At Pierce Atwood, we recognize that, as a law firm, we are uniquely positioned to answer the rising calls for structural change within our society. While our pro bono efforts have historically included many matters in pursuit of racial justice and equity, the global protests in response to the killing of George Floyd have served as an urgent call to concentrate our efforts and talents to do more. To this end, we have developed a three-pronged approach to promoting racial justice in our communities through targeted pro bono initiatives and transactional support.
- Civil Rights Litigation: Pierce Atwood has a history of taking on civil rights cases under Bivens v. Six Unknown Named Agents of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, 403 U.S. 388 (1971), and 42 U.S.C. § 1983, for damages, declaratory, and injunctive relief for individuals who have suffered the deprivation of constitutional or federal statutory rights by virtue of the conduct of government officials. As part of our Racial Justice Initiative, we are amplifying these efforts through partnerships with state ACLU chapters and various federal court systems in the jurisdictions where we practice.
- Expungement/Record Sealing Clinics: Many non-violent state law arrests and convictions are eligible for expungement (also referred to as annulment) under certain circumstances. As part of our Racial Justice Initiative, through coordination and cooperation with legal service organizations in cities in which we practice, Pierce Atwood endeavors to alleviate the collateral consequences of criminal conviction and incarceration through expungement and sealing of criminal and juvenile records as applicable in each state. Having a criminal record can severely limit one’s access to employment, education, housing, civic engagement, and public assistance. The ABA’s Collateral Consequences of Conviction Project has identified more than 45,000 federal and state statutes and regulations that impose disqualifications or disadvantages on individuals convicted of a crime. Racially disparate enforcement of criminal laws means that these adverse collateral consequences disproportionately affect persons of color.
- Transactional Initiative: Entrepreneurs of color face a traditional lack of access to capital, along with other systemic barriers to success. Nonprofit organizations working to secure racial justice can benefit from transactional support in the areas of formation, real estate, employment, and more. Attorneys in Pierce Atwood’s transactional practices are working to advise and support nonprofits, entrepreneurs, and businesses that are led by persons of color and/or seeking to secure racial justice and equity.
Related Firm Activities
- Pierce Atwood is proud to participate in the Business Community Racial Equity Initiative of the Portland Regional Chamber of Commerce, pledging to combat racism and discrimination and to advocate for racial and social equity, diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
- We are pleased to be a sponsor of The Massachusetts Law Reform Institute’s (MLRI) 2022 Catalyst for Change Award. Proceeds from the event benefit MLRI’s Race Equity & Justice Project, which focuses on advocacy to address and dismantle systemic racial disparities and racialized policies and practices that disadvantage communities of color in Massachusetts. MLRI is a nonprofit poverty law and policy center that advocates to advance policies and practices that secure economic, racial, and social justice for low-income communities.
- Pierce Atwood hosted a four-part virtual series "Getting Started: Racism, Whiteness, and the Path toward Racial Equity in the Workplace" designed to help senior leaders think about racial equity in the workplace – why it matters, what it looks like, and how to design a path toward racial equity that can be achieved, measured, and sustained.
- Pierce Atwood has joined forces with Bernstein Shur, Verrill, and University of Maine School of Law in the D1L Maine Diversity Summer Associate Program that invites first-year law students from across the county to apply for a paid summer associate internship at one of the three firms in Portland, Maine. Click here for more information on this unique collaboration among Maine's largest law firms.
- Business Practice Group partner Emily Cooke, who is also the partner in charge of the firm’s pro bono program, moderated a virtual panel discussing diversity in Maine’s private sector.
