At a time when many corporate law leaders have gone silent on diversity efforts they publicly championed just six months ago, Susman Godfrey brushed political backlash fears aside and made a defiant statement Friday.
The Houston-based litigation powerhouse announced that it is doubling down on its efforts to provide funds to “law students of color who have demonstrated academic excellence and overall achievement” by increasing the number of diverse students they award money to and bolstering the amount that they award.
In a press release, the firm said that it would award the Susman Godfrey Prize of $4,000 to 25 first-year and second-year law students — up from 20 students last year each receiving $3,500.
“In its fifth year, the Susman Godfrey Prize continues to champion law students of color who embody values of integrity, leadership, and academic excellence,” firm Co-Managing Partner Kalpana Srinivasan said in a press release. “This year’s recipients have demonstrated great potential for promising legal careers, and we hope this recognition serves as a helpful step forward in achieving their professional goals.”
“The firm is honored to continue to award and recognize law students for their hard work and dedication to the legal profession,” Co-Managing Partner Vineet Bhatia added.
Susman Godfrey’s bold announcement comes as the firm is battling President Donald Trump, who issued an executive order last month accusing the law firm of being a threat to national security because it supports anti-American causes and clients and has used the legal system to undermine the elections.
President Trump’s EO also accuses the firm of employing diversity programs that violate federal discrimination laws.
RELATED: Susman Godfrey EO Litigation Timeline
Susman Godfrey sued the Trump Administration, claiming the executive order — which prohibits the firm’s lawyers from representing clients that have government contracts and prevents anyone at the firm from entering federal buildings — violates the constitutional rights of the firm to represent its clients aggressively and violates the First Amendment’s right of free speech.
In the federal court battle against Susman Godfrey, lawyers for the Trump administration specifically pointed to the Susman Godfrey Prize as evidence of the firm’s discrimination practices.
U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan of Washington, D.C., granted Susman Godfrey a temporary restraining order preventing the executive order from taking effect.
During a hearing on May 8, Judge AliKhan made it clear that the Susman Godfrey Prize is an academic award and not part of any condition of employment and thus not a violation of Title VII federal law prohibiting race discrimination as part of employment.
In Texas, other distributors of student diversity scholarships have struggled to fundraise amid the current climate. Dallas Hispanic Law Foundation President Andrés Correa told attendees of the annual Amanecer luncheon to award scholarships, internships and bar study grants that donors expressed more fear and questions about donating to this year’s giving. Last week, The Texas Lawbook reported that the Dallas Bar Foundation paused its Sarah T. Hughes Diversity Scholarship, which for more than 40 years was awarded to diverse students attending SMU Dedman School of Law and, after their more recent openings, the UNT Dallas College of Law and Texas A&M University School of Law. Fundraisers told The Lawbook that some previous scholarship donors expressed hesitation to donate this year due to President Trump’s executive orders.