Unconscious bias can lead to bad decisions that violate an attorneys’ ethical duties of Competence, Communication & Diligence. It can also lead to bad press for law firms, malpractice lawsuits and possibly disbarment.
For California MCLE Compliance Group 3 (N-Z) for the period ending on January 31, 2023, California attorneys must complete at least two hours dealing with elimination of bias. Of the two hours, at least one hour must focus on implicit bias and the promotion of bias-reducing strategies.
Mike Wakshull will introduce you to the neuroscience of unconscious, implicit bias and how this cognitive bias leads to errors during trial. The course will focus on attorney & judge decision-making and implicit bias in forensic sciences and expert witnesses. Mike will conclude by providing potential solutions for attorneys to overcome these hidden biases.
A cognitive shortcut, implicit bias leads to unintended biases regarding race, ethnicity, gender identity and other characteristics and undermines the public’s confidence in the equal application of our laws. In this poignant CLE, civil rights attorney Geeta N. Kapur delves into how implicit bias manifests itself in lawyers and the law – from the courtroom to the tax code.