Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA) has named Pepper Hamilton LLP as the winner of the distinguished 2012 Thomas L. Sager Award for the Mid-Atlantic Region.
The prestigious Sager Award is presented annually to one firm, in each of MCCA’s five regions, that has demonstrated a sustained commitment to improve the hiring, retention and promotion of minority attorneys. In addition to the statistical data that is set forth in the nomination application, the board of directors examines such areas as recruitment, retention, mentoring, promotion, pipeline initiatives, LGBT initiatives, women initiatives, work-life balance, collaborative efforts with community and bar associations, and innovative practices that result in sustainable efforts to increase diversity.
“I recently joined Pepper in February, and it was clear to me that the firm -- from the leadership down the line to individual lawyers and staff -- understood that diversity means not only retaining diverse attorneys but more importantly taking advantage of the full breadth and depth of the experiences, education, cultural knowledge and viewpoints of all of our people,” said Pepper CEO Scott Green, accepting the award on behalf of the firm.
Partner Kassem Lucas is in charge of Pepper Hamilton’s firm-wide diversity initiatives and programs and also co-chairs the firm’s Diversity Committee, which was established in 2005. “As an attorney who has spent his entire legal career at Pepper Hamilton, from summer associate to partner, and was recently named the firm’s partner in charge of Diversity, I am not just a proponent of the firm’s diversity and inclusion efforts: I am a product of them,” said Mr. Lucas.