Back in June 2021, President Joe Biden signed a bill to make Juneteenth an official federal holiday, memorializing the end of slavery in the United States. Before that momentous occasion, in the wake of protests that swept the nation following the George Floyd murder, Biglaw firms raced to meet the moment, stepping up one by one to announce that Juneteenth would be recognized as a holiday, giving employees the time to reflect on issues of racial injustice in America.
Unfortunately, times have changed since then, and against the backdrop of Trump’s sweeping anti-DEI declarations, Juneteenth celebrations have been dimmed, with support for these initiatives being pulled. But what about law firms?
To our knowledge, the following firms have declared Juneteenth a holiday, granting employees either half or full days off:
Akerman
Akin Gump
Alterman Law Group
Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholar
Baker Botts
Baker Donelson
Ballard Spahr
Blank Rome
Boies Schiller
Bradley Arant
Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner
Cahill
Clifford Chance
Cooley
Covington
Davis & Gilbert
Davis Wright Tremaine
Debevoise
Dechert
Dinsmore & Shohl
Dorsey & Whitney
Faegre Drinker
Foley Hoag
Foley & Lardner
Freshfields
Fried Frank
Gibson Dunn
Goulston & Storrs
Greenberg Traurig
Greenspoon Marder
Griesing Law
Haynes and Boone
Hogan Lovells
Jackson Lewis
Katten
Kelley Drye
Kiernan Trebach
Kirkland
Kramer Levin
Latham
Littler
Loeb & Loeb
Mayer Brown
McDermott
Moore & Van Allen
Morgan Lewis
Morrison & Foerster
Munger Tolles & Olson
Norton Rose
Ogletree
Patterson Belknap
Paul Weiss
Perkins Coie
Polsinelli
Reed Smith
Ropes & Gray
Schulte
Selendy Gay
Seyfarth
Shearman
Sheppard Mullin
Sidley
Simpson Thacher
Stroock
Sullivan & Cromwell
Sullivan & Worcester
Venable
Vinson & Elkins
Weil (opt-in)
White & Case
Willkie
Wilson Sonsini
Winston & Strawn
There are many, many more law firms in this country — where do the rest of the Am Law 100, Am Law 200, midsize firms, and elite boutiques stand as far as Juneteenth is concerned? Taking a step back from legal work to commemorate the day and encouraging all employees to reflect on the legacy of slavery sends a important signal from the top of the firm that this is a very important issue.
Please take our survey and let us know if your firm has declared Juneteenth a holiday. You can also email us, text us at (646) 820-8477, tweet us @atlblog, or skeet us @abovethelaw.com to let us know. Thank you.
Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Bluesky, X/Twitter, and Threads, or connect with her on LinkedIn.
