Caldwell Cares
Caldwell’s “Caldwell Cares” is an initiative that formally recognizes who we are. Our firm’s culture and ethos are based on helping others and remaining grateful. Through public service, we have been able to cultivate a sense of gratitude and purpose that enriches our firm culture. With Caldwell Cares, we hold initiatives to help current and aspiring entrepreneurs succeed in life, especially those in underserved communities. To this end, we take on pro-bono incarcerated inventors and help them not only obtain patents for their inventions but also guide them furthering their entrepreneurial dreams.
Cultivating the Next Generation of Innovators
Caldwell’s multifaceted initiatives work on several fronts to tackle some of the most prevalent and restrictive occupational roadblocks faced today. Caldwell is committed to aiding the next generation of innovators to succeed in an ever-evolving tech startup ecosystem by bridging the gap in preparing future leaders and innovators in our local communities. Through collaborating with prospective students, joining our college-onsite held office hours, they are provided counsel and intellectual property tips and best practices for building a successful business. Collaborating with MIT, we provide office hours and IP education programming to students affiliated with the MIT Sandbox Innovation Fund which provides seed funding, mentorship, and tailored entrepreneurship education to MIT students. Caldwell forms strong relationships with the local startup community, leading various panel discussions and providing one-on-one mentoring with startups and entrepreneurs through Venture Café and The eForum.
Caldwell R.I.S.E. HBCU & Women in STEM
Furthermore, promoting, celebrating diversity, and enriching our winning culture, Caldwell R.I.S.E. (Reach, Inspire, Self-empower, Elevate) and HBCU (Historically Black Colleges & Universities) aim to effectively find, empower, and hire diverse talent. This new initiative resulted in our recruitment comprising 67% of attorneys. Caldwell has also made it a priority to recruit women candidates to bridge the gender gap that is prevalent in intellectual property and STEM professions. With UNESCO stating only 33% of women enter STEM fields worldwide, and the American Bar Association reporting that women comprise just 22% of registered IP professionals, Caldwell R.I.S.E. Women in STEM has made hiring women professionals a top priority, resulting in women representing 36% of new hires in our latest recruitment round. This makes 70% of Caldwell women employees, women with STEM degrees. This year, Caldwell also inaugurated new lawyers being elevated to partnership, 50% of which were women partners.
Pro Bono Inmate-to-Entrepreneur Initiative
Our inmate-to-entrepreneur initiative is aimed at helping inmates combat the stigma against a criminal background through entrepreneurship.
At Caldwell, we invest in inventors and innovators who want to make a difference in the world no matter where they are in life. We all have setbacks and hurdles; however, we don’t believe that one single decision should stop someone from realizing their entrepreneurial dreams. The Caldwell Cares initiative seeks to enfranchise disenfranchised innovators. Aiming to help inmates realize their full potential through providing business mentoring, legal advice, and workshops, has been a very fulfilling process for us.
Every year, released prisoners attempt to rejoin the workforce but are half as likely to be hired due to their criminal background, facing unemployment rates five times the national average. In addition, this initiative is our contribution towards lowering the rising recidivism rates in the US. More than two-thirds of prisoners are rearrested within 3 years of their release and more than 50% reincarcerated. Barriers to entering the workforce due to having a criminal background are cited as a significant factor. Through mentoring inmates on entrepreneurial opportunities and obtaining intellectual property, we do our part to help them circumvent these hiring hurdles. The possibilities of impact are endless empowering those less fortunate to succeed.