Racial Reckoning? African-American Attorney Leaves Balch & Bingham After Only Eight Months

With about one percent of their partners being people of color, Balch & Bingham’s claims of “diversity and inclusion” smells worse than a manure lagoon.

Now attorney Stephen Phillip McKitt, an African-American who joined Balch & Bingham last November, has left the alleged racist firm after only eight months.

McKitt left Balch and joined the prestigious Akerman firm, with 25 offices and 700 attorneys nationwide.

Balch’s hypocritical managing partner Stan Blanton had the foolish audacity to call “diversity and inclusion” a core value of the embattled firm long accused of racism and tokenism.

In recent weeks, Balch has boasted about expanding their footprint to Austin (with a one-man pony) and hiring new associates and partners in Florida, none of whom appear to be African-American.

Earlier this year, Balch announced the hiring of a Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer. We believe the hire was simply more window dressing by the embattled firm.

In February, Balch promoted McKitt’s involvement in the University of Alabama School of Law’s Diversity Matters Open House, and likewise in April, Balch promoted McKitt’s presentation before UAB Honors Students on pursuing a law school education.

Like an Orwellian memory hole, both Balch news releases and his hiring announcement from November have been scrubbed clean.

The hubris and sheer stupidity of Balch & Bingham’s leadership is an enormous embarrassment not only to the legal community but the honorable men and women who work at Balch & Bingham.

Stan Blanton should be removed as managing partner and the new leadership should boldly apologize for the firm’s alleged criminal and racist misconduct.

Good luck Stephen!