An idea for creating a pathway for diverse paraprofessionals to become attorneys with mentoring and networking opportunities, as well as financial support, won the First Place award. The team noted that the pool of paraprofessionals is inherently more diverse than the pool of attorneys.

Nov. 15, 2023 – Mentoring and networking opportunities; technology for more equitable work distribution; and metrics on behavioral data impacting lawyer training and retention. These were just a sampling of solutions proposed by 13 teams of attorneys during the DEI Hackathon Pitch Contest held at Northwestern Mutual on October 30.

The Hackathon was a six-week, team-based problem-solving effort aimed at positively impacting diverse lawyer recruiting and retention in the Milwaukee legal community.

In her opening remarks to full house of more than 120 members of the legal community, Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Kori Ashley, Chair of the State Bar’s Diversity and Inclusion Oversight Committee, shared that “it’s not an easy​ time to be engaged in D&I work,” emphasizing “it’s so important that we dig in and continue having these conversations.”

Northwestern Mutual hosted a September kickoff event, as well as the Pitch Contest. Teams from Milwaukee law firms and in-house legal departments ultimately pitched their ideas to a panel of nine judges, which included four members of the Milwaukee County Circuit Court and Wisconsin appellate court benches, as well as local business leaders. The judges narrowed the field of teams to six finalists, who then pitched in the finals.

At the Pitch Contest finals, Northwestern Mutual Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer Ray Manista welcomed the crowd.

“One of the things about diversity and inclusion work is that it takes a village, but it also takes non-traditional partnerships and non-traditional thinking. That’s what today is all about and what we see here today,” said Manista.

And the Winners Are …

An idea for creating a pathway for diverse paraprofessionals to become attorneys with mentoring and networking opportunities, as well as financial support, won the First Place award. The team noted that the pool of paraprofessionals is inherently more diverse than the pool of attorneys. Team member attorney Pat Maxwell shared, “We’ve all worked with paralegals who produce consistently excellent work… and who are indispensable,” and the idea capitalizes on that talent pool.

A technology application that uses algorithms to ensure that young attorneys have access to quality work experiences took Second Place. The app, “My Associate,” takes bias out of the work assignment process and aims to boost associate retention by promoting equitable work distribution. “A large law firm loses approximately $200,000 by losing associates,” shared team member attorney Amy Eisenbeis.

“When You Know, You Know” – another application that allows associates to rate senior colleagues on inclusiveness in real time – came in Third Place. The app provides data on behaviors that contribute to attorney training and retention.

“The goal here is disruption,” shared team member attorney Nick Desiato. “If you are not participating, why aren’t you participating? Because if we’re taking the Hackathon seriously… we want actual change.”

The winning teams are eligible for seed money grants, funded by Hackathon sponsors, to take their ideas from concept to reality. 

​The State Bar of Wisconsin​ and Northwestern Mutual were Presenting Sponsors (the highest sponsorship level) for the DEI Hackathon. ​The Hackathon had 17 total sponsors, including the Milwaukee Bar Association.

The group enjoyed food and drinks while viewing the top six teams’ pitches. The event was also live-streamed.

The pitch decks for all ideas presented at the Hackathon (all of which are open source) will be available to the entire legal community via the Hackathon’s website​.