Our Commitment to Diversity At Ulmer & Berne LLP, we consider diversity to be  fundamental to our success.

It promotes a broader, richer work environment. It replaces tired, conventional solutions with creative ideas. It enriches individual assets and strengthens our collective value.

We believe our diverse workforce -- and by "diverse," we mean a workforce made up of people of different races, religions, sexual orientations, ethnic backgrounds and genders -- makes Ulmer & Berne a more resourceful, perceptive and ultimately more capable law firm.

To ensure that our commitment to a diverse workplace remains a reality, Ulmer & Berne has created a Diversity Committee comprised of attorneys who share the same goal of continued firm diversity. This group assists in recruiting and promoting attorneys with varied and unique backgrounds. 

Our efforts include active participation in the following programs and organizations:

Law Firm Matchmaker Event
The annual Law Firm Matchmaker Event is coordinated by the Cleveland Bar Association and the Cleveland Chapter of the Association of Legal Administrators with the assistance of the Northern Ohio Minority Business Council.  
 
Greater Cincinnati Minority Counsel Program Member
An organization of business members that encourages the hiring of minority attorneys to do corporate legal work.
 
Just the Beginning Foundation
An organization to foster diversity in the federal and state judiciary.

Midwest Region Minority Recruitment Conference
Coordinated by the Black Law Students Association including students and schools from across the midwest.

Tri-State Diversity Recruiting Program
A two-day recruiting event for minority law students from Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio.

Minority Clerkship Program
Coordinated by the Cleveland Bar Association, the MCP is a competitive program placing 1L law students in firms, companies and the public sector. Partner Inajo Davis Chappell is the chair of the Minority Clerkship Committee.

BLAC Roundtable - Black Lawyers Association of Cincinnati
An organization of attorneys, judges, law firms and law students whose mission is to further diversify the legal community of Cincinnati.

Minority Corporate Counsel Association
U&B sponsored the MCCA's 6th Annual Creating Pathways to Diversity® Conference in 2005.

Our Commitment to Women

At Ulmer & Berne, we believe the strength and prosperity of our Firm is fundamentally dependent on our ability to attract, retain and advance women attorneys. But the mere successful recruitment, retention and advancement of women attorneys is not the ultimate goal. We strive to offer our women attorneys a full opportunity to develop themselves professionally to the highest possible level, to generate and sustain important client relationships, and to take leadership roles in the Firm.

In recognition of this goal, we have developed the Women’s Professional Development Committee. This committee is comprised of female partners and associates whose primary objectives are to develop recruitment, retention and career advancement programs and policies geared towards helping our women attorneys excel in the legal profession. 

Through events, networking, mentoring and training programs, the Women’s Professional Development Committee helps women attorneys accomplish their goals and reach their fullest potential at work, in the community and at home.