Office of Diversity and Inclusion

The Director of Diversity, Inclusion and Community Engagement serves as the staff liaison for the Diversity Committee and New Jersey diverse/affinity bar associations to develop ground-breaking strategies for increasing participation of diverse lawyers with the NJSBA. If you are interested in learning more about the NJSBA Diversity Initiatives, please contact Paula Saha, Senior Managing Director of Diversity, Inclusion and Member Engagement, at 732-214-8509 or [email protected].

Initiatives

The New Jersey State Bar Association (“NJSBA”) is committed to promoting and fostering a diverse and inclusive bar association.  The NJSBA recognizes that the broad concept of diversity includes race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, age and disability.

In furtherance, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion was created and charged with the task of developing initiatives that will catapult the concepts of diversity and inclusion into the forefront of the New Jersey legal community and serve as a positive model for other New Jersey legal institutions.

Diversity and Inclusion Statement

The Diversity Committee assisted with the drafting and creation of an updated diversity and inclusion statement in April 2015 which reflects a strong vision and commitment for long-term sustainable progress in improving diversity efforts.

Newsletter

The Diversity Committee Newsletter has been launched as a platform to address diversity and inclusion issues in the law. The quarterly newsletter will also highlight and commend notable contributors that have made an impact as it relates to diversity initiatives in the State of New Jersey.

Diverse Speakers Bureau

The Office of Diversity  and Inclusion is developing an online resource to compile potential speakers to be considered for future NJSBA programs.

Distinguished Speaker Series

The New Jersey State Bar Association in conjunction with the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education and the New Jersey State Bar Foundation has developed a Distinguished Speaker Series with the goal of bringing notable diverse voices to the bar association to share their story with the New Jersey community.

Training

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion is working with NJSBA leadership to implement on-going diversity and inclusion training.

Resource Center
The Office of Diversity and Inclusion has compiled resource material to assist with diversity and inclusion efforts by other organizations.

Education and Pipeline Programs
The Office of Diversity and Inclusion has launched an educational pipeline program for students to contemplate a career in law.

NJSBA Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan

Individual Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan Checklist