Activist behind US affirmative action cases sues major law firms (updated)

Activision Blizzard

22/08/2023 21:54

(Adds further details on lawsuit, background on related
litigation in paragraphs 6, 8-11)
    By Nate Raymond
       Aug 22 (Reuters) - A group founded by the conservative
activist who led the successful U.S. Supreme Court challenge to
the consideration of race in college admissions sued two major
U.S. law firms on Tuesday over fellowships they offer to racial
minorities and LGBT people, accusing them of unlawful bias
against white candidates.
    The American Alliance for Equal Rights sued Perkins Coie in
Dallas and Morrison & Foerster in Miami two months after the
Supreme Court sided with another group founded by activist
Edward Blum and rejected affirmative action policies used by
many colleges to increase enrollment of racial minorities.
    The lawsuits, brought in federal courts, accused both law
firms of unlawfully discriminating against white candidates by
limiting which law students could be considered for paid
fellowships geared toward promoting greater diversity within the
legal sector.
    "Excluding students from these esteemed fellowships because
they are the wrong race is unfair, polarizing and illegal,"
Blum, who is white, said in a statement.
        Perkins Coie said it had no immediate comment on the
lawsuit. Morrison & Foerster did not respond to requests for
comment.
    The lawsuits came amid an uptick in legal challenges to
corporate diversity programs in the wake of the Supreme Court's
affirmative action ruling, with companies including Activision
Blizzard, Kellogg and Gannett now facing complaints.    
    Perkins Coie, founded in Seattle, offers "diversity
fellowships" that provide stipends of $15,000 to $25,000 and
paid positions as summer associates, a position that at major
law firms can lead to full-time jobs upon graduation. 
    Applicants must belong to "a group historically
underrepresented in the legal profession, including students of
color, students who identify as LGBTQ+, and students with
disabilities," according to Perkins Coie, which employs more
than 1,200 lawyers in the United States and Asia.
    Morrison & Foerster, a corporate law firm founded in San
Francisco that has more than 1,000 lawyers worldwide, has a
similar program that is open to applicants who are Black,
Hispanic, Native American or members of the LGBT community.
    The fellowship consists of a paid summer-associate position
and a $50,000 stipend.
    The lawsuits allege that by limiting eligibility based on
race, the fellowships violate Section 1981 of the Civil Rights
Act of 1866, a federal law adopted after the end of slavery
brought about by the American Civil War that bars racial bias in
private contracts.
    Blum's Texas-based American Alliance for Equal Rights this
month filed a similar case against Atlanta-based venture capital
fund Fearless Fund, alleging it unlawfully allowed only Black
women to be eligible in a grant competition in violation of the
contracting law.

    <^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Black women-owned US venture capital fund counters
conservative's race lawsuit     urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N39R36G
US Supreme Court rejects affirmative action in university
admissions     urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N38L1FG
Conservative activist steers U.S. Supreme Court college race
cases     urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N31L2OT
    ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
 (Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston; Editing by Will Dunham,
Alexia Garamfalvi and Alistair Bell)
 ((Nate.Raymond@thomsonreuters.com and Twitter @nateraymond;
347-243-6917))