Stoel Rives Commits to Mansfield Rule 6.0 Certification Aimed at Expanding Diversity in Firm Leadership

PORTLAND, Ore.—Stoel Rives, an AmLaw 200 firm, today announced its participation in Diversity Lab’s Mansfield Rule 6.0 Certification process, designed to help diversify firm leadership. The firm achieved Mansfield Rule 4.0 Plus certification last year and committed to pursuing 5.0 certification over the past year. Stoel Rives is among 180+ large firms participating in the newest certification process, which runs from July 2022 to July 2023.

The new guidelines require law firms to consider at least 30% historically underrepresented lawyers, including women, underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, LGBTQ+ lawyers, and lawyers with disabilities, when appointing to leadership roles and promoting into the equity partnership, among a dozen other activities that focus on the path to leadership. Firms must also consider 30% underrepresented talent for C-suite roles.

“The legal industry has come a long way in achieving a more diverse workplace, and Diversity Lab has played a key role in that effort. But there is still a long way to go. We have learned much about tracking our efforts and progress through the Mansfield Certification program and remain committed to our firm’s diversity goals,” said Melissa Jones, Stoel Rives’ Firmwide Managing Partner. “We are up to the challenge and look forward to the positive impact that our focus on diversity will bring to our firm, our clients and our communities.”

The new requirements are in addition to the previous guidelines, which have evolved since the program was first launched in 2017. To be Mansfield Certified, firms must consider at least 30% women, underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, LGBTQ+ lawyers, and lawyers with disabilities for leadership and governance roles, equity partner promotions, formal client pitch opportunities and senior lateral positions. The firm’s “plus” status indicates that, in addition to meeting or exceeding the baseline requirements, the firm has met the goal of at least 30% diverse lawyer representation in a notable number of its current leadership roles.

“Mansfield certification is integral to our firm’s strategy. We recognize the importance of advancing our diversity goals at every level of leadership, as well as in our lawyer and staff population,” Stoel Rives’ Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee Chair Karen O’Connor said.

In addition to ongoing participation in the Mansfield Certification process, Stoel Rives is a founding law firm of Diversity Lab’s Move the Needle Fund (MTN). The fund is a five-year model program designed to help law firms measure and reach diversity, equity and inclusion goals.