About Us
ESG/Corporate Responsibility
Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) objectives have become an essential metric for businesses. We apply the ESG services we provide for clients to the structure and management of our firm. We expect the same from our vendors and business partners.
That means being conscious of our impact on our communities, the legal profession, and the world we share—and holding ourselves accountable. It means acknowledging our responsibilities—as professionals, citizens, and business owners—and living our values. It also means being transparent about how we do that.
Community Involvement
Across the firm, and across the country, we invest our time, talent, and financial resources to improve the communities where we live and work. Our community involvement can be measured in big ways and small—from the board memberships and civic leadership roles we hold to our participation in clothing and supply drives and our leadership of large-scale efforts involving scores of volunteers.
We endow scholarships for low-income students, collect food and supplies for charities in more than a dozen states, serve meals to unhoused people, and have sponsored numerous high schools across the country, providing job shadowing, mentoring, and considerable financial support. We are proud to serve nearly 700 organizations across the country, with participation from lawyers and staff in all 15 of our offices.
Pro Bono
Ballard Spahr’s Pro Bono Program is among the finest and most active in the country, consistently ranked ahead of much larger firms on the AmLaw 100 Pro Bono Report and earning the ABA Pro Bono Publico Award in 2018.
Attorneys and staff at the firm contribute more than 50,000 hours annually to pro bono service. We encourage each lawyer to devote meaningful time to pro bono matters, and we demonstrate our commitment by offering billable hour credit for pro bono work.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Ballard Spahr was one of the first AmLaw 100 firms to appoint a C-level executive—reporting directly to the firm Chair—to focus exclusively on building a diverse workforce, ensuring equity, and removing obstacles to inclusion.
Ballard Spahr has been recognized nationally and locally for the success of its efforts, including inclusiveness in leadership. The firm is Mansfield certified, with Mansfield Certification Plus status for achieving at least 30 percent diverse representation in a notable number of current legal and administrative leadership roles. We regularly rank as a best law firm for women, and earned a perfect score in the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index and designation as a "Best Place to Work for LGBTQ Equality."
Governance
Ballard Spahr governs with integrity and transparency. We strive to maintain diverse representation on our Board and in firm leadership; ensure clear reporting lines and risk management procedures; create opportunities for employee and lawyer engagement at all levels; and ensure an equitable path for advancement to all.
Our single-tier partnership has an open compensation structure, and 50 percent of the firm’s Partner Compensation Committee Members identify as women or diverse. Administrative professionals, Associates, Of Counsel, and Attorneys are evaluated annually by multiple colleagues, and all reviews include clearly articulated feedback on performance, stated goals for professional development and advancement, and a defined bonus structure applied across the firm.
Environmental Sustainability
We recognize the critical nature of climate change and strive to engage current best practices and find new ways to reduce our environmental footprint across offices. Our efforts include:
- Offering a firm-sponsored commuter transit program through the purchase of pre-tax or firm-subsidized transportation vouchers.
- Reusing and recycling office equipment, whenever possible
- Adopting a hybrid work environment, which has reduced travel and minimized paper waste and power usage
