Our deeds and shared values define our culture. As a firm, we are equally passionate about delivering legal excellence and making a difference in the world. MoFo+ shares news and thought leadership from our lawyers and their teams who are proud to contribute to the legal profession and the communities we call home.<h2>About Morrison Foerster</h2>Morrison Foerster is a leading global law firm that transforms complexity into advantage for its clients. Our clients include some of the largest financial institutions, banks, consulting and accounting firms, and Fortune 100, technology, and life sciences companies. Highlighting the firm’s commitment to client service, leadership in market-changing deals and impact litigation, and values-based culture, Morrison Foerster has been repeatedly recognized as one of the top 10 firms on The American Lawyer’s A-List. Year after year, the firm receives significant recognition from Chambers and The Legal 500 across their various guides, including Global, USA, Asia‑Pacific, Europe, UK, Latin America, and FinTech Legal. Our lawyers passionately care about delivering legal excellence while living our values. Morrison Foerster has a long-standing commitment to creating a culture that respects and celebrates differences, while providing an inclusive environment. The firm has achieved Mansfield Certification Plus since 2018 as a result of successfully reaching at least 30 percent women, communities of color, and LGBTQ+ lawyer representation in a notable number of current leadership roles and committees. The firm also has a long history of commitment to the community and society through providing pro bono legal services, including litigating for civil rights and civil liberties, improving public education and fostering the wellbeing of children, advocating for veterans, promoting international human rights, enforcing the right to asylum, and safeguarding the environment.

Social

Search

Jennifer K. Brown is Senior Pro Bono Counsel at Morrison & Foerster LLP, with responsibility for the overall direction of the firm’s pro bono program. Ms. Brown also develops pro bono opportunities and promotes lawyers’ participation in the firm’s offices on the east coast of the U.S. as well as in China, Hong Kong, and Singapore.Before joining Morrison Foerster, Ms. Brown was vice president and legal director of Legal Momentum, the nation's first women’s rights legal organization, originally known as the NOW Legal Defense and Education Fund. There, she directed cutting-edge litigation and policy advocacy focused on employment discrimination, domestic violence victims' rights, and sexuality and family rights. Previously, she served as the reproductive rights director with the Civil Rights Bureau of the Office of the New York Attorney General and as an Assistant U.S. Attorney with the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York.Ms. Brown brings to the firm her deep knowledge of public interest legal organizations and the most pressing civil rights issues of the day. She has, as well, a rich array of litigation experience, having represented individuals as well as federal agencies and the public, from both the plaintiff and defense positions, in trial and appellate courts. As Senior Pro Bono Counsel, she applies this knowledge and experience to multiple goals: encouraging the firm's attorneys from all practice areas to bring pro bono projects to the firm; easing the way for attorneys to undertake meaningful pro bono service; and working with legal service and public interest organizations to identify creative ways to tap the passion and intellect of the firm's lawyers to pursue the public good. Recent achievements include collaborating with a legal services organization to represent individuals whose claims for unemployment insurance benefits are challenged, and forming a project to represent disabled individuals who are seeking federal disability benefits.Ms. Brown received her J.D. from Yale Law School in 1993, where she was essays editor of the Yale Law Journal (1992-1993) and was awarded the Benjamin Scharps and Israel H. Peres prizes for outstanding writing. Ms. Brown’s publications include, "The Nineteenth Amendment and Women's Equality," 102 Yale Law Journal 2175 (1993) (student note), and "Life and Death with Joan," in AIDS: The Women, Cleis Press, 1988.

brown_jennifer_blog_150x150.png

brown_jennifer_common_640x280.jpg

brown_jennifer_heroretina_2700x1160.jpg

brown_jennifer_mobileretina_750x1040.jpg

brown_jennifer_social_600x600.jpg

Senior Pro Bono Counsel

Staff

As senior pro bono counsel, Jennifer manages and promotes the pro bono participation of lawyers on the East Coast.

Jennifer K. Brown

Natalie Kernisant is Morrison Foerster’s Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer.Natalie provides strategic leadership to advance recruiting and retention of diverse talent at the firm, as well as providing client development support in the area of diversity and inclusion. She works closely with the firm’s Diversity Strategy Committee co-chairs Alexis Amezcua, Purvi Patel, and Mark Whitaker, and Women’s Strategy Committee co-chairs Carrie Cohen, Julie Park, and Stacey Sprenkel.Natalie joined Morrison Foerster in November 2013. She was appointed to the newly created role of Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer in December 2020, having previously served as the firm’s Global Director of Diversity and Inclusion.Prior to joining Morrison Foerster, Natalie served as Human Resources Manager for Risk Management within Global Banking and Markets at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Before that, she practiced trademark and copyright law and then served as the Special Projects Manager in the Office of Institutional Policy & Planning at Harvard Medical School overseeing the school’s 2011 accreditation process.In 2021, Natalie was named by Crain’s New York Business to its list of Notable Black Leaders & Executives 2021. The special section recognizes black men and women who have impacted New York City in major ways and sets out to honor their professional, civic, and philanthropic achievements. In 2023, Natalie was recognized as one of Savoy Magazine’s 2023 Most Influential Executives in Diversity & Inclusion. She was also selected to Law360’s Diversity & Inclusion Editorial Advisory Board, whose goal is to provide feedback on Law360’s coverage as well as expert insight on how to shape future coverage. Additionally, she was recognized in the Financial Times 2023 North America Innovative Lawyers report as one of seven individual “Change Makers” in the legal industry for her strategic leadership of the firm’s efforts to interrupt unconscious bias and advance diversity and inclusion in the workplace. In 2024, Natalie was named as a Change Driver in the Annual Diversity Awards of World IP Review (WIPR). The annual Diversity Awards recognize those who have made exceptional contributions to diversity and inclusion in the field of intellectual property.During Natalie’s tenure at MoFo, the firm has received multiple <a href="/culture/diversity#page-section-4" target="_self">diversity and inclusion awards and recognitions</a>.

kernisant_natalie_blog_150x150.png

kernisant_natalie_common_640x280.jpg

kernisant_natalie_heroretina_2700x1160.jpg

kernisant_natalie_mobileretina_750x1040.jpg

kernisant_natalie_social_600x600.jpg

Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer

Natalie Kernisant is Morrison Foerster’s Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer.

Natalie Kernisant provides strategic leadership to advance recruiting and retention of diverse talent at Morrison Foerster, as well as providing client development support in the area of diversity and inclusion.

Natalie Kernisant

Dorothy L. Fernandez is Pro Bono Counsel based in the Denver office of Morrison & Foerster LLP. She is responsible for managing and promoting the participation of lawyers in the firm’s extensive pro bono program which includes, among other things, providing free legal services to low-income individuals, advising nonprofit organizations and assisting in other matters that serve the public interest. Dorothy’s primary focus is on working with lawyers in the firm’s Austin, Los Angeles, San Diego, Denver and Tokyo offices.In 1999, Dorothy joined Morrison & Foerster as an associate in the Securities Litigation, Enforcement and White-Collar Criminal Defense Group. She was elected a partner of the firm in 2004. Dorothy handled complex litigation at the state, federal and appellate levels and was responsible for drafting key dispositive motions in some of the firm’s largest securities litigation matters. In addition, she had an active pro bono practice and represented clients in individual matters, as well as cases addressing the treatment of children in foster care and the rights of LGBT individuals.A dedicated advocate for the LGBT community, Dorothy has served as co-chair of the board of directors of the National Center for Lesbian Rights, and she also served on the board of the Pride Law Fund, a nonprofit organization that provides scholarships to law students working on issues related to the equal rights of LGBT citizens and people living with HIV/AIDS.Dorothy currently serves on the board of directors of Centro Legal de la Raza, a nonprofit based in Oakland.Dorothy graduated from Stanford University in 1992 with a B.A. in psychology. She earned a J.D. in 1996 from Harvard Law School, where she was a member of the Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review and co-chair of HLS Lambda. She has taught as an adjunct instructor at both Golden Gate University Law School and Santa Clara University Law School.

fernandez_dorothy_blog_150x150.png

fernandez_dorothy_common_640x280.jpg

fernandez_dorothy_heroretina_2700x1160.jpg

fernandez_dorothy_mobileretina_750x1040.jpg

fernandez_dorothy_social_600x600.jpg

Pro Bono Counsel

Dorothy works with lawyers in our Denver, Los Angeles, and San Diego offices on various pro bono initiatives.

Dorothy L. Fernandez

Rachel Williams is pro bono counsel based in Morrison & Foerster’s San Francisco office. She is responsible for managing and promoting the participation of lawyers in the firm’s extensive program of providing free legal services to low-income individuals, to nonprofit organizations, and in matters that serve the public interest. Rachel works primarily with lawyers in the firm’s San Francisco, Palo Alto, London, Berlin, and Brussels offices. She is an active member of the Disaster Legal Assistance Collaborative and the board of directors of OneJustice. Rachel joined the firm in 1999. Prior to becoming a pro bono counsel, Rachel was a litigation associate in the firm’s Palo Alto office and worked on attorney training and development initiatives. Before law school, Rachel worked for various nonprofit organizations, was an investigator for the public defender’s office in Seattle, and served as a Coro Public Affairs Fellow in New York City.

williams_rachel_blog_150x150.png

williams_rachel_common_640x280.jpg

williams_rachel_heroretina_2700x1160.jpg

williams_rachel_mobileretina_750x1040.jpg

williams_rachel_social_600x600.jpg

Rachel is responsible for managing and promoting the participation of lawyers in the firm’s extensive program of providing free legal services to low-income individuals, to nonprofit organizations, and in matters that serve the public interest.

Rachel P. Williams

favicon.ico

favicon-16x16.png

favicon-32x32.png

apple-touch-icon.png

MoFo Favicons

Morrison Foerster has a long-standing commitment to diversity, inclusion, and pro bono work. MoFo+ shares news and thought leadership from our lawyers and their teams who are proud to contribute to the legal profession and the communities we call home.

Welcome to the Mofo+ Blog

240920-mofo+-header.jpg

Welcome to the Mofo+ Blog

240920-mofo+-header

Morrison Foerster has a long-standing commitment to diversity, inclusion, and pro bono work. MoFo+ shares news and thought leadership from our lawyers and their teams who are proud to contribute to the legal profession and the communities we call home.

Welcome to the MoFo+ Blog

MoFo Women

MoFo Pro Bono

MoFo Life

MoFo Diversity

MoFo Community

Blog - Terms of Use

Blog - Privacy Policy

Blog - Blog Disclaimer

Blog - Attorney Advertising

morrison-foerster-blog-logo.png

Provides a data-driven look at the Federal Circuit.

Federal Circuitry

Brings together legal insights and in-depth analyses on trends and complex issues shaping the global technology industry.

MoFo Tech

Equips our clients with the most up-to-date and relevant information on employment and labor law issues.

Employment Law Commentary

In-depth analysis of developments and trends impacting government contracting.

Government Contracts Insight

Government Contracts Insights

Provides insights and reports on the most current class actions lawsuits and product liability issues that affect consumer-facing companies.

Class Dismissed Blog

Class Dismissed

The MoFo+ blog shares news and insights from lawyers who are adding value to the legal profession and making a difference in the communities we call home.

MoFo+

  Linkedin

MoFo LinkedIN

Together Blog - RSS

Stay Connected

Never miss a post from MoFo Together. Enter your email below to stay up-to-date.

Subscribe

Making a Positive Impact Together

Morrison Foerster - Footer

On February 11, in honor of Black History Month, MoFo partners, staff, clients, and friends welcomed Stacey Abrams, former minority leader in the Georgia state 

Blogs -  Home Button

Home

Blog - Topics

Topics

Blog - Editors

Editors

Blog - About

About

Blog - Subscribe

A Discussion with Stacey Abrams: The 100th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment and Where We Are Today

A Discussion with Stacey Abrams: The 100th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment and Where We Are Today | MoFo+

On February 11, in honor of Black History Month, MoFo partners, staff, clients, and friends welcomed Stacey Abrams, former minority leader in the Georgia state legislature and the 2018 Democratic candidate for Georgia governor to our New York office. MoFo’s Diversity Strategy and Black History Month Committees jointly hosted the event titled “The 100th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment and Where We Are Today.”Stacey delivered her speech addressing this year’s Black History Month theme, “African Americans and the Vote,” to a 180-person live audience in New York and more than 200 people viewing a live broadcast of the presentation from MoFo’s U.S. offices.Stacey’s Grandma’s First Time VotingStacey began by recalling a story her grandmother told about her first opportunity to vote, which was in the 1968 election, three years after President Lyndon Johnson had signed the Voting Rights Act in 1965, which outlawed the discriminatory voting practices and prerequisites that many southern states adopted after the Civil War.Her grandmother explained that the first time she was afforded the right to vote in Mississippi, she almost didn’t exercise it—because she was afraid. Stacey’s grandmother could remember “paying bail for her son, [Stacey’s] father, when he was 14 or 15 after he was arrested for registering people to vote,” Stacey recounted. With memories of Jim Crow laws and fire hoses aimed at protesters still vivid in her mind, Stacey’s grandmother couldn’t imagine a trip to the ballot box that wouldn’t involve violence.Thankfully, Stacey’s grandfather was able to convince his wife to go out with him and vote that day. And Stacey’s account of the story drove home one of her presentation’s main points: “I celebrate the 19th Amendment as a woman and the 15th Amendment as a person of color,” she said. “We can adopt all the Constitutional Amendments we want,” she continued, but as long as the states have considerable discretion to establish qualifications for suffrage, “that right is ephemeral.”Stacey’s grandmother’s experience exemplifies this point. Her first opportunity to vote was in the 1968 election despite the fact that the 19th Amendment, which gives women the right to vote, was passed in 1920. “[D]iscriminatory Jim Crow laws, coupled with a resurgent and violent Ku Klux Klan, had a firm grip in the Southern states. African-American women in the Deep South could no more exercise their right to vote in 1920 than African-American men after the passage of the 15th Amendment in 1870,” according to the <a rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" href="https://www.splcenter.org/news/2019/06/01/weekend-read-challenging-whitewashed-history-womens-suffrage">Southern Poverty Law Center</a>.An “Ephemeral” RightStacey went on to describe a few modern state qualifications on suffrage, some or all of which might have cost her the 2018 gubernatorial race in Georgia despite the fact that she won more votes in that election than any other Democrat in the state’s history.For one thing, Georgia is one of at least nine states with a “<a rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" href="https://www.npr.org/2018/10/22/659591998/6-takeaways-from-georgias-use-it-or-lose-it-voter-purge-investigation">use it or lose it</a>” policy, providing that citizens can be removed from the voter registration list for not voting in past elections or failing to respond to notices mailed by the state. In July 2017, at least 107,000 people were removed from Georgia’s voter polls because of that policy.Stacey described other elements that likely impeded the suffrage rights of people of color during the 2018 gubernatorial race, including Georgia’s “exact match” law and attempts to suppress the black vote, including closing polling places in predominantly black counties.Stacey’s Description of the Georgia Gubernatorial ElectionIn the Q&A session with MoFo partner <a rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" href="https://www.mofo.com/people/mark-whitaker.html">Mark Whitaker</a> that followed, Stacey explained why she categorized her speech announcing that Republican Brian Kemp will be Georgia’s next governor as a “non-concession speech.”“Election Day was November 6. By election night, the Associated Press could not call the election because of the number of reports of voter suppression,” Stacey explained.“We had a voter hotline, and during the course of early voting, through Election Day and beyond, we received more than 80,000 phone calls from people who experienced voter suppression.”And so Stacey decided to fight until every vote was counted.Over the ten days following the election, Stacey’s campaign, in coalition with several groups, filed a number of lawsuits over the alleged illegality of the voting conditions in many precincts, winning almost every one.Nevertheless, Stacey explains, “In Georgia, you have to prove with nearly empirical certainty that you would have won, which is nearly an impossible standard to me.”In light of circumstances, the closest she could come to bringing closure to the election while preserving her integrity and her responsibility to her voters was to acknowledge the legal sufficiency of the outcome while stating that the system is not legitimate.Stacey’s Ambitions for the FutureDespite the seriousness of her main topic, Stacey managed to keep her rapt audience inspired and laughing, even describing the breakup with a college sweetheart that precipitated her creation of a list of goals—something she maintains to this day.“I walked across the Spellman College campus to the computer lab at around one in the morning and I opened up Lotus 1-2-3, which I used to create a spreadsheet listing all of my ambitions, all of the things I was going to accomplish to prove him wrong.”As the first black woman to become the gubernatorial nominee for a major party in the United States; a graduate of Yale Law School; and the author of several books, including Lead from the Outside, copies of which Stacey signed for her MoFo audience; it’s safe to say Stacey has a achieved at least some of the lofty aspirations she’s logged onto her list.In the wake of the gubernatorial race in Georgia, Stacey launched two organizations to try to combat the voter suppression she witnessed.“One is called Fair Fight 2020. That represents our work in 18 states to ensure we have fair votes across the country in 2020. If you would like to help, go to https://fairfight.com/fair-fight-2020/ and sign up,” Stacey urged the audience. “We will assign you a responsibility. We might, for example, ask you to phone bank to a state that needs support.”She did emphasize, however, that “if you live in a state that faces voter suppression, one of the most effective things you can do is volunteer to be a poll worker. The more people we have who understand the legal implications of voter laws, the better the election process is for all.”Her second organization, Fair Count, works to ensure people are counted and redistricting is fair. “Just as important to fair elections as fighting voter suppression is the accuracy of the 2020 Census. We are working to ensure that hard-to-count communities in every state accurately will be included in the 2020 Census.”Stacey recently added a particularly ambitious goal to her list of aspirations, and she’s not shy about sharing it: There might be a U.S. Presidential or Vice Presidental run in her future.“It’s important to broadcast your ambitions,” she said.<img sizes="(max-width: 916px) 100vw, 916px" height="458" width="916" src="https://media2.mofo.com/v3/images/blt5775cc69c999c255/blt7d4c45de963b63a8/6287fd751cd65960bcff05c8/02_14_staceyabrams06_elevatetwitter.jpg?format=auto&quality=60" class="aligncenter wp-image-4493" loading="lazy" type="asset" sys-style-type="download">Stacey delivered her speech to 180 MoFo partners, staff, clients, and friends in our New York office.<img sizes="(max-width: 916px) 100vw, 916px" height="458" width="916" src="https://media2.mofo.com/v3/images/blt5775cc69c999c255/bltd53c82ec1e22dfe1/6287fd7a30bc9653db3ac3d1/02_14_staceyabrams05_elevatetwitter.jpg?format=auto&quality=60" class="aligncenter wp-image-4493" loading="lazy" type="asset" sys-style-type="download">Stacey with Washington, D.C. partner Mark Whitaker during the live Q&A session.<img sizes="(max-width: 904px) 100vw, 904px" height="452" width="904" src="https://media2.mofo.com/v3/images/blt5775cc69c999c255/blt12760208e7197878/6287fd7b0457495358474dc5/02_14_staceyabrams04_elevatetwitter.jpg?format=auto&quality=60" class="aligncenter wp-image-4494" loading="lazy" type="asset" sys-style-type="download">Guests enjoyed a book signing of Stacey’s Lead from the Outside.