Internet Newsletter for Lawyers
July/August 2005, by Delia Venables

In May 2004, I attended the first ever Black Women Global Conference at the UNESCO building in Paris. I was dazzled by the breadth of the fabulously talented black women ranging from the first black female senator from Brazil, an American running an organisations with turnover in excess of $300m, British Dames, Dutch business women and an African Minister and diplomat to the really beautiful but amazingly slender Naomi Campbell.

It was easy to just enjoy the event, soak in Paris, go home and forget all about it but I wanted something to remember it by... and then the idea of the Directory came to me. Well, it has taken over a year, but by the end of this summer, the Black Lawyers Directory (BLD) will be launched at www.onlineBLD.com. The overriding objective is to highlight, promote and champion diversity within the legal profession and also to create a dynamic forum of information, career development and network opportunity where associations can be formed and information shared.

I hope that the Directory can be an effective tool for all organisations when formulating or reviewing their Equality and Diversity/Anti-Discrimination policies especially on recruitment and the diversity of the lawyers or organisation they instruct or intend to instruct. It will also be an important tool and mechanism for lawyers, legal recruiters, job seekers, the public and those interested in pursuing careers in the law both within the UK and internationally.

BLD will profile, free of charge, all individual black and ethnic minority lawyers and all organisations with at least one black and ethnic minority lawyer. Other lawyers who subscribe to and support BLD’s aims and objectives will also be profiled.

So far, the site is just a holding page with the aims and objectives but "flyers" and registration forms for lawyers, organisations and service providers can be downloaded.

Debo Nwauzu is a solicitor and a member of the Law Management Section. She is a director of Totally Management Ltd which owns BLD, www.onlineBLD.com.
Email debo@onlineBLD.com.

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