As major companies react to the death of George Floyd and join calls for justice and equality, some general counsel are being tapped to take the reins of efforts that go beyond public statements and require enacting real changes. 

Case in point: Jeffrey Harleston, top lawyer and executive vice president of business and legal affairs for Universal Music Group—and now also the head of a new task force focused on "inclusion and social justice" within UMG. 

UMG CEO Lucian Grainge announced Sunday in an internal memo that he appointed Harleston to lead the company's equality task force, according to a report from Variety, which reprinted the memo.  

"Jeff is convening a group of qualified executives from throughout the company to review our current programs, identify gaps and deficiencies, update our plan where it's outdated, propose new initiatives, and ensure that these issues remain at the top of our agenda," Grainge wrote.

"Everything—raising our voices in Congress, providing additional employee education and assistance, enhancing our philanthropy, using the power of our astonishingly vast catalog to effect change—everything will be on the table. The systemic nature of the problems are just too critical to leave anything off," he added. 

Attempts to speak with Harleston and UMG representatives were unsuccessful. Harleston has worked at Santa Monica, California-based UMG for 26 years. He also served as an associate independent counsel during the Iran-Contra scandal and has a Big Law background as a litigation associate at Covington & Burling. 

In 2018, Harleston received the Diversity Award from the Association of Corporate Counsel for Southern California during an event that featured President Barack Obama as the keynote speaker. 

Harleston said in a statement at the time that he was "honored to accept this award and to be recognized for the role I have been able to play in helping to diversify the legal community in Southern California. 

"There continues to be a pressing need for more diversity in the music industry, and I'm committed to working with my colleagues to make meaningful change," he added. 

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