Goodwin has received the 2017 Diversity Initiative Award from Boston University School of Law’s Black Law Students Association (BLSA) for exceptional commitment to the law school and the legal community at large. The award recognizes a Boston law firm that has helped further BLSA’s commitment to the growth of its students and that has played a significant role in advancing diversity.
Goodwin was honored on April 8, 2017, at BLSA’s Annual Awards Gala, which was hosted by Kevin Smith, the Co-President of BLSA who is also a former Goodwin diversity fellow and one of the firm’s incoming 2L summer associates. Thanks to Mr. Smith’s leadership, the event featured as speakers legal legend Clarence B. Jones – personal attorney and adviser to Martin Luther King Jr. – and TED Talk star and Suffolk County Prosecutor Adam Foss.
Andy Sucoff, chair of Goodwin’s Boston office and a partner in and former co-chair of the firm's Real Estate Industry Group, attended along with several other Goodwin diversity fellows and incoming summer associates.
Goodwin’s 1L and 2L Diversity Fellowship programs are designed to promote diversity at the firm and in the legal profession. Established in 2005, Goodwin’s 1L Diversity Fellowships provide eight first-year law students from underrepresented backgrounds with awards of $10,000 each to help cover expenses while working in a public interest law position during the summer after their first year of law school. The newly created Goodwin 2L Diversity Fellowships provide four second-year law students from underrepresented backgrounds with awards of $15,000 each. For more information, please visit Goodwin Diversity Fellowships.