Crowell & Moring Shortlisted for 2021 Financial Times Innovative Lawyers Award for ‘Innovation in Racial Justice’

Washington – December 2, 2021: Crowell & Moring has been named a finalist for the 2021 Financial Times Innovative Lawyers Awards in the “Innovation in Racial Justice” category for its efforts in “effecting change in the legal industry to combat racial injustice and inequity.”

In the wake of the killings of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and countless others, the nation has grappled with the effects of systemic racism and injustice toward the nation’s diverse communities. Crowell formed a Racial Justice Pro Bono Task Force to identify how to make the greatest impact with legal services. It focused on police misconduct, incarceration, and voting rights. The firm donated a total of $750,000 to two organizations—the Equal Justice Initiative and the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law—and pledged to provide $1 million in pro bono legal services in 2021 to support racial equity, justice, and fundamental human rights.

In addition, the firm has secured key pro bono victories for these causes over the past year. Crowell and co-counsel ACLU of Maryland successfully represented residents of Baltimore’s Harlem Park, an historic Black neighborhood, in reaching a settlement and obtaining a public apology in a federal court lawsuit against the Baltimore City Police Department and former Police Commissioner Kevin Davis. The residents’ lawsuit charged that their state and federal constitutional rights were violated during a six-day, multi-block lockdown of their neighborhood following the shooting death of Detective Sean Suiter. The firm also worked with the Advancement Project and Voice of the Experienced to threaten a lawsuit against the Louisiana Secretary of State challenging a Louisiana statute that effectively suspended voting rights for individuals with felony convictions sentenced only to probation. The threatened lawsuit helped secure a legislative fix under which the voting rights of more than 40,000 individuals in Louisiana were restored.

To view the complete list of finalists in all categories, click here. Winners will be announced at an awards ceremony on December 9. The report will be published in the Financial Times on December 10.