The Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) is the world's largest organization serving the professional and business interests of attorneys who practice in the legal departments of corporations, associations, nonprofits and other private-sector organizations around the globe.
6:00 pm InSide Diversity Program and Panel Discussion
Confronting Bias in Divisive Times: The Impact of Bias on the Practice of Law and How to Overcome It.
This presentation will feature an interactive and thoughtful discussion regarding conscious and unconscious bias and the impact on the legal profession from client relationships, hiring, promotions, trials and beyond. Panelists will discuss the true definition of bias, including how and why it is impacts the legal profession so significantly, how it impacts our evaluation of talent, people and situations, and how it impacts cross-cultural communication and diversity efforts. Engage in awareness exercises that will help you (and help you help others) identify unconscious biases and learn ways to overcome them individually and organizationally.
1 hour Elimination of Bias CLE
7:00 pm Profiles IN Diversity Recognition: Renee Benjamin, Associate General Counsel, CalPortland
Please join us for a presentation from George Fatheree — a partner in Sidley’s Los Angeles office — who led a pro bono team of lawyers from across the country to create a framework for a historic reparative real estate transaction.
In June 2022, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to return Bruce’s Beach to the descendants of Charles and Willa Bruce, a Black couple who operated a successful resort on the property that was unjustly taken by the City of Manhattan Beach in 1924 as a result of racial animus.
George will describe the complex federal, state, and local legal issues involved in the matter — including constitutional claims, property rights, valuation methodologies, and tax considerations — and how the team fought to protect the interests of the Bruce family’s descendants, while developing a winning strategy to return the property that would withstand legal challenge and serve as a model for similar efforts throughout the U.S.
For additional information in advance of the presentation, a profile highlighting the work is available here. George’s bio can be accessed here.