By Xiumei Dong

Law360 (August 19, 2020, 8:34 PM EDT) -- With the coronavirus pandemic complicating the presidential election process, law firms are increasingly joining companies nationwide in declaring this year's Election Day a paid holiday to encourage more people to vote.

Several law firms, including Fenwick & West LLP, Jenner & Block LLP and Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky and Popeo PC, have already announced that they will give their attorneys and staff Nov. 3 off to vote and participate in election-related volunteer service.

"We've long been committed to supporting voting rights as part of our civic engagement in our way of giving back. We have a multiyear history of engaging with our Election Protection call center and sending people to be full monitors and so forth to protect our elections," Fenwick Chair Richard Dickson told Law360. "This is an important year in a number of ways where we have decided to increase our investment there."

Fenwick announced its Voting Rights Initiative on Friday, which included declaring Election Day a paid public service holiday to give employees the time to vote and volunteer.

"We want all voters to ensure that they can vote, they do vote and that their votes are counted," Dickson said. "Everyone at Fenwick voting is certainly a start, but we hope that giving our people the day off to not only vote, but to also volunteer on Election Day, will help others be counted."

Fenwick's attorneys and staff will get involved in activities such as participating in phone banks, poll-watching and supporting nonpartisan organizations working for voter protection, registration and outreach, Dickson added.

"We think Election Day should be a national day for civic engagement for everyone, so I certainly hope that many more firms and businesses join us in observing Election Day as a holiday," Dickson said. "Broad, active voting is the primary pillar of our democracy, and the plain truth is not enough Americans vote. It's imperative that we, as citizens, work to change that."

According to the Pew Research Center, about 56% of the U.S. voting-age population voted in the 2016 presidential election. Therefore, ahead of this election, major companies have joined nonpartisan groups such as Time To Vote in their campaigns to encourage a stronger voter turnout. Hundreds of businesses, including Best Buy, Nike, Twitter and Visa, have already pledged to allow their employees paid time off to vote this year.

Jenner & Block has applied to join Time To Vote, offering all firm personnel who participate in U.S. elections an optional personal day on Nov. 3, the Chicago firm said Wednesday.

"We have a really long tradition of supporting social justice democracy and equity and this really is just a piece of that," Jenner & Block co-managing partner Katya Jestin said in an interview. "The right to vote is a pillar of our democracy, and we want to make sure that our employees this year, especially given the difficulties posed by the pandemic, have the time to go and place their vote."

According to Jestin, Jenner & Block has provided information to help employees with the voting process. The firm is also doing pro bono work with various nonprofit organizations to promote equity and voting.

Going forward, Jenner & Block will likely continue to observe the presidential Election Day as a holiday, although it hasn't made the decision yet, Jestin added.

Fenwick is joining with the nonprofit groups Civic Alliance and Electionday.org in its effort to provide employees paid time off on Election Day. Other law firms that have signed on with Electionday.org include Arnold & Porter, Steptoe & Johnson LLP, Texas-based trial and appellate law firm Minns & Arnett, and Minnesota personal industry firm Schmidt-Salita Law Team. Civic Alliance is a nonpartisan coalition of businesses that encourages its members to provide paid time off for employees who elect to staff poll locations. Electionday.org is also urging companies to give employees time off this year.

"The opportunity and right to vote for our elected officials is one of our most important civic responsibilities," an Arnold & Porter spokesperson said in a statement. "We are proud to support our employees and offer paid time leave so that every person can take the time off to vote in their local and national elections."

Steptoe & Johnson confirmed that it would again offer flexible leave policy for employees to vote, as it did for the 2018 midterms. In 2018, the firm provided two hours of paid leave to employees who chose to vote at the beginning or end of their workday. It also allowed additional flexibility during the workday for those needing more time to vote. While details still need to be ironed out this time, the firm said it will likely be providing even more flex time to vote given the expected high turnout for this election.  

"Steptoe's commitment to the right to vote is evidenced by its pro bono work," Paul Lee, Steptoe & Johnson's pro bono counsel, said in a statement. "Dozens of our attorneys are trained and ready to assist voters through the Election Protection hotline sponsored by the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. We will also encourage and support those who wish to assist with poll monitoring projects on and around Election Day."

Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP sent out a firmwide email on Tuesday announcing that the firm will be closed on Nov. 3, with employees encouraged to use the time to vote and do pro bono work or other volunteer activities relating to the election. 

The announcements about Election Day come just a few months after law firms across the country opted to make Juneteenth a holiday to support racial justice in the wake of the police killings of George Floyd and other Black Americans.

On June 19, or Juneteenth, a day that commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S., Mintz announced that it had rolled out an Election Day program, including letting all employees take a paid day off on Nov. 3 to vote and assist with election-related activities.

"It is of utmost importance that we vote, and help others do so, especially in this election that will have a profound impact on racism, social justice and respect for all U.S. citizens, regardless of race, gender, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, disabilities or otherwise," Mintz's managing partner Bob Bodian said in a statement at the time.

--Editing by Jill Coffey and Michael Watanabe.

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