CEO message
A message from our Managing Partner
Welcome to our 2024 Responsible Business report As we celebrate our 100th anniversary in the US, I often think about the ideals and goals of our founding partners, Elbert Tuttle and William Sutherland. While aspiring to create a great law firm, they always recognized their obligation to help those in need by representing pro bono clients with the same vigor as business clients. Today, in addition to continuing that proud pro bono tradition, it is my responsibility as Co-CEO to help ensure that as a responsible business we work to help our clients, our people and our communities to thrive across many different areas.
The growing global challenges we face today in the areas of social justice, diversity, equity and inclusion, and climate change require that businesses contribute to the development and execution of creative solutions to the problems in these spheres. This report serves as our Communication on Progress as a responsible business, setting out our most recent efforts to help our people, our communities and the environment and to demonstrate our work to maintain a strong system of governance and ethics.
In this report, you’ll see that our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion remains strong. I am always proud of our ES Scholars pipeline program, which each year includes three groups of incoming law students in Atlanta, Washington DC and New York. The program assists students from backgrounds underrepresented in the legal industry in preparing for the unique rigors of law school while also providing them with insight into the many different areas of practice available to them (including public interest law) upon graduation.
In the environmental area, we are pleased to have had our environmental targets validated by the Science-Based Targets initiative. We have committed to achieving net zero by 2040, which is one of the most ambitious net-zero targets of any law firm in the United States. We have already made significant emissions reductions compared to our base-year calculations, and we are committed to achieving our targets and ensuring transparency in our work over the coming years.
We continue to develop our leading pro bono program, currently ranked No. 5 in the country by Vault. We had a number of significant client wins over the past year and have continued to take on new high-impact litigation addressing the needs of many of society’s most vulnerable individuals. To further strengthen our pro bono practice, we recently welcomed Harmony Jones to the firm as US Pro Bono Counsel.
In the area of governance and ethics, we have worked to ensure the best and most responsible use of generative AI within the firm and society generally. New developments in generative AI will continue to bring about exciting opportunities for innovation, but they must be tempered by carefully developed policies and procedures governing the use of data and applications. Our newly adopted global AI policy is one step in our continuous effort to ensure responsible use of this exciting technology.
Consistent with the ideals of our founding partners 100 years ago, our commitment to implementing a responsible business program is driven by a deep belief that the initiatives we are developing are not only the right things to do but also essential elements of our strategy for long-term business success.
We are proud and excited to reaffirm our commitment to the UN Global Compact, the Ten Principles and our work to advance the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. We are excited about the firm’s future and the opportunities we will have to innovate and drive forward responsible business as we work for the benefit of our clients, our people and our communities.
Watch Celebrating stories throughout our history: A message from our Co-CEO - Mark Wasserman
Watch Celebrating stories throughout our history: A message from our Co-CEO - Mark Wasserman
Mark D. Wasserman Managing Partner, Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP Co-CEO, Eversheds Sutherland (Limited)
"As we celebrate our 100-year anniversary and look forward to the future, I am proud of the firm’s work in the responsible business area and excited about our opportunities to do even more in the years ahead."
Our contacts
Thank you for reading our 2024 US Responsible Business Report. To read our 2024 International Responsible Business Report, please visit our website. If you have any questions, please contact:
Aileen Crowson Chief Responsible Business and Pro Bono Practice Officer T: 1 404 407 5094 aileencrowson@eversheds-sutherland.com
Natasha Orehowsky Responsible Business and Pro Bono Practice Manager T: +1 202 383 0356 natashaorehowsky@eversheds-sutherland.com
© Eversheds Sutherland. All rights reserved. Eversheds Sutherland is a global provider of legal and other services operating through various separate and distinct legal entities. Eversheds Sutherland is the name and brand under which the members of Eversheds Sutherland Limited (Eversheds Sutherland (International) LLP and Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP) and their respective controlled, managed and affiliated firms and the members of Eversheds Sutherland (Europe) Limited (each an "Eversheds Sutherland Entity" and together the "Eversheds Sutherland Entities") provide legal or other services to clients around the world. Eversheds Sutherland Entities are constituted and regulated in accordance with relevant local regulatory and legal requirements and operate in accordance with their locally registered names. The use of the name Eversheds Sutherland, is for description purposes only and does not imply that the Eversheds Sutherland Entities are in a partnership or are part of a global LLP. The responsibility for the provision of services to the client is defined in the terms of engagement between the instructed firm and the client.
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