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June 7, 2023 8:09 PM   Subscribe

Revenge served ice cold. Top L.A. law firm outs former partners’ racist, sexist emails. Last month, Lewis, Brisbois, Bisgaard and Smith, one of the nation’s largest law firms, was rocked by the announcement that two top partners who ran their labor and employment practice, defending corporations against harassment and discrimination lawsuits, were starting their own boutique practice and taking as many as 140 colleagues with them. The shock inside the’ downtown Los Angeles headquarters soon gave way to anger as the recently departed partners embarked on a press campaign that portrayed their former employer as a profit-focused legal mill that ground down the aspirations of its lawyers. In an extraordinary move, the law firm's management team directed the release of scores of emails in which Barber and Ranen used vile terms for women, Black people, Armenians, Persians, and gay men and traded in offensive stereotypes of Jews and Asians.

The emails, stretching back 15 years, were head-spinning in their coarseness and vitriol. A Superior Court judge was called....well, probably read the article to see.

CW: NSFW and crass, racist, sexist, antisemitic and so much more. And yes, their new law firm immediately folded.
posted by Toddles (40 comments total) 24 users marked this as a favorite
 
From the article:

Some saw the email release as a self-own for Lewis Brisbois, revealing a culture of bigotry thriving in some corners of the behemoth firm.

Yeah, that's what I was wondering - they were pulling this bullshit for Fifteen years, and their former partners only complained now, when they had left to become competitors?
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 8:19 PM on June 7, 2023 [70 favorites]


Yep: “I just don’t understand that,” said Ann Park, a corporate litigator and president of the L.A. County Bar Assn. “It just reflects poorly on — obviously these lawyers — but also on their colleagues for not calling it out.”
posted by Halloween Jack at 8:30 PM on June 7, 2023 [24 favorites]


From the article:

In an extraordinary move, its management team directed the release of scores of emails in which Barber and Ranen used vile terms for women, Black people, Armenians, Persians, and gay men and traded in offensive stereotypes of Jews and Asians.

Also from the article:

The men writing the emails were not junior employees, but influential veterans and supervisors. ... Both helped run its labor and employment practice, defending corporations against harassment and discrimination lawsuits.
posted by cnidaria at 8:33 PM on June 7, 2023 [8 favorites]


Zowie. Everyone saying that these emails don't reflect well on their first firm are completely correct. A junior associate can't do much about a rainmaker being a piece of shit. But it sounds like this vileness was distributed more widely. And we're supposed to think they never voiced these opinions outside of emails? Right. Every woman and Jewish person who didn't make partner while one of them sat on the management committee should be consulting their own lawyer.
posted by praemunire at 8:49 PM on June 7, 2023 [54 favorites]


There's a set of potential clients who look at this as giving these attorneys more cred. If they can keep from being sanctioned.
posted by tigrrrlily at 8:51 PM on June 7, 2023 [2 favorites]


I picked the right summer to take Professional Responsibility in law school. My prof is gonna have a field day with this.
posted by RakDaddy at 9:00 PM on June 7, 2023 [14 favorites]


“I just don’t understand that,” said Ann Park, a corporate litigator and president of the L.A. County Bar Assn. “It just reflects poorly on — obviously these lawyers — but also on their colleagues for not calling it out.”

Ah, but they did call it out in the end. They're reformed! Hallelujah!
posted by Tell Me No Lies at 9:01 PM on June 7, 2023 [3 favorites]


There's a set of potential clients who look at this as giving these attorneys more cred

Always hire people with firsthand experience of the issue.
posted by Tell Me No Lies at 9:18 PM on June 7, 2023 [2 favorites]


The emails, stretching back 15 years,

Least of the issues here, but who the fuck has retention periods for data set to 15 years or more. I mean sure in very niche cases and circumstances - - especially if I understand for criminal legal cases. But not emails like this shit. Your risk of bullshit like this (not to mention storage costs) will be high.
posted by inflatablekiwi at 10:45 PM on June 7, 2023 [6 favorites]


Your opportunity for bullshit like this will be high.

The firm wanted this outcome.
posted by ryanrs at 10:51 PM on June 7, 2023 [1 favorite]


Lol I definitely skimmed the article all BUT WHAT DID THEY CALL ARMENIANS. "Armo" is barely a slur! I was hoping they came up with something spicier. One of the things I miss most about living in LA was having my demographic constitute a big enough group for anyone to bother to insult.
posted by potrzebie at 11:39 PM on June 7, 2023 [21 favorites]


Law firms have long memories, and huge archives for correspondence in case it's needed in the future.

Normally, it's to remind themselves about details of a case or client, but in this situation it's also useful. There are products which assist them archiving emails while complying with European data privacy laws, which was a concern. Not so much for these guys though I see.
posted by Braeburn at 11:59 PM on June 7, 2023 [3 favorites]


Lol I definitely skimmed the article all BUT WHAT DID THEY CALL ARMENIANS. "Armo" is barely a slur! I was hoping they came up with something spicier.

As a (part-) Armenian-American raised in the LA area, this was my question as well. "Armo" was the joke slur we came up with as kids because there didn't seem to be a real one. Apparently he was advocating for calling a bunch of different groups "G*ps**s"? That's just disappointingly...inaccurate.
posted by The Tensor at 12:08 AM on June 8, 2023 [1 favorite]


BUT WHAT DID THEY CALL ARMENIANS. "Armo" is barely a slur! I was hoping they came up with something spicier.

"Well now, the result of last week's competition when we asked you to find a derogatory term for the Belgians. Well, the response was enormous and we took quite a long time sorting out the winners. There were some very clever entries. Mrs Hatred of Leicester said 'let's not call them anything, let's just ignore them' (applause starts vigorously, but he holds his hands up for silence) and a Mr St John of Huntingdon said he couldn't think of anything more derogatory than 'Belgians'." -Monty Python, "Prejudice" skit
posted by Meatbomb at 12:16 AM on June 8, 2023 [35 favorites]


What a story. One thing the latimes story captures brilliantly is how the moral and even legal gambits are transparent proxies for an underlying power struggle. The second-funniest example of this for me is how the old firm is shocked comma shocked that there was racism and sexism in their corporate side discrimination department, and is getting some DEI consultants in stat. The funniest thing was the blatant boilerplate statement of contrition from the attorneys who have dictated that same statement to their equally uncontrite clients a thousand times.

An unfunny thing for me is that this isn't fiction and having their new firm not get off the ground is likely all the comeuppance these guys will receive.

I wonder what kinds of work these emails were doing for the people who wrote them: a display of dominance, sure, perhaps also a loyalty-building exercise, like face tattoos or violent crime in gang initiations? And I suppose that to be motivated to work biglaw hours defending the awful things it was their job to defend you probably have to be like this at a deep level.

I would love to read a longform piece or novel about what it's like to be a DEI consultant in this game, what those folks feel like when they get home and pour a glass of wine.
posted by sy at 1:29 AM on June 8, 2023 [12 favorites]


Honestly, if you can bear it, check out the jaw-dropping "Statement of Apology and Responsibility" at the bottom of this report. "[These consistent, habitual, thoroughly documented patterns of sexism, racism, antisemitism, and homophobia across fifteen years] are not, in any way, reflections of the contents of our hearts, or our true values. When we started this firm, we announced to the world the purest and truest description of who we are as men and leaders. We stand by those sentiments and insist they are the true measure of our character."
posted by sy at 1:42 AM on June 8, 2023 [14 favorites]


Lol now do the oil and gas law firms
posted by eustatic at 1:52 AM on June 8, 2023 [24 favorites]


Let them fight.gif
posted by Artw at 1:55 AM on June 8, 2023 [8 favorites]


Slow clap from Wolfram & Hart.
posted by kokaku at 2:05 AM on June 8, 2023 [26 favorites]


They’ve had a difficult 72 hours those poor fellas.
posted by whatevernot at 3:18 AM on June 8, 2023 [5 favorites]


Least of the issues here, but who the fuck has retention periods for data set to 15 years or more.

Law firms. Seriously, a friend’s husband’s firm recently discovered that their physical archives contained correspondence from when they represented Samuel Clemens.
posted by gauche at 3:44 AM on June 8, 2023 [51 favorites]


...the remaining partners “will form a new firm” and asked for support “while we heal and plan our path forward.”

While they heal!
posted by SoberHighland at 4:57 AM on June 8, 2023 [20 favorites]


I like how they took the time to differentiate between “ used vile terms for” and “traded in offensive stereotypes of”. I know that’s probably more on the folks writing the story wanting to be specific, but boy does it feel like lawyers still splitting those hairs to make some things sound less damning.
posted by Mchelly at 5:16 AM on June 8, 2023 [4 favorites]


A**holes.
posted by M. at 5:16 AM on June 8, 2023


Instead of sending regular people on a one-way trip to Mars, let's send this bunch. No matter who wins, they're not coming back, which I believe qualifies as a win for the rest of us.
posted by tommasz at 6:19 AM on June 8, 2023 [1 favorite]


[For those not hitting a paywall, the original story is in the LA Times here. I'm not aware of any reason the LAT needs boycotting and actual journalists need all the support they can get.]

This was incredible, in the literal sense. A firm trumpets the fact that they hired racists and let them racist for a decade and think it makes them look like the good guys?

Lewis Brisbois recently retained a diversity, equity and inclusion consultant to review internal practices, according to a spokesperson.

Heard an interview with a DEI consultant by one of her clients once. She told them, "I'm happy to talk to you publicly, but often I'll keep my involvement confidential. Because it's sometimes obvious that the only action a client intends to take is hiring me."

Kind of guessing Lewis Brisbois might be in that latter category.
posted by mark k at 6:26 AM on June 8, 2023 [10 favorites]


I honed in on the DEI consultant too. That industry cannot be saved. While I know based on experience there are people doing that work who genuinely care about what they do and hope to make a more fair and just world, this demonstrates how utterly ineffectual (at best - cynical and hollow at worst) DEI is.

This law firm is in the business of protecting corporations from being sued for being racist! How the fuck do you take a job helping them reduce microagressions among their staff?? Their entire project is worsening material conditions for people of color, Jews, women, and apparently Armenians!

DEI is such a reflection of the limited politics of our times. A project designed to reduce liability for corporations is held up as a solution to the material conditions experienced by masses of human beings. A hyper focus on the words of a few elites while we ignore the impact of their actions on the majority.
posted by latkes at 6:41 AM on June 8, 2023 [5 favorites]


And I suppose that to be motivated to work biglaw hours defending the awful things it was their job to defend you probably have to be like this at a deep level.

This is not a form of analysis I generally endorse, but a lot of lawyers' behaviors can be understood when you realize the profession is stuffed with yapping beta males drunk on the very limited power their corporate masters have let drop from the table. They all unironically want to be the Jeremy Strong character from S1 Succession (nobody tell me what ended up happening to him).
posted by praemunire at 7:22 AM on June 8, 2023 [2 favorites]


And I suppose that to be motivated to work biglaw hours defending the awful things it was their job to defend you probably have to be like this at a deep level.

Yes and no. Big loans and big ambitions need big salaries, and a lot of young people end up stuck in horrible jobs like this. They used to call it "golden handcuffs," but with the cost of living what it is, I think they're zipties by now. Not that that's any excuse for bad behavior, of course.

Strong contrast between this and a heartbreaking article I read yesterday by the widow of a big-law attorney who was so crushed by the pressure of work he died by suicide, claiming he was a failure. The worst thing he seems to have done was have a hard time handling a big bankruptcy case by himself. And these guys, who could improve the planet if -- but never mind. They'll do fine, even if they have to chase the ambulance for a while.
posted by Countess Elena at 7:45 AM on June 8, 2023 [2 favorites]


The best take I heard was that now law firms will have a "beating in" hazing ritual where new hires have to write a bunch of racist emails.
posted by whuppy at 8:21 AM on June 8, 2023 [1 favorite]


My read of it yesterday was that Lewis Brisbois thought, probably rightly, that any PR blowback it'd face as a consequence of having tolerated these assholes for so long would totally be counterbalanced by the pleasure of sinking poison deep in the heart of the renegade splinter firm and especially its named partners.

I'd say their calculus was probably not wrong. Lewis is an Am Law 100 firm with 1,600+ lawyers and $700M in 2022 revenue. Some mea culpas, and back to billing big.
posted by the sobsister at 9:15 AM on June 8, 2023 [6 favorites]


My read of it yesterday was that Lewis Brisbois thought, probably rightly, that any PR blowback it'd face as a consequence of having tolerated these assholes for so long would totally be counterbalanced by the pleasure of sinking poison deep in the heart of the renegade splinter firm and especially its named partners.

And they are probably right in the general PR sense--but that might turn if any employees who have suffered any sort of adverse action that can be connected to either of those two brings suit. If I were a plaintiff's-side labor lawyer, I would be licking my chops at the idea of what discovery might reveal.
posted by praemunire at 11:16 AM on June 8, 2023 [1 favorite]


From the LA Times article:
Barber seemed to recognize as much. In 2015, he told an acquaintance, “There is no ‘NSFW’ for me,” abbreviating “not safe for work.”

“My average email would get someone fired,” he added.


From the Above the Law post:
We will be taking time away to explore the ways in which we can most effectively demonstrate our contrition and commitment to a world characterized by inclusion, kindness and grace, all qualities we failed to demonstrate in our private correspondence.

There's no such thing as "private correspondence" on work email, and they knew it.

I have so many thoughts on this. I did some time as a support staffer at labor and employment defense* practice at a large firm and eventually felt so gross I had to leave. Not soon enough.

*Asterisk because defense is a legal term but law firms like the one I worked for (and presumably both firms involved here) also use the word to make it sound like their clients are helpless little wounded animals defending themselves against ravening packs of frivolous lawsuits, when really they just have tons of resources to throw at enforcing employers' disproportionate power over their workers, discouraging labor organizing, manufacturing conditions that conceal wage theft, abet discrimination, and worse. So much worse.

Also, I don't really believe that
the firm received an anonymous complaint about the former partners. It specifically recommended the firm scrutinize the emails of both men, according to a person familiar with the matter.

I rather suspect that the firm had received at least one complaint over the 15 years these scumbags were tossing that language around, made it/them go away as long as these guys were still bringing in money and clients, and then magically remembered that there had been An Issue the minute these two took themselves and some of that money out the door. Is there a word for schadenfreude that also leaves you feeling kind of gross and sad?
posted by Fish, fish, are you doing your duty? at 11:46 AM on June 8, 2023 [7 favorites]


the sobsister: ...any PR blowback it'd face as a consequence of having tolerated these assholes for so long would totally be counterbalanced by the pleasure of sinking poison deep in the heart of the renegade splinter firm and especially its named partners.

No such thing as bad publicity unless it's erroneous news of your death -- or fatal to a rival.
posted by k3ninho at 12:40 PM on June 8, 2023


You don't want a criminal lawyer. You want a criminal lawyer.
posted by nushustu at 1:13 PM on June 8, 2023 [1 favorite]


Lol I definitely skimmed the article all BUT WHAT DID THEY CALL ARMENIANS. "Armo" is barely a slur! I was hoping they came up with something spicier...
posted by potrzebie


Small derail. Seeing 'ARMENIANS' in caps, it suddenly dawned on me what the provenance of Dilbert's ELBO(w)NIANS likely was. If Adams ever uses 'wrist-ifarians' from 'the finger lakes', we'll have (finger)nailed it.
Narrator: The cartoonist Adams will never use the terns, as he is now free to use real nationalities and slurs.
posted by zaixfeep at 3:25 PM on June 8, 2023 [3 favorites]




The aftershocks from Barber and Ranen's racist, sexist email disaster by Jenna Greene (Reuters)

Highlights:

--At least 9 lawyers who jumped ship for the Barber Ranen firm (now renamed as Daugherty Lordan) were copied on one or more of the offensive emails. None appeared to have the full scope of the emails, and an anonymous source says there was a "power imbalance" between subordinate lawyers on the emails that might have made it difficult for them to complain.

--Lewis Brisbois didn't just dump the emails, they included a super-handy index flagging all of the offensive comments to make it easier for reporters to find them.

--DEI Directive officer Flo Nicolas re Lewis Brisbois: “If you’re missing things under your nose, it shows a disconnect at the leadership level”
posted by creepygirl at 10:14 AM on June 9, 2023 [3 favorites]


this demonstrates how utterly ineffectual (at best - cynical and hollow at worst) DEI is.

I just have to disagree. If making anti racism boring and corporate wasn't working on a mass level, they wouldn't be banning it
posted by eustatic at 3:45 PM on June 10, 2023 [2 favorites]


Mod note: Comment removed. Let's avoid using or pretending to use ChatGPT/AI to provide comments, thanks!
posted by Brandon Blatcher (staff) at 6:39 AM on June 13, 2023 [4 favorites]


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