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File #: 160689    Version: 0 Name:
Type: Resolution Status: ADOPTED
File created: 6/16/2016 In control: CITY COUNCIL
On agenda: Final action: 6/16/2016
Title: Honoring Nolan N. Atkinson, Jr. and his commitment in fostering the Philadelphia Diversity Law Group, Inc. (PDLG).
Sponsors: Councilmember Green, Councilmember Reynolds Brown, Councilmember Johnson, Councilmember Domb, Councilmember Parker, Councilmember Taubenberger, Councilmember Gym, Councilmember Blackwell, Councilmember Greenlee
Attachments: 1. Signature16068900.pdf
Title
Honoring Nolan N. Atkinson, Jr. and his commitment in fostering the Philadelphia Diversity Law Group, Inc. (PDLG).

Body
WHEREAS, Nolan N. Atkinson, Jr. was appointed by Mayor James F. Kenney as the first Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer for the City of Philadelphia, a position where Mr. Atkinson will address the barriers that keep the City's workforce racially and economically divided; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Atkinson litigated in both the state and federal courts in a variety of commercial and personal injury matters. He is an experienced litigator in commercial matters representing bankers, insurance companies and railroads in major disputes. He has an extensive background in defending major corporations in product toxic tort matters and has represented numerous hospitals and physicians in complex health-related matters; and

WHEREAS, In August 2007, Mr. Atkinson was appointed as the first Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer of Duane Morris LLP, where Mr. Atkinson developed award winning innovative programs; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Atkinson has won many accolades for his work in diversity and inclusion, including the Inaugural Diversity Leadership Award from the American Bar Association; the A. Leon Higginbotham, Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award from the Pennsylvania Bar Association; the Legal Intelligencer honored Mr. Atkinson with a Lifetime Achievement Award for his distinct impact on the legal profession; Mr. Atkinson was named one of the Legal Intelligencer's Diverse Attorneys of the Year and was honored as a Minority Business Advocate by the Philadelphia Business Journal; Mr. Atkinson received the Honorable William F. Hall Award from the Barristers' Association of Philadelphia and became the fifth recipient of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association's Rainbowmaker Award, awarded to a lawyer who has made exceptional contributions in support of a more diverse legal profession; and

WHEREAS, Mr. Atkinson has previously served in government...

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