Get Involved in the Diversity Conference

Many ways to serve

Bring your talents to the Bar by getting involved in an area that fits you: Are you a writer? See below to learn more about the  Invictus newsletter. Feeling social? Find out more about the numerous DC functions. Always loved to teach? The DC and the Young Lawyers Conference have teamed up to host youth programs!

Invictus: The DC Publication 

You should already receive the DC's online publication, Invictus, several times a year, and if you are interested, contributing to Invictus is a great way to get involved! Just contact the editor to find out more.

Participate in programs

With several to choose from, you are sure to find a DC program that piques your interest. See the Programs list below to find out more.

Subcommittee Opportunities

We need your help! The Diversity Conference needs committee members / volunteers for many of its programs this bar year. Becoming a subcommittee member is an excellent way to get involved in the DC and to serve the profession and the public. See the list of Diversity Conference Subcommittees below, and volunteer today.

Our purpose is to promote inclusiveness in the legal profession and ensure the profession meets the needs of the increasingly diverse public it serves. We need the participation of like-minded lawyers across the entire spectrum of the legal profession. We need you to help pave the way.

Interested In Getting Involved? You may select more than one subcommittee on the Participation Form.

Diversity Conference Participation Form

Programs

Oliver Hill/Samuel Tucker Pre-Law Institute

A joint initiative with the VSB’s Young Lawyers Conference. This program is a week long camp that teaches high school students about a life and career in the law. Students learn how to put on a trial, meet local officials and judges, learn the etiquette and social norms of attorney life, and apply their lessons through a mock trial and networking reception.

More Information

With an ever-growing diverse population, the need for diversity in the legal profession has become even more important. Although a disproportionate number of minorities are affected by the criminal justice system, the membership of the bar is not proportionately comprised of minority members. In 2000, as a result of a recognized need for diversity in the legal profession, the Virginia State Bar President formed the Millennium Diversity Initiative (MDI). In 2001, at the request of the MDI, the Young Lawyers Conference implemented the Oliver Hill/Samuel Tucker Pre-Law Institute (the “Institute”). 

Named for legendary civil rights attorneys Oliver Hill and Samuel Tucker, the Institute reaches future lawyers at an early age to provide them with exposure and opportunity to explore the legal profession, all at no cost to the participants. The Virginia State Bar Diversity Conference was established in 2010 and became a cosponsor soon thereafter. When the Diversity Conference was approved for funding through the VSB in 2016, it started funding the Institute. The Institute is currently funded through the Diversity Conference and through generous grants from the Virginia Law Foundation, and the Institute is now a joint program of the Diversity Conference and the YLC.

For one week, high school students are introduced to the legal profession by living on a college campus and attending a number of mock classes (complete with overnight reading assignments) and seminars on career opportunities in the law, test taking strategies, and the college admissions process. The students meet with law school professors, judges, guest lecturers, and state and local bar association members.  The students participate in other programs geared to developing them as all-round professional individuals, such as a networking social, and an etiquette dinner. At the end of the week, the students participate in a mock trial based on pre-written trial materials used in national trial competitions. The Institute culminates in a graduation banquet where a prominent minority member of the bar is the featured speaker.

If you have questions about the Oliver Hill/Samuel Tucker Pre-Law Institute, please contact the Institute co-directors at [email protected].

Interested in participating as a volunteer at the Oliver Hill/Samuel Tucker Institute? Please contact the Institute co-directors at [email protected].

Mentor/Mentee Initiative

This initiative pairs two law students from each of Virginia’s law schools with mentors to serve as partners for the VSB Annual Meeting experience. Students get to attend all functions networking with the Virginia State Bar’s leadership, staff, prominent attorneys, judges, and Supreme Court of Virginia justices.

Forum on Diversity and Inclusion in the Legal Profession

The Diversity Conference provides an annual program where attorneys and judges can discuss the latest issues and provide best practices for building greater inclusiveness in the profession.

This Diversity Conference program began in 2018 and annually brings together lawyers and legal professionals in a day-long discussion about diversity and its impact on the practice of law in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The program offers CLE credit. Topics have included: what is implicit bias and how it affects the decision-making process, best business practices, how diversity and inclusion can be a business asset, and more.

The forum usually takes place in the fall. Keep an eye on the conference's calendar for future ones.

Annual Meeting Activities

The Diversity Conference is a major contributor to the activities at the VSB Annual Meeting, providing a signature CLE program discussing access to justice or inclusion issues in the profession. At the joint conference and section luncheon, the Diversity Conference conducts its annual meeting of the membership electing new members of the Board of Governors and awarding its Dunnaville Award recipient. And the Fore Diversity Golf Tournament allows members of the bar to participate in an 18-hole golf tournament in Virginia Beach.

Rule of Law Day

The Diversity Conference joins with numerous groups to put on a program where local students can learn about the courts, the legislative process, and interact with attorneys and judges in an educational setting. This program attracts hundreds of middle school and high school students and provides a rewarding experience for all involved.

Diversity and Inclusion Programs

The Diversity Conference participates with the other conferences and sections to provide inclusion related programming at conferences and programs around the commonwealth.

Subcommittees

Annual Meeting/Showcase CLE Committee

Diversity Conference at the VSB Annual Meeting

The Diversity Conference is very active at the VSB Annual Meeting. Every June, VSB members are able to get a flavor of Conference and its leadership through presentations, awards, and athletic activities. We have a series of committees that plan, promote and implement a showcase CLE program for the Diversity Conference at the Annual Meeting focusing on the topic and issues facing diversity and inclusion; to plan, promote and implement the Annual Fore Diversity Golf Tournament held during the Annual Meeting; to work closely with the Law School Committee on the Mentor/Mentee Initiative.

Showcase CLE presentation at Annual Meeting

The Diversity Conference sponsors at least one showcase presentation on issues relevant to our membership and useful to the bar at large. We have covered issues affecting those from different racial and ethnic backgrounds, sexual orientation and gender identity, and disability. View past programs from our YouTube library.

Mentor/Mentee Initiative at Annual Meeting

We are fostering the next generation of lawyers by bringing them to the Annual Meeting. Two students from each Virginia law school come to the Annual Meeting and participate in the morning and afternoon CLE programs, networking receptions, plenary programs, the VSB Annual Meeting Banquet, and a dinner for mentors and mentees. Students are nominated by their schools for participation at the Annual Meeting.

Dunnaville Achievement Award

The Clarence M. Dunnaville Jr. Achievement Award, sponsored by the Diversity Conference of the Virginia State Bar, honors a member of the Virginia State Bar for setting an example that fellow members can emulate to meet the conference’s goal of fostering, encouraging, and facilitating diversity and inclusion in the bar, the judiciary, and the legal profession. The award commemorates the life of Clarence M. Dunnaville Jr. and his unceasing devotion to improving diversity and equality in our Commonwealth. The inaugural award was presented to Clarence M. Dunnaville Jr. in 2012.

Pipeline and Community Projects Committee

This committee implements new pipeline and community projects and to support existing projects, including state and local Rule of Law Programs, reaches out to the community, to elementary, middle and high schools, church and civic groups and other associations and entities to promote a better understanding of the legal system, encourages individuals at an early age to seek a career in the legal profession with all of the opportunities that can be afforded to someone, and to instill confidence in them to believe that they can.

Tasks include:

  1. Sponsor, promote and assist Rule of Law Day at the Capitol
  2. Sponsor, promote and assist Oliver Hill/Samuel Tucker Pre-Law Institute
  3. Implement new pipeline/ladder projects to elementary, middle and high school students and other community projects
  4. Prepare gender and diversity workshop presentations

Law Schools Committee

This committee builds a bridge between the Bar and the law schools in our commonwealth. We provide attorney mentors to the law students, teach about the Rule of Law and to enable law students to become citizen lawyers upon their graduation and admission to the Bar, establish close working relationships with the law schools and obtain their ideas on how the Diversity Conference can assist them in promoting diversity and inclusion in their school, lend its support to those programs and create new ones, and reach out to the local and specialty bars in this endeavor.

Tasks include:

  1. Mentor/Mentee Initiative at the Annual Meeting and sustain throughout the year.
  2. Facilitate mentoring of law school students.
  3. Presentations to law schools on subjects of diversity and inclusion.

Public Relations/Website/Social Media Committee

This committee publicizes the Diversity Conference mission and activities, expands the social media footprint through Facebook, Twitter, etc., and contributes articles for and publishes the quarterly newsletter, Invictus.

Tasks include:

  1. Enhance and build content on VSB DC website with assistance of VSB webmaster.
  2. Contribute articles and serve as editor or assistant editor of newsletter, Invictus.
  3. Expand social media presence through the DC Facebook page, Twitter account, and YouTube account.

Newsletter (Invictus) Committee

The Diversity Conference's newsletter, Invictus, is available online and always looking to promote the work of Diversity Conference members. 

Membership Committee

This committee informs the members of the Bar, the local and specialty bar associations, and the law schools how they can become members of the DC, and to seek continued growth in membership.

Tasks include:

  1. Distribute and replenish stock of membership brochures; design and order permanent Diversity Conference display banner.
  2. Attend and promote Diversity Conference membership at a VSB DC table at the October and February new lawyers swearing in ceremony and First Day in Practice seminars in Richmond.
  3. Communicate with membership about volunteer opportunities.
  4. Organize and promote social events for members throughout the commonwealth, in the fall and spring of each year, other than the Annual Meeting. View our calendar of events.

Forum for Diversity & Inclusion Committee

The Diversity Conference provides an annual program where attorneys and judges can discuss the latest issues and provide best practices for building greater inclusiveness in the profession.

This Diversity Conference program began in 2018 and annually brings together lawyers and legal professionals in a day-long discussion about diversity and its impact on the practice of law in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The program is free for all VSB members and offers CLE credit. Topics have included: what is implicit bias and how it affects the decision-making process, best business practices, how diversity and inclusion can be a business asset, and more.

The forum usually takes place in the fall. Keep an eye on the conference's calendar for future ones.