Michigan firm that called DEI lawsuit ‘frivolous’ removes race-based scholarship criteria
Equal justice apparently isn't equal anymore.
EXCLUSIVE — A Michigan law firm, which previously blasted a lawsuit over its diversity scholarships as “completely frivolous,” has agreed to remove race-based language from its award criteria and end a lawsuit filed last November.
According to a joint announcement on Monday, the firm Buckfire & Buckfire, P.C. reached an agreement with Do No Harm and the American Alliance for Equal Rights to amicably resolve the case. The parties filed a joint stipulation of dismissal on Feb. 27 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.
The complaint, filed on Nov. 13, alleged that the firm’s Medical Diversity Scholarship and Law School Diversity Scholarship violated the Civil Rights Act of 1866 by limiting eligibility to students who were “a member of an ethnic, racial, or other minority” or who demonstrated a commitment to diversity. The suit was brought on behalf of three students.
Challengers said the firm’s scholarships automatically deemed anyone who was “a member of an ethnic, racial, or other minority” eligible, while white applicants had to clear what the lawsuit described as an extra hurdle by “demonstrat[ing] a defined commitment to issues of diversity.”
Under the settlement, Buckfire agreed to remove all references to race as eligibility or selection criteria and clarify that its scholarships do not give preference to any student based on race or ethnicity. The firm will also state that it does not limit “diversity” to any one experience, characteristic, or circumstance.
Stanley Goldfarb, chairman of Do No Harm, said, “To make clear that the scholarship programs are open to all, Buckfire will remove all references to race as eligibility or selection criteria.”
“Do No Harm believes scholarships should be equally open to all races and is thankful that Buckfire agrees,” Goldfarb added.
Edward Blum, president of the American Alliance for Equal Rights, said he was “grateful” the matter was resolved without further litigation.
Blum is also the president of Students For Fair Admissions, a membership organization whose mission has been to eliminate racial and ethnic classifications in school admissions.
Following SFFA’s 2023 Supreme Court victories in two cases, involving Harvard and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, numerous schools and businesses across the country have been put on notice about policies they employ that could discriminate on the basis of race if a program is not structured around merit-based award systems. …
Equal justice apparently isn't equal anymore.
EXCLUSIVE — A Michigan law firm, which previously blasted a lawsuit over its diversity scholarships as “completely frivolous,” has agreed to remove race-based language from its award criteria and end a lawsuit filed last November.
According to a joint announcement on Monday, the firm Buckfire & Buckfire, P.C. reached an agreement with Do No Harm and the American Alliance for Equal Rights to amicably resolve the case. The parties filed a joint stipulation of dismissal on Feb. 27 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.
The complaint, filed on Nov. 13, alleged that the firm’s Medical Diversity Scholarship and Law School Diversity Scholarship violated the Civil Rights Act of 1866 by limiting eligibility to students who were “a member of an ethnic, racial, or other minority” or who demonstrated a commitment to diversity. The suit was brought on behalf of three students.
Challengers said the firm’s scholarships automatically deemed anyone who was “a member of an ethnic, racial, or other minority” eligible, while white applicants had to clear what the lawsuit described as an extra hurdle by “demonstrat[ing] a defined commitment to issues of diversity.”
Under the settlement, Buckfire agreed to remove all references to race as eligibility or selection criteria and clarify that its scholarships do not give preference to any student based on race or ethnicity. The firm will also state that it does not limit “diversity” to any one experience, characteristic, or circumstance.
Stanley Goldfarb, chairman of Do No Harm, said, “To make clear that the scholarship programs are open to all, Buckfire will remove all references to race as eligibility or selection criteria.”
“Do No Harm believes scholarships should be equally open to all races and is thankful that Buckfire agrees,” Goldfarb added.
Edward Blum, president of the American Alliance for Equal Rights, said he was “grateful” the matter was resolved without further litigation.
Blum is also the president of Students For Fair Admissions, a membership organization whose mission has been to eliminate racial and ethnic classifications in school admissions.
Following SFFA’s 2023 Supreme Court victories in two cases, involving Harvard and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, numerous schools and businesses across the country have been put on notice about policies they employ that could discriminate on the basis of race if a program is not structured around merit-based award systems. …
Michigan firm that called DEI lawsuit ‘frivolous’ removes race-based scholarship criteria
Equal justice apparently isn't equal anymore.
EXCLUSIVE — A Michigan law firm, which previously blasted a lawsuit over its diversity scholarships as “completely frivolous,” has agreed to remove race-based language from its award criteria and end a lawsuit filed last November.
According to a joint announcement on Monday, the firm Buckfire & Buckfire, P.C. reached an agreement with Do No Harm and the American Alliance for Equal Rights to amicably resolve the case. The parties filed a joint stipulation of dismissal on Feb. 27 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.
The complaint, filed on Nov. 13, alleged that the firm’s Medical Diversity Scholarship and Law School Diversity Scholarship violated the Civil Rights Act of 1866 by limiting eligibility to students who were “a member of an ethnic, racial, or other minority” or who demonstrated a commitment to diversity. The suit was brought on behalf of three students.
Challengers said the firm’s scholarships automatically deemed anyone who was “a member of an ethnic, racial, or other minority” eligible, while white applicants had to clear what the lawsuit described as an extra hurdle by “demonstrat[ing] a defined commitment to issues of diversity.”
Under the settlement, Buckfire agreed to remove all references to race as eligibility or selection criteria and clarify that its scholarships do not give preference to any student based on race or ethnicity. The firm will also state that it does not limit “diversity” to any one experience, characteristic, or circumstance.
Stanley Goldfarb, chairman of Do No Harm, said, “To make clear that the scholarship programs are open to all, Buckfire will remove all references to race as eligibility or selection criteria.”
“Do No Harm believes scholarships should be equally open to all races and is thankful that Buckfire agrees,” Goldfarb added.
Edward Blum, president of the American Alliance for Equal Rights, said he was “grateful” the matter was resolved without further litigation.
Blum is also the president of Students For Fair Admissions, a membership organization whose mission has been to eliminate racial and ethnic classifications in school admissions.
Following SFFA’s 2023 Supreme Court victories in two cases, involving Harvard and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, numerous schools and businesses across the country have been put on notice about policies they employ that could discriminate on the basis of race if a program is not structured around merit-based award systems. …
