Foley & Lardner strives to be the best place to work for everyone. Our commitment stems from the fact that our ability to help our clients achieve their business goals starts with our people. Our imperative is to recruit, develop, and promote top talent from a variety of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. Our approach includes identifying, acknowledging, and dismantling artificial barriers that make it difficult for many to thrive in the legal industry. Creating an equitable and inclusive workplace is not only the right thing to do for our people, it drives the very best client service. Foley is for all.
Representation at Foley by the Numbers
70%
Of Department Chairs Are Demographically Underrepresented*
60%
Of Our Management Committee Is Demographically Underrepresented
38%
U.S. Office Managing Partners Are Demographically Underrepresented
74%
Of 2024 Partnership Class Was Demographically Underrepresented
26%
Of Our Partners Are Women
12%
Of Our Partners Are Racially/Ethnically Demographically Underrepresented
* Gender, race/ethnicity, LGBTQIA+, veterans, and people with disabilities
* As of April 1, 2024
Our 2026 Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Strategic Plan
In 2022, Foley introduced an updated DEI Strategic Plan that builds on the firm’s past successes, aligns with our firmwide strategic plan, and reflects our integrated talent approach.
2026 DEI STRATEGIC PLAN SUPPORTED BY ADVANCED DATA
The 2026 DEI Strategic Plan incorporates a new and innovative data analytics tool that marries the firm’s Human Resources and Finance data, allowing the firm to instantly access key diversity metrics. With this data, Foley can review DEI metrics holistically and more granularly by department, practice group, and office. The in-depth analysis is complemented with user-friendly visualizations that delve into talent retention, utilization, work allocation, and more by diversity demographic category across the firm. These bespoke insights allow the DEI and Talent teams to tailor solutions to further the firm’s recruitment, development, retention, and promotion efforts, as well as in client relationships.
Foley’s Affinity Groups
We recognize the importance of providing our diverse talent with community-building and networking opportunities. We have firm-wide affinity groups for women, ethnic minorities, members of the LGBTQ community, and veterans. These groups help reinforce a sense of community, provide collaborative business development opportunities, and participate in mentoring and recruiting activities.
Affinity Group Pillars
Our firm-wide affinity groups focus on professional development, community and bar association involvement, recruitment and retention, as well as awareness and advocacy within their respective communities.
- Professional Development
- Community and Bar Association
- Recruiting and Retention
- Awareness and Advocacy
Affinity Group Leadership
Foley’s affinity groups serve as a catalyst to promote inclusion, build community, and provide leadership opportunities for diverse attorneys within the firm. These attorney-led groups meet regularly, setting their own agendas tailored to the needs of their members. Below please find a list of the leadership of Foley’s national affinity groups along with links to their individual appearances on The Path & The Practice podcast.
Inclusive Recruiting
Law School Outreach: Foley is committed to recruiting diverse attorneys. We consciously reach out to law student associations at schools across the country to cultivate personal relationships with diverse law students and to build a pipeline of diverse recruits. We partner with law schools to deliver customized programs to raise our visibility and strengthen our ties with diverse law students. Additionally, we partner with diverse student groups across the country to host informative panel during which our attorneys discuss topics of interest to law students and share their professional and personal experiences related to diversity and working in a large law firm.
Diversity Career Fairs: Foley also is an active supporter of diversity career fairs across the nation. Listed below are some of the fairs in which was participate.
- Bay Area Diversity Career Fair
- Cook County Bar Association (“CCBA”) Minority Law Student Job Fair
- Penn Law BLSA 1L Career Fair
- Lavender Law Conference & Career Fair
- Southeastern Minority Job Fair
Supporting a New Generation: We actively participate in a number of pipeline programs that promote careers in the legal profession to diverse students and ensure that our communities retain and improve their diversity, including:
- Lawyers in the Classroom, a mock trial program for Chicago inner-city elementary students
- Street Law, a nonprofit that teaches high school students in underprivileged communities about law, democracy, and human rights.
- Mentors to the students at Legal Prep Charter Academy, the only legal-themed high school in Illinois. Their goal is to prepare their students, all of whom are African American or Hispanic American, for a legal career. Our Chicago office is a funding sponsor of the Legal Prep Charter Academy.
- Supports the Detroit Athletic League, which uses sports to build character in young people.
Foley Diversity Fellowship: Second-year law students selected for this program receive a total of $50,000, which is paid in two installments: $20,000 following successful completion of our Summer Associate Program as a 2L and $30,000 paid within 30 days of joining the firm as an associate. For more information about our Diversity Fellowship Program, click here.
Supporting DEI in the Legal Profession
We support a broad range of outside organizations dedicated to diversity, equity, & inclusion in the legal profession. Here’s a list of some of the many organizations that we are proud to support:
- Black Women Lawyers’ Association of Greater Chicago
- Leadership Council on Legal Diversity
- Corporate Counsel Women of Color
- Hispanic National Bar Association
- Lambda Legal Defense & Education Fund
- Bay Area Latino Lawyers Fund
- LAGBAC Foundation Lawyers for Diversity
- National LGBT Bar Association
- National Bar Association
- California Minority Counsel Program
- National Asian Pacific American Bar Association
- South Asian Bar Association of North America
- Charting Your Own Course
Awards and Accolades
Supporting Community
Effective July 7, 2021 Foley and Boys & Girls Clubs of America launched a national partnership to support BGCA’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) efforts, rooted in its commitment to promoting safe, positive and inclusive environments for all. Foley is the first law firm to partner with the BGCA on a national scale. This national partnership builds on and continues the work that Foley and BGCA have been doing regionally together for the last few years. Together as national partners, Foley and BGCA will elevate the powerful message of DEI and activate the potential of kids, Clubs and communities to build more inclusive and equitable futures. For more on the partnership, click here.
The Path & The Practice Podcast
The Path & The Practice, an innovative podcast produced by Foley & Lardner LLP, has acquired more than 25,000 downloads since its launch in July 2020. The podcast explores the professional origin stories of Foley attorneys. Each episode features Alexis Robertson, Director of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion, in a one-on one conversation with a new attorney exploring their unique background, path to law school, path to Foley, and individual perspective on the practice of law. You can subscribe and listen to the podcast on all major podcast platforms and access it on our Legal Talent Development Careers Blog. Or scroll down for a full list in the Insights section of this page.
For More on Foley DEI
Alexis P. Robertson
Director of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
[email protected]