
D&I programs must relate to the practice of law and may address, among other things, implicit and explicit bias, equal access to justice, serving a diverse population, diversity and inclusion initiatives in the legal profession, and sensitivity to cultural and other differences when interacting with members of the public, judges, jurors, litigants, attorneys and court personnel.
More information on upcoming D&I programs at the City Bar can be found here. For further information on the new CLE requirement, please visit the New York State Unified Court System’s resource page.
About the Association
The New York City Bar Association, since its founding in 1870, has been dedicated to maintaining the high ethical standards of the legal profession, promoting reform of the law and access to justice, and providing service to the profession and the public. The Association, through its 24,000 members, continues to work for political, legal and social reform, while implementing innovative means to help the disadvantaged. Protecting the public’s welfare remains one of the Association’s highest priorities. www.nycbar.org
