Haynes and Boone Earns Perfect Score in Corporate Equality Index for Third Consecutive Year
January, 2021 - Dallas, Texas
For a third consecutive year, Haynes and Boone, LLP has earned a 100 percent rating in the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index and the distinction of being one of the “Best Places to Work for LGBTQ Equality.”
The Corporate Equality Index (CEI) is a national benchmarking tool that measures policies, practices and benefits pertinent to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) employees.
“The CEI ranking is an important indicator of our commitment to create a supportive and inclusive environment for all of our lawyers and staff,” said Managing Partner Taylor Wilson.
Helping drive the firm’s diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts is the Attorney Diversity and Inclusion Committee (ADIC), which comprises partners, associates, counsel and key members of management. The committee sets goals for its policies and programs related to the recruitment, retention, promotion and professional development of the firm’s diverse lawyers – and the next generation of diverse lawyers that it hopes to recruit to the profession.
The ADIC comprises sub-committees such as the LGBTQ+, Minority Attorney Initiatives, Pipeline Initiatives, Women’s Initiative, and Working Parents sub-committees, all of which are designed to develop and promote DEI as a collective and sustained focus.
“We are making steady progress in helping the firm achieve its diversity, equity and inclusion goals,” said Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Director Jennifer Reddien. “Earning a perfect score in the Corporate Equality Index for three consecutive years is a reflection of this work.”
The firm has received notable recognition for its DEI efforts. In 2020, the firm achieved certification in the Mansfield Rule 3.0 program 2020, which measures whether law firms have affirmatively considered women, attorneys of color, LGBTQ+ attorneys, and attorneys with disabilities for recruitment, governance roles, equity partner promotions, and inclusion in formal pitches to clients. Also, the firm received the Women in Law Empowerment Forum (WILEF) Gold Standard Certification in 2020, with preceding recognition from 2011 to 2015 and 2017 to 2018.
Haynes and Boone is an international corporate law firm with offices in Texas, New York, California, Charlotte, Chicago, Denver, Washington, D.C., London, Mexico City and Shanghai, providing a full spectrum of legal services in energy, technology, financial services and private equity. With more than 575 lawyers, Haynes and Boone is ranked among the largest U.S.-based firms by The National Law Journal, The American Lawyer and The Lawyer. It also was recognized across the board for excellence in the BTI Consulting Group’s 2020 “A-Team” report, which identifies the law firms that in-house counsel commend for providing superior client service.
About the Corporate Equality Index
Launched in 2002, the CEI is an annual report published by the HRC Foundation that rates American businesses on their treatment of LGBTQ employees, consumers and investors. Its primary sources of data are surveys, but researchers cross-check business policy and their implications for LGBTQ workers and public records independently.
The CEI rates private employers, including many of the nation’s highest-grossing firms, on a scale of 0 to 100 based on several factors, including written non-discrimination policies and training; parity in domestic partner benefits and transgender-inclusive health insurance benefits; LGBTQ employee groups; appropriate and respectful advertising to the LGBTQ community; and rejection of any activities that would undermine the goal of equal rights for LGBTQ people.
