Wiggin and Dana is committed to attracting, retaining and promoting a diverse group of lawyers to build the strongest possible firm. The firm's Diversity Committee focuses on identifying and pursuing opportunities to fulfill this commitment.

Diversity Recruiting

Wiggin and Dana participates in the following diversity recruiting events:

• University of Connecticut School of Law Cultural Diversity Initiative
• Vault/MCCA Legal Diversity Job Fair in New York
• Northeast BLSA Job Fair
• Howard University School of Law On Campus Interview Program
• Host for Lawyers Collaborative for Diversity

Wiggin and Dana participates in numerous diversity initiatives, and the firm is especially proud of the following:

• Wiggin and Dana is the first large Connecticut law firm to name a woman as managing partner (see "One More Barrier Broken," The Connecticut Law Tribune, September 2006).
  
  
• Wiggin and Dana is creating the Diversity Advisory Board, a group of the firm’s clients, alums and business and community leaders that will meet approximately four times a year with the firm’s Diversity Committee to discuss ongoing firm diversity initiatives. We anticipate that the Board will serve as a valuable resource and sounding board for all our diversity efforts and help us fulfill our commitment to attracting, retaining and promoting a diverse group of lawyers to build the strongest possible firm.
  
  
• Wiggin and Dana is a member of the Lawyers Collaborative for Diversity (“LCD”), a consortium of the State’s leading law firms, corporations, public sector entities, law schools and state bar associations in the joint mission of making Connecticut a more attractive place for attorneys of color and women to practice law.
  
  
• Over half our associates are women, as are over half of our department chairs.
  
  
• A member of our Diversity Committee also co-chairs the Diversity Committee for the New Haven County Bar Association.
  
  
• One of our lawyers is Vice-President of the George W. Crawford Black Bar Association, an organization of African-American lawyers in Connecticut, and was the organization’s Treasurer.
  
  
• One of our lawyers is a member of the LCD Associates Advisory Committee and has served as a Board Member of the Connecticut Hispanic Bar Association.
  
  
• The firm sponsors attendance at various diversity conferences and seminars, including the American Bar Association’s National Conference for the Minority Lawyer.
  
  
• Wiggin and Dana sponsors the LCD's annual Justices of Color and Edwin Archer Randolph Diversity Award events.
  
  
• The firm is a leadership sponsor for many other diversity events and organizations promoting diversity in the legal profession. We regularly sponsor events hosted by the Connecticut Hispanic Bar Association, the South Asian Bar Association of Connecticut, the George W. Crawford Black Bar Association, and the Connecticut Asian Pacific American Bar Association.
  
  

Wiggin And Dana's Diversity Committee

Wiggin and Dana's Diversity Committee includes partners, associates and staff. The Diversity Committee focuses on recruitment, retention and promotion to promote diversity at all levels within the firm. The Committee is involved in the firm's recruiting efforts, oversees diversity initiatives, and actively seeks new ways to encourage the hiring and retention of minority lawyers.

Bethany L. Appleby is chair of the firm's Diversity Committee, a member of the Hiring Committee and a partner in the firm's Litigation Department. Bethany graduated magna cum laude from Yale University and received her J.D. with highest honors from the University of Connecticut School of Law, where she was a Notes and Comments editor for the Connecticut Law Review.

Erick I. Díaz is a member of the firm's Labor and Employment Department and its Hiring Committee. He is a member of the Connecticut Hispanic Bar Association's Board of Directors, where he is also the Chair of the Association's Communications Committee. Erick graduated with a B.A. in Political Science from Yale University and received his J.D. from Boston University School of Law, where he was President of the Latin American Law Student Association.

David B. Fein is the partner in charge of Wiggin and Dana's White-Collar Defense, Investigations and Corporate Compliance Practice Group, and he serves as a member of the firm's executive committee. David is a Visiting Lecturer in Law at the Yale Law School and previously served as an Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Connecticut School of Law, and has guest lectured at N.Y.U. School of Law and Georgetown Law School. David graduated cum laude from Dartmouth College and attended N.Y.U. School of Law, where he graduated Order of the Coif and was a member of the Senior Board of the N.Y.U. Law Review.

Suzette E. Gordon is an associate in Wiggin and Dana's White Collar Defense, Investigations and Corporate Compliance Practice Group and she serves as a member of the firm's diversity committee. Suzette graduated with a B.A. in Political Science with highest honors from N.Y.U. and received her J.D. from N.Y.U. School of Law. While in Law school, Suzette was a staff editor for the N.Y.U. Environmental Law Journal and an Executive Board Member of the Black Allied Law Students' Association. Suzette is a board member of NYU School of Law's Black, Latino, Asian Pacific American Law Alumni Association, the National Bar Association and the New York Metropolitan Black Bar Association.

Christine Owens Morgan is counsel of the Real Estate, Environmental & Land Use Department and a diversity mentor at the firm. She is also co-chair of the Diversity Committee for the New Haven County Bar Association. Christine graduated with a B.A. from Connecticut College and received her J.D. from the University of Connecticut School of Law.

Christina H. Jeon is the firm's Recruiting Coordinator and a member of the Connecticut Association of Legal Recruitment Administrators. Christina received her B.A. in legal studies from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.