Baker & McKenzie Globalizes Social Responsibility Initiatives

Global, October 27, 2010 – Baker & McKenzie has named partner Madeleine Schachter as its Global Director of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), a new position which co-ordinates and drives corporate social responsibility across the Firm.

Baker & McKenzie’s CSR initiative leverages the Firm’s unique global footprint and is led by a Global CSR Board comprised of the highest levels of Firm management. The Firm’s Global CSR Program has three primary components – pro bono and community service, diversity and inclusion, and sustainability. Ms. Schachter, who is based in the Firm’s New York office, will help implement the Firm’s current and future strategies in these areas, including the growing number of programs in which the Firm’s attorneys and staff team with in-house counsel on pro bono and other initiatives worldwide.

The Firm’s commitment to diversity and inclusion is reflected in its composition of diverse cultures and backgrounds who work fluently together across practices and borders. Baker & McKenzie was recently honored by Starbucks Coffee Company with its Excellence in Diversity Award. In 2008, Baker & McKenzie also became the first law firm to receive the Foreign Policy Association’s prestigious Corporate Social Responsibility award for its CSR initiatives. Additionally, the Firm leverages its knowledge and experience to implement measureable and sustainable practices that minimize environmental impact.

“We have a long history of community service around the world, but now we are ramping up our service to others at a time when the needs are greater than ever, and when we increasingly are joining forces with our clients to address these needs,” said John Conroy, Chairman of Baker & McKenzie’s Executive Committee. “We are dedicated to using our talent like Madeleine and our experiences and resources throughout the world to support our CSR.”

Ms. Schachter works exclusively on CSR matters, including in an active pro bono practice with an emphasis on international humanitarian rights, constitutional law, and civil rights issues. She also has held faculty appointments at the Fordham University School of Law and at Weill Cornell Medical Center.

Ms. Schachter joined the Firm in 2008 as Special Counsel of Pro Bono. In this role, she focused on the Firm’s pro bono legal work and its pro bono teaming practice.  She is also a contributor to the book Pro Bono Service By In-House Counsel: Strategies and Perspectives, edited by David Hackett of Baker & McKenzie’s Chicago office.

Prior to joining the Firm, Ms. Schachter served as vice president and deputy general counsel for Hachette Book Group USA, Inc., formerly known as Time Warner Book Group, Inc.  While at Time Warner, Ms. Schachter helped  launch and chair the organization’s pro bono program, a volunteer legal services program for all divisions of Time Warner.  She is also a founder and former Chair of the Corporate Counsel Pro Bono Coordinators, an inter-company resource for in-house counsel.

Ms. Schachter serves as Co-Chair of the International Pro Bono Committee of the ABA’s Section of International Law, and previously was Chair of the New York City Bar Pro Bono and Legal Services Committee and a member of the New York State Bar Association President’s Committee on Access to Justice.  Among the awards for her dedication to pro bono service she has received is the New York State Bar Association President’s Pro Bono Service In-House Counsel Award. She received her J.D. from New York University School of Law, where she was a Root-Tilden Scholar, and her B.A., summa cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania.