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Contact: Andrew Rush
Director, Media Services & Public Affairs
arush@nysba.org
518/487-5530
May 22, 2008
NEW YORK STATE BAR ASSOCIATION CREATES A NEW
COMMITTEE ON LGBT PEOPLE AND THE LAW TO PROMOTE GREATER EQUALITY
New York State
Bar Association President Kathryn Grant Madigan (Levene Gouldin &
Thompson LLP) today announced that the Association has formed a new
committee on LGBT People and the Law that will promote equality in the
legal profession for lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans-gendered attorneys
and litigants. Chaired by Michele Kahn
(Kahn & Goldberg LLP) of New York City, the committee will hold its
first meeting in early June.
“Promoting diversity
within the profession is fundamental to who we are as an
Association. Our formal diversity
policy, adopted in 2003, defines diversity inclusively to encompass
sexual orientation,” Madigan said. “This new committee will enable us to more effectively
further our diversity goals by examining the wide array of issues that
confront the LGBT community every day. Whether advocating for equal
rights for same sex couples here in New York, promoting greater
opportunities for gay and lesbian attorneys in the profession, educating
the public on the importance of workplace equality and inclusion in all
aspects of civil life, this new committee’s charge is necessarily
expansive.”
The committee will work to promote
equality in the law for LGBT people; seek to eliminate discrimination
against LGBT attorneys and litigants; promote equality of opportunity
for, and increase the visibility of, contributions made by LGBT
attorneys; and promote diversity on the bench by inclusion of all
minorities, including LGBT people.
The 74,000-member New York State
Bar Association is the official statewide organization of lawyers
in New Yorkand
the largest voluntary state bar association in the
nation. Founded in 1876, NYSBA programs
and activities have continuously served the public and improved the
justice system for more than 130 years.
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