At Watkins & Eager, we recognize that our goal of providing the highest quality legal representation to our clients requires a commitment to diversity and inclusion. We strive to incorporate the varying backgrounds and perspectives of our attorneys and professionals as we work to deliver on our unified mission of success for our clients.
Diversity begins with recruiting, and Watkins & Eager is committed to recruiting qualified diverse candidates at the associate, lateral and membership levels. However, recruiting talented and diverse lawyers is only the first step, and we strive to create an environment of inclusion that leads to the retention and promotion of diverse attorneys. At the associate level, we seek to accomplish this not only through mentorship and oversight, but by assigning responsibility for complex tasks that promotes success from the start.
The firm’s philosophy to foster diversity extends beyond the associate level and traces its historical foundation to 1934, when Elizabeth Watkins Hulen, an outstanding appellate advocate and member of Watkins & Eager, was the first woman in Mississippi history to argue a case before the Supreme Court of the United States. Today, Watkins & Eager boasts lawyers from diverse backgrounds with a diverse set of accomplishments, including: serving as lead counsel in complex litigation and transactional matters; assuming leadership roles in professional organizations, including the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), various local bar associations, the American Bar Association, and the Defense Research Institute; serving in leadership positions within the Firm; and achieving recognition from prestigious institutions including the Mississippi Bar Foundation and the American College of Trial Lawyers.
Watkins & Eager encourages all of its attorneys to participate in groups and organizations that promote diversity and inclusion to ensure the firm continues to learn and build upon its present efforts in this area.
Inquiries regarding the firm’s diversity and inclusion efforts may be directed to the chair of the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee, Jimmy B. Wilkins (jwilkins@watkinseager.com).