The DGS partnership consists entirely of equity partners, of whom 31 percent are women. Additionally, 44 percent of DGS associates are women, and nearly one-third of executive committee members are women.
Moreover, DGS values cultural diversity; 11 percent of partners and 13 percent of associates are attorneys of color.
The DGS Diversity & Inclusiveness Committee was formed in 1999 and built on the premise that differences bring great value to the practice of law. Its goal is to empower our attorneys to lead inclusivity related efforts that impact the firm and overall community. Comprised of partners and associates, listed below, who follow and are representative of a range of diverse backgrounds, the DGS D&I Committee reports to the Executive Committee and provides a forum for fostering an open dialogue on inclusivity issues. Members include:
It also promotes discovering new ways to improve the firm’s development and implementation of initiatives aimed at broadening our efforts in community involvement, recruiting, retention, and mentoring programs.
DGS partners and associates serve or have served as presidents or board members of many local specialty bar associations, and leaders in other diversity and inclusiveness efforts in Colorado. We also take an active role in the Center for Legal Inclusiveness and are participating in its Inclusiveness Program. Additionally, we have taken a leadership position in founding, participating in, and sponsoring a variety of efforts designed to promote a dynamic range of inclusivity in professional and civic organizations throughout our community.
The firm aggressively seeks candidates through targeted recruiting at local law schools and focused job fairs, as well as through lateral hiring. We post lateral position openings on specialty bar association websites and recruit through our relationships in the community. The firm also supports targeted scholarship programs at Colorado law schools and works directly with the Colorado Pledge to Diversity Clerkship Program to hire first year law students. Additionally, DGS is a founding sponsor of the Rocky Mountain Diversity Legal Career Fair (RMDLCF) and has developed and supported RMDLCF since inception. Held every year since 2004, RMDLCF provides a forum for legal employers, law students, and diverse law school graduates to meet and discuss employment options with the goal of expanding opportunities.
We know that it is the outstanding people within DGS who have always been the source of our strength. And we also recognize that promoting diversity and inclusiveness is critical to an environment where individuals can find personal growth, career satisfaction, and professional accomplishment. DGS offers both internal and external diversity and inclusiveness training resources through our Professional Development Department, which has included everything from large scale seminar type CLE accreditation formats to one-on-one coaching.
DGS deems diversity and inclusiveness awareness, mentoring, professional development, and training of our attorneys a vital component to the overall growth of the firm. The DGS Diversity & Inclusiveness Committee works to build on this philosophy by encouraging senior attorneys in the firm to mentor younger attorneys to facilitate their integration into the firm. The Professional Development Department also leads a formal integration program for first year associates that consist of a series of monthly meetings where they are paired with a partner who assists them with their transition into DGS. This initiative includes diversity and inclusiveness awareness, workflow strategies, community involvement engagement, firm history and cultural insights, road to success training, and more. These relationships often continue to evolve for years to come.
As a result of these efforts, DGS was ranked 21 in the NLJ 500’s 2017 Women in Law, which is based on the firm’s percentage of female attorneys and partners. DGS was also named by Law360 as a Top 25 Firm For Female Partners in 2014 and 2015 and was named among the 100 Best Law Firms For Female Attorneys in 2015 and 2016. DGS ranked number 19 out of more than 250 firms, in The American Lawyer’s list of Best Place for Women in 2016. The firm was also recognized for advancing diversity and creating a culture of inclusion by the Center for Legal Inclusiveness with the 2016 Inclusiveness@Work Award. In 2012, the firm received the Women in Law Empowerment Forum Gold Standard Certification by demonstrating that women represent a meaningful percentage of equity partners, leadership positions, governance and compensation committees, and most highly compensated partners. In 2015, DGS was ranked by Law360 as among the 50 Best Firms for Minority Partners. DGS also received the first Qwest Diversity Leadership award, honoring the firm’s efforts promoting diversity.
