3rd-annual legal diversity conference is Sept. 14 in Omaha

Theodore M. "Ted" Shaw, director-counsel and president of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, will be the keynote speaker at the third-annual Nebraska Legal Diversity Summit Sept. 14 in Omaha.

Presented by the University of Nebraska Public Policy Center, the Nebraska State Bar Association, the Nebraska Supreme Court and others, the summit is aimed at promoting diversity in Nebraska's legal system. More than 200 participants are expected at the event, including Nebraska's legal employers and law students of color from Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Colorado, South Dakota, North Dakota and Wyoming.

The summit will be from 11:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Doubletree Hotel, 1616 Dodge St.

Shaw has directed the NAACP Legal Defense Fund's education docket and litigated school desegregation, capital punishment and other civil rights cases throughout the country. He was lead counsel in a coalition that represented African-American and Latino students in the University of Michigan undergraduate affirmative action admissions case. In 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court heard that case, along with one challenging the use of affirmative action at the University of Michigan Law School. The court ruled in favor of diversity as a compelling state interest.

In addition to Shaw, one of the legal profession's most prominent speakers, this half-day event will include interviews between Nebraska legal employers and law students of color from the region, opportunities for lateral hire interviews, sessions on professional development and "expanding the pipeline," and a networking reception for participating law students, attorneys and legal employers.

Registration is available online at www.nelegaldiversity.org. There is no cost for registration, but participants are asked to register by Sept. 6.

CONTACT: Liz Neeley, Nebraska State Bar Association, (402) 742-8129