BAR REPORT - MCLE on Diversity, Inclusion and Elimination of Bias
NJSBA requests Court require CLE on diversity, inclusion and elimination of bias
July 20, 2020 at 08:02 AM
2 minute read
NJSBA requests Court require continuing legal education on diversity, inclusion and elimination of bias
The New Jersey State Bar Association (NJSBA) has asked the New Jersey Supreme Court to amend mandatory continuing legal education (CLE) requirements for attorneys to include programs on diversity, inclusion and the elimination of bias.
In a letter sent July 10 to Chief Justice Stuart Rabner, NJSBA President Kimberly A. Yonta wrote, "the murder of George Floyd and other unarmed African Americans, paired with the devastating disparate impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on communities of color, has left us all in search of ways to combat persistent racism in our society."
While there are no easy solutions, Yonta wrote, "any solution must include the element of education."
To that end, the NJSBA asked the Court to amend Rule 1:42, and specifically proposed:
- New Jersey require two credit hours of CLE dedicated to education on issues of diversity, inclusion and the elimination of bias in each two-year cycle
- One of those two credit hours be eligible to be applied to satisfy the current requirement for four ethics credits in each cycle
- The two diversity, inclusion and elimination of bias credit hours be incorporated in the current mandate for 24 credits to be completed in each two-year cycle
Yonta noted several states have adopted a CLE on diversity, inclusion and the elimination of bias, and recommended New Jersey adopt a requirement similar to the one in New York. The NJSBA has been in favor of a diversity, inclusion and elimination of bias requirement since 2016, when the American Bar Association's (ABA) Diversity and Inclusion 360 Commission—created by former ABA president and New Jersey attorney Paulette Brown—recommended diversity and inclusion be made a separate CLE requirement, without increasing the total number of mandatory hours required.
"Changing the CLE requirements is a concrete action that will ensure that officers of the court have the cultural competency that reinforces public confidence in our legal system. It will also send a message that the legal profession and the courts are serious about taking steps to effect lasting change," Yonta wrote.
To read the letter, go to njsba.com.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View All
Seton Hall Escapes COVID-19 Wrongful Death Suit After Student Found Dead in Dorm
4 minute read
Where CFPB Enforcement Stops Short on Curbing School Lunch Fees, Class Action Complaint Steps Up
5 minute read
From 'Confusing Labyrinth' to Speeding 'Roller Coaster': Uncertainty Reigns in Title IX as Litigators Await Second Trump Admin
6 minute read
Trending Stories
- 1'It's Not Going to Be Pretty': PayPal, Capital One Face Novel Class Actions Over 'Poaching' Commissions Owed Influencers
- 211th Circuit Rejects Trump's Emergency Request as DOJ Prepares to Release Special Counsel's Final Report
- 3Supreme Court Takes Up Challenge to ACA Task Force
- 4'Tragedy of Unspeakable Proportions:' Could Edison, DWP, Face Lawsuits Over LA Wildfires?
- 5Meta Pulls Plug on DEI Programs
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250
