The Indiana State Bar Association is working diligently to create a safe space for all of its members that fosters an environment in which they can thrive and feel supported. We will continue to strive for a legal community that promotes inclusivity and that is devoid of inequality and discrimination. To that end, the ISBA has been working to develop an action plan that will ensure a meaningful impact in the Indiana legal space. Click here to read our statement, "ISBA taking action on race and equity issues."

Below you will find a number of programs and resources. We encourage you to contact us to suggest a topic or particular type of resource. Email Leah Baker at lbaker@inbar.org.

 

ISBA Inclusion Reference Guide

A hallmark of the legal profession is using precise language to convey exactly what we mean. While many people have good intentions, it can be daunting to try to be inclusive. The ISBA’s Inclusion Reference Guide provides guidance for attorneys, judges, law students, and legal staff to be as precise in addressing people as they are in drafting the terms of a contract.
 
This reference guide is broken into four primary sections: ethnicity, gender identity and sexual orientation, disability, and language of origin. Each section includes the following:

• Relevant definitions
  
• Language suggestions
  
• Tips for legal professionals
  
• More ISBA resources
  

Legal professionals are invited to use this guide in whatever way feels appropriate for them. Some will only be interested in reading the definitions; some may try a couple of the more inclusive phrases; some may apply a few of the inclusion tips; some will read a whole section thoroughly and set aside all the other sections; all uses are acceptable.

Read the ISBA Inclusion Reference Guide

• PDF Version »
  
• Mobile and Screen Reader-Friendly Version »

Groups

• ISBA Diversity Committee
  The purpose of the Diversity Committee is to promote full and equal participation in the ISBA, our profession, and the justice system by all persons. Join or learn more by emailing Leah Baker, lbaker@inbar.org.
  
• ISBA Latino Affairs Committee
  The Latino Affairs Committee seeks to provide a unified voice addressing the legal issues uniquely affecting the Latino community of Indiana. The committee coordinates resources to ensure equal access to justice for Indiana’s Latino community, promotes the legal concerns of Latinos within the broader legal community, and raises awareness of issues that affect the Latino community. Join or learn more by emailing Leah Baker, lbaker@inbar.org.
  
• ISBA Sexual Orientation & Gender Identity Committee
  The Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Committee works to educate attorneys, judges, the Association, and members of the general public about the law as it relates to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender persons. Join or learn more by emailing Leah Baker, lbaker@inbar.org.
  
• Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Indiana (APABA)
  Supports and advocates for Indiana’s Asian Pacific American legal professionals. Learn more »
  
• Rudy Lozano Bar Association
  Supports and advocates for Indiana’s Latino legal professionals. Learn more »
  
• James C. Kimbrough Bar Association
  Supports and advocates for Northwest Indiana’s Black legal professionals. Learn more »
  
• Marion County Bar Association
  Supports and advocates for Indiana’s Black legal professionals. Learn more »

ISBA CLE

Open Conversations: Time of Reflection
Open Conversations: Power of Mentorship
Open Conversations: Racism & Racial Injustice
Open Conversations: Assessing Legal Services and Access In Indiana
Transgender Youth and the Law
View more CLE »

 

ISBA Community Corner Blog Articles

These articles were published by your peers in the ISBA blog, Community Corner.

• Break Language Habits: Shift to Neutral: Engaging Inclusive Language, Even When We’re Not Explicitly Talking About Gender
  
• Break Language Habits: Yes, Your Honor(ific): The Potential Problems with Misplaced Manners
  
• Break Language Habits: Hillary & Trump: How We Refer to Women (and Men)
  
• Break Language Habits: What's in a Name? An Entire Identity of Which We Should Be Respectful
  
• Trouble Walks in and Turns into a Solution: How to Represent Clients from Different Cultures
  
• Incorporate bias interrupters into your daily work to make fairer decisions and advance equity

 

Res Gestae Articles

These articles were published by your peers in the ISBA member journal, Res Gestae.

• "Women in Law: In an Age of Tectonic Shifts, What Can We Do to Propel Everyone to the Next Level?" November 2024, Indiana Women's Empowerment Network
• "Women of 'Sense and Steel,'" November 2024, Monica A. Fennell
• “Exploring the Big Tent: Final Thoughts on DEI,” May 2024, Hon. Thomas J. Felts
• "A Challenging Landscape: How the Harvard Affirmative Action Case Will Affect Legal Diversity," April 2024, Jessica Heiser
• "Exploring the Big Tent: Further Thoughts on DEI," April 2024, Hon. Thomas J. Felts
• "Exploring the Big Tent: ISBA Leaders’ Thoughts on Diversity," March 2024, Hon. Thomas J. Felts
• "The Impact of Bias," November 2023, Adrienne Meiring
• “Creatures of Habit: Suggestions to Thoughtfully Evolve and Become an Inclusive Law Office,” October 2023, Angka Hinshaw, Esq.
• “Knots, Locs, and Law: A Legal and Social Perspective on the CROWN Act and the Right to Wear Natural Hair,” July/August 2023, Taylor Ray Cook, Raymond P. Dudlo, and Rhea M. Jones-Price
• “The How-To’s of LGBTQ+ Clients: Language, Ethical Considerations, and Building Trust,” June 2023, Stephanie Chey-Sluss and Kaden Alexander
• "Discrimination 2.0: Bias Against Asian Americans Increasing," July/August 2022, L. Leona Frank
  
• "Combating Anti-Jewish Bias Through Law," July/August 2022, Robert Katz
• “Inclusion: Fulfilling the Requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Act,” June 2022, Margaret A. Jones
  
• “Mediation as a True Alternative to the Litigated Process: How Mediators Can Authentically Serve All Participants,” May 2022, Tess Worrell
  
• “Jackie Robinson, Diversity, and Race Hate,” Jan/Feb 2022, Clayton C. Miller
  
• “Time of Reflection – An Open Conversation about the Open Conversations Program,” Jan/Feb 2022, Justice Steven David and Angka Hinshaw
  
• “Uncomfortable about Racism? Good, Most of Us Are,” September 2021, Hon. Darrin Dolehanty
  
• “Let Us Talk about Racism,” June 2021, Justice Steven David and Angka Hinshaw
  
• “Discussing Racism and Inequities with Leaders of Indiana Supreme Court and Indiana State Bar Association,” April 2021, Justice Steven David and Angka Hinshaw
  
• “The Road Less Traveled,” March 2021, Michael E. Tolbert
  
• "Judge's 'Confession' Sparks Discussion and Apology," January/February 2021, Magistrate William Wilson and Anasuya Shekhar
  
• “Racism and Racial Injustice: Moving from Mind Opening to Mind Changing to Action,” December 2020, Justice Steven David and Angka Hinshaw
  
• “Acknowledging and Working to Overcome Implicit Bias,” July/August 2020, Leslie Craig Henderzahs
  
• “Ok Boomers, What’s Going On?,” July/August 2020, Hon. Steven L. Hostetler and Hon. Andre B. Gammage
• "Forum on Policing Generates Heated Discussion," November 2017, Lisa Hendrickson

Other Helpful Articles & Resources

This article repository is compiled by the ISBA Diversity Committee.

• Research shows that spending money in a diverse way saves an entity 8.5% year over year. DiversiFind is a platform that allows diverse companies to market themselves to companies who want to support their DEI initiatives by diversifying their spend. DiversiFind makes it easier to find a diverse-owned company than the traditional public lists available on the internet. Visit www.diversifind.com, and create a profile for free. You can search for diverse-owned companies, as well as see many Indiana-based RFP opportunities in one convenient place. For lawyers who want to be more proactive about diversity, DiversiFind makes it easy to find a diverse supplier and perhaps get a quote from that supplier. 
• Know Your Rights: Trans Legal Survival Guide
• LGBTQ+ Inclusion from the Bench: A Best Practices Guide for Judges
• Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson
• LGBT Bar of New York's LGBT Law Notes monthly publication
• "Policy Equity Assessment: Family and Medical Leave Act," By Pamela Joshi, Maura Baldiga, Rebecca Huber, Dolores Acevedo-Garcia
  
• "Designing an FMLA for All Workers; Three policy actions could reduce racial/ethnic inequities in accessing family and medical leave," By Pamela Joshi, Abigail N. Walters, Leah Shafer
  
• "Paid Leave in the U.S.," published by the Kaiser Family Foundation
• "Stop Saying These Things When You Don’t Know How to Pronounce Someone’s Name," by Meredith Dietz
• "Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America," by Ibram X. Kendi
  
• “What is critical race theory, anyway?” Oct. 13, 2020, The Weeds by Vox
  
• American Bar Association Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Center
  
• Association of Legal Administrators video, "What Does Diversity Mean?"
• General Counsel Call Law Firms to Action on Diversity
• For Our White Friends Desiring to Be Allies (non-legal)
• Anti-Racist Resources for White People (non-legal)
• Your Black Colleagues May Look Like They Are Okay—Chances Are They're Not
• Lawyering for Social Change
• The Imposition of Social Justice Morality in Legal Education
  
• In the Long Run, Diversity Wins
• Study: Indiana Among States with Less Diverse Supreme Court
• DTCI: A Call to Action on Our Diversity and Inclusion Mission 
• Leading Advocate for Diversity in Legal Industry Hasn't Seen Much Progress in 10 Years
• Lawyers Say They Face Persistent Racial and Gender Bias at Work
• Lawyer Well-Being—An Uncharted Path to Increasing Diversity and Inclusion
• What Does the Future of Diversity Hold for Law Firms?
• Moving Toward a Culturally Diverse World: Guidance for Professionals
• Law is the Least Diverse Profession in the Nation (Washington Post)
• Written in Black and White Exploring Confirmation Bias in Racialized Perceptions of Writing Skills
• A Portrait of Asian Americans in the Law
• Asian Attorneys Less Represented in Indianapolis than Nationwide
• Spirit and Place Present: Powerful Conversations on Race
  
• Ways to Tackle Your Implicit Bias
• TYL - Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity 

ISBA's Diversity Position Statement

The Indiana State Bar Association (ISBA) will integrate diverse perspectives into all aspects of its activities and into the fabric of the legal profession of this state. ISBA, engaging with lawyers and others within the legal profession from all backgrounds, strives to build a diverse pipeline to the legal profession, and to inform the broader legal community about issues surrounding diversity and inclusion. The ISBA takes affirmative steps to eliminate bias and enhance diversity to ensure that members of all backgrounds, identities, and circumstances are included in every level of the organization. This commitment is not only essential to the pursuit of our mission “to improve the administration of justice and promote public understanding of the legal system,” but it also strengthens our ability to address all of our members’ needs and the needs of those the ISBA's members serve and represent in our respective communities.