Friday, August 02, 2019
View ShowroomJim Chosy, executive vice president and general counsel at U.S. Bank, was recognized last week in New York with the National Association of Women Lawyers’ “Lead By Example” award for his ongoing advocacy and commitment to advancing women attorneys. The annual award honors the exemplary leadership of a male attorney who promotes and supports the advancement of women within their company and the broader profession.
The support and encouragement that Chosy provides positively impacts a broad swath of legal professionals – both inside and outside the bank – and helps to empower women attorneys.
“When women are strong, the legal profession is strong too. That’s why we must be relentless in the pursuit of full equality for women,” said Chosy. “An award hardly seems appropriate for trying to do things that feel so right, proper and necessary. But I appreciate it, very sincerely, and plan to use it as further inspiration for our work in championing women at U.S. Bank, at our provider law firms, and in the broader profession.”
As a strong champion of diversity, he has fostered a legal department at U.S. Bank with high female representation in senior leadership positions – including nearly 80% of his direct reports – and an equally strong presence in the leadership pipeline.
Chosy was also instrumental in creating Spotlight on Talent, a department program that provides diverse law firm associates with the opportunity to showcase their talents to attorneys responsible for making hiring decisions. Chosy recently committed to the Mansfield Rule: Legal Department Edition pilot program, an initiative that requires the consideration of diverse candidates when hiring and promoting within the Law Division and when engaging outside counsel for new matters. Additionally, he continues to advocate for our leading supplier diversity program by requiring outside counsel to meet diversity objectives.
Past recipients of the Lead By Example Award include: Alan Bryan of Wal-Mart Stores, Mark Firestone of Kraft Foods, Jonathan Fiegelson of TIAA-CREF, David Boies of Boies Schiller & Flexner, and Judge Harold Baer of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
The mission of the National Association of Women Lawyers is to provide leadership, a collective voice, and essential resources to advance women in the legal profession and advocate for the equality of women under the law. Since 1899, NAWL has been empowering women in the legal profession, cultivating a diverse membership dedicated to equality, mutual support, and collective success.
U.S. Bancorp, with 74,000 employees and $476 billion in assets as of March 31, 2019, is the parent company of U.S. Bank, the fifth-largest commercial bank in the United States. The Minneapolis-based bank blends its relationship teams, branches and ATM network with mobile and online tools that allow customers to bank how, when and where they prefer. U.S. Bank is committed to serving its millions of retail, business, wealth management, payment, commercial and corporate, and investment services customers across the country and around the world as a trusted financial partner, a commitment recognized by the Ethisphere Institute naming the bank a 2019 World’s Most Ethical Company. Visit U.S. Bank at usbank.com or follow on social media to stay up to date with company news.