Veta Richardson of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association Receives 2008 Allies for Justice Award
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July 30, 2008 Court Blatchford
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Veta Richardson of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association
Receives 2008 Allies for Justice Award
Washington, D.C.- Veta T. Richardson, Executive Director of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA), has been named the recipient of the 2008 Allies for Justice Award from the National Lesbian and Gay Law Association. The award will be presented at the American Bar Association’s Annual Meeting on August 8, 2008 in New York, N.Y.
Each year, the National Lesbian and Gay Law Association (NLGLA) honors a legal professional who, in his or her position of leadership, has allied with the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community and has made a noteworthy contribution to the struggle for civil rights and equality in the field of law.
As this year’s recipient, Richardson is being acknowledged for her accomplishments and advocacy role, particularly as Executive Director of MCCA. Founded in 1997, MCCA’s mission is to advocate for the expanded hiring, retention and promotion opportunities for minority attorneys in corporate law departments and the law firms that serve them. MCCA furthers its mission by publishing research on achieving diversity and best practices in the legal profession, honoring innovative diversity programs with its Employer of Choice and Thomas L. Sager awards, and assisting diverse law students through the Lloyd M. Johnson, Jr. Scholarship Program.
Under Richardson’s leadership, MCCA has supported the LGBT community in a variety of ways:
· MCCA expanded its mission to include not only attorneys who are people of color but also LGBT, women and people with disabilities.
· MCCA’s flagship publication, Diversity & the Bar, has featured groundbreaking articles on LGBT attorneys. In 2002, the magazine examined the struggles of gay and lesbian attorneys, and the July/August 2008 issue addresses transgendered lawyers.
· MCCA’s 2003 publication of Perspectives from the Invisible Bar: Gays and Lesbians in the Profession provided a seminal examination of how sexual orientation affects attorneys. It remains the standard for developing a culture of inclusion in the profession.
· MCCA’s annual Diversity Conference includes programs to benefit LGBT attorneys.
Richardson also speaks nationally on the issues of diversity and diversity management in all legal environments. In awarding her the Allies for Justice Award, the NLGLA acknowledged “her consistent inclusion of LGBT attorneys in the definition of diversity in the profession.”
“MCCA and I are committed to helping LGBT attorneys be accepted and respected in our profession, and I am very honored by this recognition,” commented Ms. Richardson. “It shows that you don’t have to be a member of the LGBT community to advocate vigorously for inclusion. If we step out of our demographic niche, we can make a difference.”
Prior to joining MCCA, Richardson was a vice president and deputy general counsel for the Association of Corporate Counsel. She also served as in-house counsel to Sunoco, Inc. for more than 10 years. A graduate of the University of Maryland School of Law, Richardson has been recognized with several awards, including: the Distinguished Legal Service Award from Corporate Legal Times and LexisNexis, the Annie M. Wagner Young Lawyer Pioneer Award from the Bar Association of D.C., and a Special Appreciation Award from the Minority Law Student Leadership Summit.
NLGLA is a national association of lawyers, judges and other legal professionals, laws students, activists, and affiliated lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender legal organizations. NLGLA promotes justice in and through the legal profession for the LGBT community. For more information, go to www.nlgla.org.
MCCA’s work has been recognized with awards from the National Minority Business Council, Inc., the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the National Gay and Lesbian Law Association, and the Association of Corporate Counsel. MCCA is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and also has a Southeast regional office in Atlanta, Ga. For more information, go to mcca.com
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