2008 has been banner year. Cleary Gottlieb was recognized by the Minority Law Journal as the most diverse law firm in the country, and ranked #1 for both “Overall Diversity” and “Diversity for Minorities” in the 2009 Vault survey. Working Mother magazine named Cleary Gottlieb one of the “Best Law Firms for Women," a measure of firms that have established the best work/life benefits to help female lawyers succeed. For the second consecutive year, Cleary Gottlieb scored a perfect 100 on the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index, making our firm one of the best workplaces for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender equality. We also were thrilled to be the first law firm to receive the Empire State Pride Agenda’s “Equality at Work” award for dedication to the rights of LGBT employees and the LGBT community.

We recently hosted our annual Citywide Diversity Reception, where Lisa Kung, Director of the Southern Center for Human Rights was the keynote speaker. In February we celebrated Black History Month by organizing events featuring three inspiring speakers, The Honorable David Dinkins (in New York) and Tuskegee Airman Curtis Robinson and author George Norfleet (in Washington, DC).

The energetic group of partners, counsel and associates comprising the Committee continue to assist the firm in achieving its goals of recruiting, retaining and advancing lawyers from diverse backgrounds. The Committee’s activities and initiatives are grounded in open and positive communication, and include reaching out to diverse law students and law student groups, hosting affinity group networking events, inviting speakers to Cleary Gottlieb to address diversity-related topics and being part of external diversity events and organizations.

The Committee’s activities help to keep the firm an open and exciting place to work, and to focus us as lawyers on our colleagues, our work environment and the broader community. Being a lawyer means expressing yourself and understanding others. And being a lawyer at Cleary Gottlieb means doing that in a global law firm working everyday with clients and counterparties from all over the United States and the world. Not surprisingly, diversity thrives at Cleary Gottlieb.

Almost twenty years ago, as a law student beginning my legal career, I wanted to work at an excellent law firm where I could grow as a lawyer. The wide range of Cleary Gottlieb deals and litigations made plain to me the firm’s excellence. And meeting and working with Cleary Gottlieb’s talented and diverse attorneys, I experienced a professional organization created by lawyers who placed a premium on the unique perspectives of individuals from a range of backgrounds, beliefs and life experiences. I discovered that such an environment allowed me not only to grow but also to thrive.

I invite you to discover the same.

With warmest regards,


Carmine Boccuzzi