Reinhart Receives Mansfield Rule 5.0 Certification; Now Aims for 6.0 Certification

MILWAUKEE – Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren s.c. (Reinhart) is proud to announce that it has received Mansfield Rule 5.0 certification. Reinhart has long been committed to furthering the firm's diversity, equity and inclusion. Administered by Diversity Lab, the Mansfield Rule is a national initiative to close the gender and diversity gap in the legal profession. Reinhart was one of more than 160 large law firms to participate in the process, which launched on July 15, 2021.

“We are proud of receiving this certification and are committed to our ongoing efforts in the area of diversity, equity and inclusion at Reinhart,” says Reinhart CEO Al Orr. “Mansfield is but one of our initiatives to advance diversity, equity and inclusion at our firm.”

Now concluding its fifth year, the Mansfield Rule has become the standard by which law firms track and measure that they have affirmatively considered at least 30 percent women, lawyers from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, lawyers with disabilities and LGBTQ+ lawyers for top leadership roles, senior-level lateral hiring, promotions into the equity partnership and participation in client pitch meetings.

Recent data shows that the initiative is succeeding at its goal. The “early adopter” firms piloting the program have increased their management committees’ racial and ethnic diversity by 30 times the rate of non-Mansfield Rule firms. Like previous years, this iteration of the Mansfield Rule includes new challenges to continuously push the boundaries necessary to boost diversity in law firm leadership.

“Receiving this certification is evidence of our commitment to putting people first,” says Jessica Hutson Polakowski, board member and co-chair of Reinhart’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee. “We are proud of our progress on this initiative and look to build on the experience as we expand efforts toward increasing diversity, equity and inclusion at the firm.”

Mansfield 6.0: Reinhart has begun its efforts to achieve Mansfield Rule 6.0 certification. The newest version of the certification, aimed at diversifying leadership, is the toughest yet. With input from an advisory group of diversity leaders since its launch five years ago, the parameters have expanded in scope and increased in rigor. This certification period runs from July 2022 to July 2023.

The 6.0 version requires law firms to consider at least 30 percent historically underrepresented lawyers from all four groups when appointing leaders and promoting equity partnerships. Firms must also consider 30 percent underrepresented talent for C-suite roles. Through monthly knowledge-sharing forums, firms share lessons learned. In addition, they must create and publish job descriptions for leadership roles and continue to meet routine check-in, data-collection and reporting milestones.

ABOUT DIVERSITY LAB

Diversity Lab is an incubator for innovative ideas and solutions that boost diversity and inclusion in law. Experimental ideas are created through our Hackathons and piloted in collaboration with more than 300 top law firms and legal departments across the country. Diversity Lab leverages data, behavioral science, design thinking and technology to test and develop new ideas and research, measure the results and share lessons learned. For more information, visit www.diversitylab.com.