Stoel Rives, Partner Maren Norton Shortlisted for Chambers North America 2020 Diversity & Inclusion Awards

PORTLAND, Ore. – Stoel Rives LLP is pleased to announce that both the firm and its Litigation Group Chair, Seattle partner Maren Norton, have been shortlisted for the Chambers Diversity & Inclusion Awards: North America 2020. Winners will be announced at a virtual event on September 24.

The Chambers Diversity & Inclusion Awards celebrate the achievements of firms and lawyers working to advance diversity and inclusion across the U.S. and Canada. Stoel Rives was shortlisted in the category “Outstanding Firm for Furthering Diversity and Inclusion” and Norton in the category “Outstanding Contribution to Furthering the Advancement of Diversity in the Legal Profession.”

“Being shortlisted for these awards affirms that we are on the right track in building a more inclusive and diverse law firm,” Firm Managing Partner Melissa Jones said. “We have taken many steps in the past year – our personnel are participating in a monthlong Racial Justice & Anti-Racism Challenge, the firm has joined the Law Firm Antiracism Alliance to devote pro bono resources to addressing racism, and we are eager to see our participation in the Move the Needle Fund bear fruit.”

In 2020, Stoel Rives became one of five founding law firms of the Move the Needle Fund (“MTN”) and the sole representative of the second half of the Am Law 200. Through MTN, the firms will collaborate with 25+ general counsels from some of today’s leading companies and an advisory group of influential leaders in the legal community in creating innovative approaches to promoting diversity that can serve as a model for learning and positive change in the legal profession and beyond.

Stoel Rives also participates in the Mansfield Rule Law Certification Program, which measures whether law firms have affirmatively considered women, LGBTQ+ and minority attorneys for senior-level lateral hiring, equity partner promotions, and significant leadership and governance roles. Stoel Rives is one of only 12 law firms to have been certified all ten years of the existence of the Gold Standard Certification award from the Women in Law Empowerment Forum (WILEF).

Seattle partner Maren Norton leads Stoel Rives’ 100-strong firmwide litigation group and has been recognized as a litigation leader by Best Lawyers in America ^© and Washington Super Lawyers^®.

Norton’s commitment to diversity and inclusion in the legal profession began when she was serving as Michigan Law School Student Senate President at the time that the seminal Michigan affirmative action cases were before the U.S. Supreme Court. She has since dedicated much of her career to diversity, equity and inclusion in the legal profession, both at Stoel Rives and in the Puget Sound region. Norton served on the firm’s Diversity and Inclusion (“D&I”) Committee for nine years and was its vice chair half of those years. She also served as one of the founding leaders of the Gregoire Fellows Program, a partnership between the University of Washington Law School and the Seattle legal community to bring greater diversity to the profession. Norton acts as a mentor and coach for a variety of diverse lawyers in the Seattle office, leads and serves as a key organizer of its D&I committee, and serves as a member of the firm’s “Move the Needle” core team.

Norton previously served as a member of the Shoreline School Board and then as president of the Shoreline Public Schools Foundation. In those roles, she played a central role in increasing access to education for diverse populations in her community.

For more on Stoel Rives’ Diversity, Equity & Inclusion programs, click here.