On Earth Day, Two Major Boston Law Firms Join the MBA Lawyers Eco-Challenge Brown Rudnick and Greenberg Traurig Join 50 Pledge Partner

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Colin Durrant
CLF Director of Communications
617.850.1722

BOSTON, Mass. — In celebration of Earth Day, Brown, Rudnick, Berlack, Israels LLP and Greenberg Traurig LLP today joined the Massachusetts Bar Association Lawyers Eco-Challenge, an initiative offered in collaboration with the Conservation Law Foundation that boasts more than 50 participants in law firms and organizations from Boston to the Berkshires.

“It’s gratifying to have so many large Boston law firms accepting our challenge to make the practice of law more environmentally friendly.” MBA President David W. White Jr. said. “In recognition of Earth Day, I hope other firms across the state, from one-attorney offices to global companies, will join us in our fight for a healthier environment.”

In addition to Brown Rudnick and Greenberg Traurig, the other major Boston firms include Burns & Levinson, Holland Knight, Seyfarth Shaw and WilmerHale. The remaining signers comprise mid-sized and small firms as well as solo practitioners across the state.

According to Joseph F. Ryan, CEO of Brown Rudnick, “We are pleased to be a signature firm of the Lawyers Eco-Challenge. We applaud the MBA for raising awareness within the Massachusetts legal community of the need for environmental and energy conservation, and for taking definitive steps toward uniting local law firms against global warming.”

Brown Rudnick partner Nancy B. Reiner is co-chair of the MBA Energy and Environment Task Force, a group of more than one dozen attorneys working to further the MBA Lawyers Eco-Challenge.

“We are very pleased with the steps the Massachusetts Bar Association has taken to encourage all firms in the state to do their part to be more environmentally friendly,” said Jay Farraher, shareholder in Greenberg Traurig’s Boston office. “The attorneys and staff in our Boston office have been working hard to do their part to conserve resources.”

Greenberg Traurig will also today present an $8,000 check to RainforestMaker, a non-profit created by MBA Energy and Environment Task Force member and Boston attorney Jeffrey S. Glassman. Since the average attorney uses the equivalent of 24 trees worth of paper a year, according to statistics.

Greenberg Traurig is donating enough money to replace the 2,016 trees used in one year by the 84 attorneys in the Boston office.

More than 50 lawyers, firms and organizations across the state have signed the MBA Lawyers Environmental Pledge, which asks attorneys to implement the MBA Green Guidelines. The pledge was announced in January, four months after the MBA and the CLF launched the MBA Lawyers Eco-Challenge and established the Energy and Environment Task Force.

“It is energizing to see our state’s legal community, from the largest to the smallest firms, taking action to become better environmental stewards by adopting common sense changes that will protect our environment and help combat global warming,” said CLF President Philip Warburg. “I hope that other Massachusetts professions will follow this great example so that, together, we can build a cleaner, healthier environment for future generations.”

Green Resources, Eco-Tips and other materials have also been developed and are available with the pledge, guidelines and a full list of pledge partners at www.massbar.org/ecochallenge.

Incorporated in 1911, the Massachusetts Bar Association is a non-profit organization that serves the legal profession and the public by promoting the administration of justice, legal education, professional excellence and respect for the law. The MBA represents a diverse group of attorneys, judges and legal professionals across the commonwealth.

The Conservation Law Foundation works to solve the most significant environmental challenges facing New England . CLF’s advocates use law, economics and science to create innovative strategies to conserve natural resources, protect public health and promote vital communities in our region. Founded, in 1966, CLF is a non-profit, member-supported organization with offices in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont.