Oh,
Florida.
Florida
Attorney
General
James
Uthmeier
just
made
the
latest
move
to
make
his
state
the
MAGA-ist
of
them
all.
Uthmeier
just
sent
a
memo
to
law
firms
letting
them
know
that
his
office
will
not
hire
law
firms
as
outside
counsel
that
have
diversity,
equity,
and
inclusion
(DEI)
and
environmental,
social,
and
governance
(ESG)
policies.
And
yes,
that’s
wildly
broad.
As
the
Palm
Beach
Post
reports,
the
DEI
net
is
cast
particularly
wide.
The
following
will
stop
a
firm
from
getting
hired
by
the
AG’s
office:
- DEI
websites
that
offer
job
notices
“indicating
a
preference
for
hiring
individuals
with
certain
racial,
ethnic,
or
sexual
orientation
characteristics.”- Workplace
DEI
trainings
“that
are
so
egregious
as
to
constitute
a
plausible
basis
for
a
hostile
work
environment
claim
or
allegation.”- A
diversity
ranking
system
known
as
the
Minority
Corporate
Counsel
Association
Scorecard
which
grades
firms
“on
their
‘percentile
ranking
of
the
representation
of
underrepresented
racial
and
ethnic
groups,
gender
and
LBGTQ+
per
level
and
the
overall
disclosure
of
DEI
data
versus
firms
of
a
similar
size,’”
the
memo
says.- Any
diversity
targets
in
hiring,
promoting
or
contracting.- Fellowship
and
mentorship
programs
restricted
to
specific
races,
ethnicities,
genders,
or
sexual
orientations.
Yes,
even
affinity
groups
are
banned
under
this
retrograde
policy.
If
you
think
this
sound
like
a
cartoon
villain,
well,
you
aren’t
alone.
“If
you
go
to
other
states
across
the
country,
attorneys
general
are
fighting
for
consumer
protection
and
consumer
rights,
not
going
after
gay
clubs
and
law
firms
who
dare
have
a
commitment
to
their
diverse
communities,”
Rep.
Anna
Eskamani,
D-Orlando,
said.
“It’s
so
out
of
touch
from
what
everyday
people
want.
I
mean,
it’s
so
cartoonish.”
According
to
the
memo,
firms
“that
have
demonstrated
a
history
of
racially
discriminating
against
their
own
attorneys,
staff,
and
job
applicants
will
no
longer
be
considered
eligible
for
state
work,
absent
a
compelling
demonstration
of
changed
behavior
and
a
rejection
of
discriminatory
principles.”
But,
to
be
clear
(in
case
it
wasn’t
already),
some
of
what
firms
are
being
punished
for
isn’t
discriminatory.
And
not
in
an
of-course-DEI-is-not-discrimination
way
(which
is
also
true)
but
in
an
adjudicated-by-a-federal-court
way.
One
of
the
barred
activities
(if
a
firm
wants
a
Florida
contract)
is
participation
in
the
Mansfield
Certification
program.
But
in
May,
a
federal
judge
found,
“Mansfield
Rule
expressly
does
not
establish
any
hiring
quotas
or
other
illegally
discriminatory
practices,
requiring
only
that
participating
law
firms
consider
attorneys
from
diverse
backgrounds
for
certain
positions.”
So
it’s
pretty
clear
that,
despite
the
bluster
about
discrimination,
this
is
*really*
about
far-right
policy
goals.
Speaking
of,
the
memo
also
takes
its
shots
at
climate
change
—
that
is,
stopping
climate
change.
Also,
NetZero
Lawyers
Alliance,
which
commits
to
“support
the
goal
of
net
zero”
carbon
dioxide
emissions
by
2050,
“embodies
the
worst
of
the
discriminatory
ESG
apparatus,”
according
to
the
memo.
And
NetZero
Practice
Groups,
which
the
memo
asserts
push
DEI
and
ESG
policies
onto
corporate
clients
“making
this
promotion
of
discriminatory
policies
in
a
prime
money-making
operation
while
undermining
the
rule
of
law
and
other
principles
that
Florida
holds
dear.”With
the
president
taking
aim
at
Biglaw,
it
was
inevitable
that
red
states
would
also
shoot
their
shot.
Kathryn
Rubino
is
a
Senior
Editor
at
Above
the
Law,
host
of
The
Jabot
podcast,
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
AtL
tipsters
are
the
best,
so
please
connect
with
her.
Feel
free
to
her
with
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments
and
follow
her
on
@Kathryn1 or
Mastodon
@[email protected].