Every time you opened your email, checked social media or — if you’re old school — unfolded the newspaper in 2023, the current events often felt exclusively negative. Another school shooting. Another humanitarian crisis. Another natural disaster. Another circus in Washington. Another bad early 2000s fashion trend making a comeback that would not only make you look like a fool if you obliged, but destroy your body image all over again.
But it wasn’t all bad in 2023. Despite human nature’s tendency to fixate on the negative memories, there were silver linings. And if you’re a business lawyer in Texas, there were many.
The Texas Legislature approved more funding for pro bono civil legal services. Lives were changed during ongoing pro bono cases. And despite a challenging year for affirmative action and the future of diversity, equity and inclusion, important conversations were sparked and the profession as a whole continued to see an improvement in diversity. According to the National Association of Lawyer Placement’s 2023 diversity report on U.S. law firms, published earlier this week, women made up the majority of associates (50.31 percent) for the first time in 30 years, and the number of associates of color grew more than ever before.
I began 2024 feeling lighter, happier and more optimistic than some previous years. Part of that was from completing my first full year on The Texas Lawbook Foundation’s pro bono, public service and diversity beat, which has been a daily reminder of the goodness in humanity and the infinite impact the legal industry can create by helping those in need and making the world — including its own workforce — a more equitable and inclusive place to exist.
So to share some of the good memories, here below, in no particular order, are the 10 most important pro bono and diversity stories of 2023.
#1: ‘I Can Have a More Peaceful Life’: Sidley Helps Sexual Assault Survivor Secure VA Benefits
It was the actions of a series of men in the 1970s and 1980s that derailed the rest of Rachel Faili’s life, even almost ending it. It was the decision by a group of Sidley Austin lawyers to take action and represent this Houston veteran pro bono that helped her move forward from decades of the severe post traumatic stress disorder that has haunted her since her military service.
This is the story of both events, the bridge between them and how a lawyer’s skills can be used to truly make a difference in the lives of those who suffer.
#2: Baker Hughes’ Amy Blumrosen Fights for ‘Equity, Equality and Inclusion for All’
Amy Blumrosen is a jack of all trades, both in her litigation work in Baker Hughes’ legal department and in her work to improve diversity, equity and inclusion in the legal industry. She chairs the legal and compliance department’s DEI council at the company and outside of work has advocated for the LGBTQ community through her work with Lambda Legal, the Texas Minority Council Forum and more. She also fights inequities through volunteer work at the Houston Food Bank, Big Brothers Big Sisters, and more. All her efforts have landed her recognition by the Association of Corporate Counsel’s Houston Chapter and The Texas Lawbook as a finalist for the 2023 Houston Corporate Counsel Achievement in Diversity and Inclusion award.
“When she can’t get in through the door, she’s coming in through the window,” said Travis Torrence, a previous ACC winner and friend of Blumrosen. “If the window is closed, she’s going to break through the ceiling. Amy gets things done and achieves meaningful change.”
Blumrosen’s steadfast commitment to fight inequities comes from deep personal experience. This is her story.
#3: A Conversation on Mental Health with TLAP’s Leader
“You put on a suit and go to work for 12 hours a day, go home, sleep, put on a suit again, and don’t get your emotional needs met.” The Lawbook spoke to Texas Lawyers’ Assistance Program director Michelle Fontenot, who elaborated on the range of mental health and substance abuse services TLAP offers and shared her thoughts on the pandemic’s effect on lawyers’ mental health, the billable hour, best ways for the legal community to support TLAP and what firms and corporate legal departments could be doing better to support the wellness of their employees.
#4: A Word with the Lawyers Who Helped Eviscerate the Texas Tampon Tax
Texans will no longer pay sales tax for menstrual products and an array of family care products. While lawmakers passed SB 379 only a few months ago, the new state law is the product of years of work by a coalition of young Texas women and their lawyers at Baker Botts. In a Q&A with The Lawbook, the lawyers talk more about their work on this pro bono matter and SB 379’s significance.
#5: Experts: Affirmative Action Ruling Puts Weight on Firms to Foster Legal Field’s Diversity
While diversity, equity and inclusion efforts will likely continue to face headwinds, experts say the legal profession can take specific steps to mitigate the potential impact of the Supreme Court’s recent decision that banned affirmative action in higher education. The Lawbook sought insights from corporate in-house lawyers, law firm leaders and affirmative action experts on what the impact may be and what the reaction should be going forward. As one lawyer put it: “It’s up to us to take a stand and make a difference.”
#6: Texas Access to Justice Gets Funding Boost After Legislative Session
The 88th Texas legislative session included $3.7 million in extra funding for civil legal services earmarked for youth dealing with pandemic-related mental health issues. However, lawmakers declined to provide funding for a proposal to use remote technology to deliver legal services through kiosk-based centers.
The Legislature also passed a bill that will provide an additional source of funding for pro bono civil legal services and another bill that will benefit low-income individuals who face language barriers in the courtroom. This article goes into detail on each, as well as the storied history of how pro bono work became a mainstay in the state’s budget.
#7: Lauren Brogdon: A Crisis Manager and Survivor Helping Other Survivors
Lauren Brogdon is adept at putting out fires. At her day job in Haynes Boone’s Houston office, Brogdon specializes in energy litigation and serves as chair of Haynes Boone’s crisis management practice group. In her free time, she helps put out other fires ignited by the wrath of domestic violence. She works with domestic violence victims through her pro bono work with Houston Volunteer Lawyers, the Houston Area Women’s Center and AVDA.
But something many billable and pro bono clients alike may not know about Brogdon is that she is a domestic violence survivor herself. Brogdon talked with The Lawbook about her pro bono work, her own experience and how it shaped her into the lawyer she is today.
#8: TMCP Panel: Diversity Fatigue Rampant on Both Sides of the Corporate Aisle
White lawyers, a word of caution: Your colleagues of color are sick of having to constantly educate you on racial issues and the nuances of diversity, equity and inclusion. Lawyers of color: We know you are exhausted, but there are still benefits — both institutional and personal — in continuing to play the game.
These were the two main takeaways during a panel discussion of law firm partners at the Texas Minority Counsel Program’s 31st annual conference in Houston in October.
#9: When it Comes to Diversity & Inclusion, HPE ‘Just Gets It’
Over the last several years, general counsel Rishi Varma and associate general counsel Jude Andre have implemented a number of diversity initiatives at Hewlett Packard Enterprise, whose corporate legal department is known for its innovation, welcoming culture and commitment to advancing diversity, equity and inclusion in the legal profession. The result has been a more engaged workforce around DEI issues and recognition by the Association of Corporate Counsel’s Houston Chapter and The Texas Lawbook. They have named HPE — with Varma and Andre at the helm — as finalists for the 2023 Houston Corporate Counsel Award for Achievement in Diversity and Inclusion award.
#10: Mark Berg & Barry Thomas: Improving Lives Across Texas
Barry Thomas and Mark Berg have many things in common. They’re both M&A lawyers by training. They’ve both handled multibillion-dollar deals in the oil patch together as high-ranking colleagues at Pioneer Natural Resources. Beyond their professional accolades, they’re both committed to public service. Berg has helped Dallas CASA significantly grow in order to achieve its goal of serving every abused and neglected child in need on the Dallas County child welfare docket. And Thomas volunteers his free time serving as general counsel of the Permian Strategic Partnership, a coalition of 20 oil and gas companies committed to improving the roads, workforce, healthcare, schools and housing of the rural West Texas and New Mexico communities that the Permian Basin encompasses.
What else do they have in common? In January 2023, they both walked a stage in the George W. Bush Presidential Center to accept the 2022 DFW Corporate Counsel Award for Pro Bono and Public Service Award.