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With Election 2020 just a few months out and voter suppression efforts a great concern amid the continuing coronavirus crisis, it’s important for large law firms to do their best to make sure their employees perform their civic duty and vote and volunteer to help others do the same. Several law firms have already made commitments to do just that.
Earlier this week, Fenwick & West announced that it would be rolling out a Voting Rights Initiative where it would provide all employees with a paid civic holiday on Election Day, designed to allow employees the time to vote and volunteer. According to the American Lawyer, Mintz is doing the same thing, and will be giving all of its employees a paid day off to vote and volunteer to get out the vote on November 3. “It isn’t unusual for firms to give a couple of hours at the beginning or end of the day,” said managing partner Bob Bodian. “[B]ut I didn’t see anything where firms were giving the whole day.”
We’ve recently learned that yet another Biglaw firm will be closing its doors on Election Day to increase voter turnout. Orrick is instituting a day of service on November 3. Here’s an excerpt from an email about the the firm’s commitment to voting rights that was sent out earlier this week (available in full on the next page):
[T]o help ensure each of you and your families are able to vote – and to provide you with the option of doing a day of service – our firm will be closed in the United States on Election Day, November 3, 2020. If you decide to use the day for community service, please choose any kind of pro bono work or volunteerism that is meaningful to you (the needs are many and acute across our communities). For anyone who would like ideas for how to work on voter registration and poll access, we are collaborating with our Public Policy and Supreme Court & Appellate groups and Rene Kathawala to assemble a list of local opportunities and resources that we will share soon. Of course, you can do this service on any day (although November 3 is the day we will designate as off for this purpose). And, we would greatly value hearing from you about your volunteer experience and what you take away from it.
We hope that our collective efforts make an impact by helping to ensure the voices and votes of all Americans, regardless of political views or affiliations, are counted and heard.
As with most Biglaw trends, we’ll be tracking exactly which firms are giving time off for employees to do their civic duty. If your firm is giving time off for Election Day or otherwise supporting voting rights, let us know. Our vast network of tipsters is part of what makes Above the Law thrive. You can email us or text us (646-820-8477).
(Flip to the next page to see the full email from Orrick.)
Mintz, Fenwick Announce Paid Day Off, Structures to Aid Voter Turnout in 2020 Election. Will Others Follow? [American Lawyer]
Earlier: Biglaw Firm Announces Election Day Will Be A Paid Holiday
Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.