What happened to Kaloma Cardwell, a 2014 graduate of Berkeley Law School, should never happen to any employee. Kaloma knows what it means to be dedicated and work hard. Most importantly, Kaloma has never forgotten where he came from, which is why we want your help in his retaliation lawsuit against his former employer.

Because of Kaloma's track record in the classroom and in his community--e.g., 2x college football team captain, a near full merit Berkeley Law scholarship, president of the Berkeley Law Black Law Students Association, offers to be hired by other prestigious law firms--one of the most powerful law firms in the world, Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, recruited him and hired him in 2014.

For decades, Davis Polk has struggled to retain Black associates. Many Black attorneys knew. Davis Polk's leadership knew. The firm's diversity committee knew, which is why they asked Kaloma multiple times for his perspective: What's going on? What suggestions do you have? How can we figure this out? The leaders at Davis Polk held themselves out as being not only aware of the challenges facing minority employees but also interested in finding solutions. Here's what happened next:

1. Kaloma was asked for his feedback.
2. Kaloma shared his observations about both his experience and the experience of other Black lawyers at the firm. Kaloma told them he believed him and other Black associates were being excluded from opportunities because of their race. 
3. Certain Davis Polk leaders allegedly then worked to fire Kaloma and threatened him to stop making complaints. 
4. Kaloma filed a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the New York State Division of Human Rights and within months was fired by certain leaders of Davis Polk.

In November 2019, Kaloma filed a complaint in federal court. Kaloma's case has survived 4 years of litigation and is scheduled to start trial on January 8, 2024. The defendants in this trial include his former employer, the global law firm Davis Polk & Wardell LLP, and three individual defendants who are former or current partners at Davis Polk. These defendants have a lot of power and wealth.

Help us get accountability and justice for Kaloma. Employers must not be allowed to retaliate against or intimidate their employees. Other employers and law firms are watching this case and may try to follow Davis Polk's playbook if there is no accountability and justice.

You can help by doing one or all of the following:

1. DONATE MONEY. Kaloma needs to cover legal costs related to litigating a 4+ year case, and conducting and winning a trial in federal court. These costs relate to, but are not limited to, trial exhibits, copies, demonstratives, filing fees, transcript fees, trial staff, and other related litigation costs. Estimated costs could amount to as much as $15,000 a week until the end of trial. And trial could last between 3 and 4 weeks.                                   
2. ATTEND TRIAL STARTING JANUARY 8. Trial will be held at 500 Pearl St, Courtroom 12C, New York, New York, 10007. Each day trial will likely start at approximately 9:15 A.M. Kaloma needs our public support. Your appearance will make a big difference even if you can only attend for a short amount of time.                                                              
3. SHARE THIS LINK WITH FRIENDS/NETWORKS. Please share this link on your social media and/or your private networks. We especially want this shared with Black law students, bar associations, and organizations who care about workers' dignity and rights.

We appreciate you taking a moment to read about Kaloma's case and for helping however you can.

Any concerns about your donations reaching Kaloma? Email his attorney at djeffries@jeffrieslaw.nyc, and he will confirm that this fundraiser is from a trusted source.

The statements expressed on this site reflect the opinions of the host.