Diversity in Private Arbitration and the Bench
Vice President of Policy and Program
Christopher Wright Durocher, ACS Senior Director of Policy & Program, published an op-ed in The Hill about efforts to ensure diversity not just on the bench, but in private arbitration as well.
When a person becomes involved in civil litigation, whether as a plaintiff or a defendant, there should be at least some chance that the judge or arbitrator in their case looks like them or shares some similar life experiences. When diversity is absent, stereotypes, lack of shared life experience, and unconscious biases can calcify into a culture, making justice for people of color and women that much harder. Studies of diversity in the federal judiciary and private arbitration offer us reasons for serious concern.