Diversity and Inclusion

Porter Hedges strives to attract, retain, and promote outstanding lawyers and other professionals who reflect the marketplace, communities, and clients that we serve.

At Porter Hedges, we believe that diversity of viewpoints, experience, and backgrounds enhances the quality of our work and enables us to better understand our clients' needs in order to exceed their expectations.

Our goal is to attract, retain, support, and promote outstanding lawyers and professionals who reflect the marketplace, communities, and clients that we serve. We are committed to achieving greater diversity, not just for our firm, but also for our profession.

Through the development of programs and policies, the Porter Hedges Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging (DEIB) Committee leads the effort to ingrain diversity into the fabric of the firm. The Committee works to assess the firm’s diversity strengths and shortcomings, engages in strategic initiatives that promote diversity within the firm and community, and cultivates an inclusive work environment with a heightened appreciation for each of our unique backgrounds.

1L Diversity Fellowship Program

The Porter Hedges 1L Diversity Fellowship is awarded annually to a first-year law student with a strong commitment to promoting diversity and inclusion. The fellowship program provides the selected candidate the opportunity to receive up to $25,000 in stipends during their participation in the program. Additional details can be found here.

Diversity Scholarship at Texas Southern University

The Porter Hedges Diversity Scholarship at Texas Southern University (TSU) is awarded annually to an undergraduate student at TSU who is interested in pursuing a career in the legal profession upon graduation. The scholarship provides the selected student with scholarship money up to $10,000 and the opportunity to participate in a 9-month mentorship program. Additional details can be found here.

Diversity Billable Hours Credit Policy

Porter Hedges offers billable hour credit to recognize the efforts and contributions by individual lawyers to promote and advance diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) in the legal profession. The DEIB Billable Hour Credit Policy allows all non-partner attorneys the opportunity to earn billable hour credit for approved DEIB activities throughout the year. Additional details can be found here.

Juneteenth Holiday

Porter Hedges has made Juneteenth an annual firm holiday starting in 2022. The firm recognizes the importance of this holiday and how it has shaped our community and country. 

Midsize Mansfield Rule Certification Program

Porter Hedges has received Mansfield Certification for 2022-2023 and is actively pursuing certification for the 2023-2024 program term.

The Midsize Mansfield Rule Program, Diversity Lab’s 12-month program geared towards firms ranging from 25-150 lawyers, measures the structural changes and steps taken by participating organizations to ensure the path to leadership is open and transparent to all lawyers. Each part of the Mansfield Rule Program aims to boost the representation of underrepresented lawyers in law firm leadership by broadening the pool of qualified candidates considered for hiring, promotions, and appointments. More information on the Midsize Mansfield Rule can be found here.

Leadership Council on Legal Diversity

The firm has been an active member of the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD) since 2020. Our attorneys participate in multiple LCLD activities annually, including: the Fellows Program, the Pathfinder Program, the 1L Scholars Program, Alumni meetings, and law school mentoring. More information on LCLD can be found here.

Past program participants:
Gabriel Loperena, Fellow – 2020
Megan Luh, Pathfinder – 2021
Emily Pendleton, Pathfinder – 2023
Daisy Puente, Pathfinder – 2023

Diversity Committee in Action

The firm supports diversity initiatives throughout the community in which it serves, including:

Internal Diversity Programming

    
Contacts

Joyce Kao Soliman
Chair, Diversity & Inclusion Committee
Ashley H. Black
Diversity & Inclusion Manager

     

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