KCBA Anti-Racism & Equity Statement

The King County Bar Association (KCBA) recognizes the pervasiveness of racism in our country including in the legal system. In a letter to the “Judiciary and Legal Community” issued on June 4, 2020, the Washington State Supreme Court wrote, “[t]he injustice still plaguing our country has its roots in the individual and collective actions of many, and it cannot be addressed without the individual and collective actions of us all.”¹ We, at the KCBA, join in our Supreme Court’s call for action and denounce racism. KCBA commits to identifying, addressing, and eradicating racial inequities in the legal system.

KCBA defines racism as attitudes, practices, policies, and law which negatively and disproportionately target or result in inequitable outcomes for Black, Indigenous and other People of Color (BIPOC) individuals, populations, and communities.

While we denounce racism, we cannot stop there; active engagement through anti-racism efforts is necessary. KCBA’s anti-racism approach requires consistent and widespread efforts to combat white supremacy, educate all members of our community regarding the harmful effects of racism, the dismantling of intolerance, the inclusion of BIPOC perspectives and lived experience, and promotion of racial equity.

As attorneys, we took an Oath to uphold the United States Constitution and the Washington State Constitution. We must act in ways to ensure that individuals’ due process and equal protection rights are not violated.

The King County Bar Association commits to the following anti-racism policies and practices:

1. Creating awareness and recognizing the role racism has played and continues to play in all areas of the law;
2. Incorporating the perspectives of BIPOC individuals at all levels of KCBA’s work, including the board, committees, and internal staff;
3. Investing resources that will support initiatives focused on racial equity;
4. Promoting and creating a sustainable environment that enriches the lives of BIPOC legal professionals;
5. Developing and supporting programs to increase and to retain the number of BIPOC individuals in the legal profession and the judiciary, which reflects the diversity of the King County community, through early, secondary, college, law school, and continuing education;
6. Actively educating stakeholders both within the King County Bar Association and outside of the bar on the topics of racism and anti-racism; and
7. Denouncing racism explicitly in any setting.

There is no one solution to combating racism. Nonetheless, KCBA acknowledges the existence of racism and is committed to its eradication. It is incumbent upon the KCBA Board, staff, committees, and members to pursue these objectives. The KCBA Board directs the KCBA Committees to collaborate with the KCBA Diversity Committee in pursuing these endeavors. To accomplish these efforts, the KCBA Board directs the entire KCBA community to commit to adopting and promoting these anti-racism principles and practices by collaborating internally and externally with specialized groups, organizations, and committees in the areas of diversity, anti-racism, and equity.

1 Washington State Supreme Court, “Letter to Members of the Judiciary and Legal Community.” June 4, 2020. Washington Courts, Washington. Judiciary Legal Community SIGNED 060420.pdf (wa.gov)

AREAS OF FOCUS

Anti-Racism & Equity Committee
The King County Bar Association's Anti-Racism and Equity Committee works to advance the bar's goal of diversifying the legal profession. Efforts include establishing benchmarks for measuring success in increasing the bar and bench's diversity, and building strong partnerships with the minority bar associations in the community. The committee also recommends allocation of minority scholarship grants from the King County Bar Foundation for the county's law schools. Be involved with our Committee and community at ARE-Committee.

Minority Law Student Scholarships
Started in 1970 when the King County Bar raised $10,000 for minority law student scholarships, this program has grown today to scholarship awards of over $150,000 annually, divided between the University of Washington and Seattle University Schools of Law. As one of the largest providers of minority law student scholarships in the state of Washington, the King County Bar’s cumulative scholarship grants are in excess of $2.5 million through June, 2019. Current and past recipients are honored each fall at a minority bar scholars reception.

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Luncheon
From modest beginnings in the mid-1990s at the Plymouth Congregational Church, the King County Bar’s annual luncheon honoring the legacy of Dr. King now attracts over 800 lawyers, judges, and civic leaders each year and is the bar’s signature diversity event. The event features nationally known keynote speakers, including in recent years Donna Brazille, Andrew Young, Henry Louis Gates, Yamiche Alcindor, and Eugene Robinson, who inspire the local legal community to remember and act on Dr. King’s message that all individuals are entitled to justice and equality under the law. 

LSAT Preparation Grant Program
The King County Bar offers financial support to diverse undergraduate students and recent graduates taking the Law School Admission Test. The grants secure commercial preparatory courses as well as fee waivers from the Law School Admissions Council for participants. Learn more at LSATPrep.

Minority Bar Association Partnerships
The King County Bar works in coalition with over a dozen minority bar associations in Washington State on various projects including diversity conferences and judicial forums. KCBA also provides insurance coverage and training resources to minority bars that host pro bono legal service clinics for members of their communities. Recent pro bono partners have included the Asian, Korean American, Loren Miller, Middle Eastern, and Q-LAW/GLBT bar associations.

PRIOR PROGRAMS

KCBA Building a Book of Business
Based on the premise that those minority attorneys who are successful within law firms are more likely to stay, this program helps minority associates in private practice improve their chances for success. In a closed-door seminar, successful minority lawyers instruct participants how to effectively market themselves and acquire new clients for their firms. No more than fifteen young attorneys are selected for this program annually.  The program concluded in 2016.

Future of the Law Institute
Established in 2001, the Future of the Law Institute (FLI) was a year-long program for minority and economically disadvantaged high school students interested in learning more about a career in the law. FLI provided students with substantive legal workshops, career counseling, a mock trial, and opportunities to meet with legal professionals. Students were eligible for scholarships when they continue on to higher education. Over 800 students participated in this program before it concluded in 2015.