Firm

Diversity, Equality + Inclusion Committee

Farella is deeply committed to diversity and inclusion for all attorneys and staff. Everyone at the firm is respected and included irrespective of race, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, national origin, or disability. Our diversity and inclusiveness make us stronger as a firm and enable us to deliver superlative legal advice to our clients.

Farella recognizes that the number of women and diverse partners in law firms needs to improve and is committed to being part of the solution. We have been a leader in working towards greater diversity in our firm and the legal profession for decades. We created our first high school diversity pipeline program in 2007 and have given scholarships to diverse law students for over 20 years. We also partner with our clients on diversity initiatives. Throughout our history, we have supported the recruitment, retention, and advancement of women and diverse attorneys through innovative initiatives.

We achieved Midsize Mansfield Certification Plus status after completing a rigorous 18-month collaboration with Diversity Lab—from September 15, 2021 to March 14, 2023—to track, measure, and achieve diversity in leadership. The Certification “Plus” status indicates that a firm met the considerations and transparency requirements and successfully achieved 30% representation of historically underrepresented lawyers (defined to include women, lawyers from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, LGBTQ+ lawyers, and lawyers with disabilities) in current leadership roles and pathway activities. Farella materially surpassed Certification and Certification “Plus” benchmarks.

Diversity, Equality + Inclusion Committee

Farella’s Diversity, Equality + Inclusion Committee is one of the largest committees at the firm and is truly a cross-section of the firm, including attorneys and staff, which reflects the intense commitment of all firm members towards diversity and inclusion. The Committee is focused on supporting and developing innovative initiatives to work towards greater diversity and inclusion of everyone working at the firm as well as in the greater legal community. It also is committed to promoting diversity and inclusion in recruiting, retaining, and advancing attorneys to partnership. The Committee has over 40 members and is co-chaired by Carolina de Armas and Hilary Krase.

           

Women’s Leadership Committee

Farella’s Women’s Leadership Committee’s focus is to retain, develop and promote women attorneys at Farella, both within the firm and in the legal profession. To fulfill this mission, the Committee provides programming for women attorneys, promotes equal access to professional opportunities, and works on mentorship and inclusion for women attorneys at all levels. It also hosts events with clients to collaborate regarding advancement and equality for women in the legal profession. The Committee has 22 members and is co-chaired by partner Aviva Gilbert and senior associate Carolina de Armas.

          

Diversity Pipeline Program

Founded in 2007, Farella’s Diversity Pipeline Internship Program provides high school students from diverse and/or disadvantaged backgrounds with an opportunity to learn about the legal profession. The program combines work assignments at the law firm with a structured curriculum that introduces the interns to various practices of law, the numerous paths that a person can take to become a lawyer, and sessions on how to navigate the college application and financial aid processes. Through the hands-on six-week summer internship program, the interns develop practical skills and strategies to assist their pursuit of higher education and develop the confidence to consider, and think themselves capable of, going to law school and becoming a member of the legal community. We “open sourced” our Pipeline Program curriculum and have shared it with other law firms and corporate in-house departments.

Our Pipeline Program is extraordinarily successful: the majority of Pipeline alumni went on to four-year colleges and some went to law school and are now practicing attorneys. 

        

Diversity Scholarship Program

Farella’s Diversity Scholarship Program assists Bay Area diverse law students in pursuing their legal careers. Recipients are in their first year of law school and are selected based on academic and personal accomplishments and financial need. Since 2001, the firm has awarded $635,000 in scholarships to 92 first-year law students in the Bay Area. Our Scholarship Program is co-chaired by partner Brent Saldaña and senior associate Carolina de Armas.

Supported Organizations

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Centro Legal de la Raza Logo     VABAnc Logo     

Firm Highlights

Publication

Quick Tip: State Filings in Massachusetts and Connecticut

Welcome to  EO Radio Show – Your Nonprofit Legal Resource.  I'm Cynthia Rowland, and episode 55 is the sixth in a series of Quick Tip episodes focusing on the details of state registration of...

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Publication

IRS Moves to Target Wealthy Taxpayers in Historic Compliance Drive

This month, the IRS announced that it is using the long-term funding approved by Congress through the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 to shift its attention to wealthy taxpayers in an effort to “identify sophisticated...

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News

Who’s Who Legal 2023 Recognizes Farella Lawyers

Six Farella Braun + Martel lawyers have been recommended by Who’s Who Legal 2023 as leading practitioners in their fields. Who’s Who Legal – Environment 2023 James Colopy Robert Hines David Lazerwitz Chris Locke...

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Publication

Corporate Transparency Act Imposes New Disclosure Obligations on Business Entities Effective January 1, 2024

If you own an interest of 25% or more in any business entity or have any substantial control over any business entity (including as a manager or senior officer), or if you are responsible...

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News

Chris Locke Recognized for Jack London State Historic Park Pro Bono Work

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News

Farella Braun + Martel Ranked in Chambers High Net Worth 2023

Farella Braun + Martel is pleased to announce that our Private Client Industry Group and Family Wealth Partner Mark Weaver were recognized in Chambers High Net Worth (HNW) Guide 2023 in the Private Wealth...

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Publication

Nonprofit Tenants and Lease Agreements: Best Practices and Pitfalls to Avoid

Welcome to  EO Radio Show – Your Nonprofit Legal Resource . I'm Cynthia Rowland, and today, we are again lucky to have Farella real estate partner Quinn Arntsen with us to talk about leasing...

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Event

All the Legalese: What You Need to Know About the New Pay Transparency Law and Other Legal Updates

Holly Sutton is a Winejobs.com 2023 HR Summit speaker for the session "All the Legalese: What You Need to Know About the New Pay Transparency Law and Other Legal Updates." Session Overview: It can be...

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Event

CalCPA Wine Industry Conference 2023

Holly Sutton and Rebecca Stephens are speakers at the CalCPA Wine Industry Conference 2023 for the session "Labor Law Update." Session Overview: Explore the critical distinctions between employees and contractors, delve into wage and hour regulations, gain...

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Event

19th Annual Renewable Energy Law Conference

Dirk Mueller is speaking at the 19 th Annual Renewable Energy Law Conference on "Mineral Issues’ Impact on Real Estate Documents, Siting and Planning: Texas vs. California."

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