Burr & Forman - 1792 Exchange

Rating Overview

Burr & Forman is Medium Risk.

Burr and Forman LLP is Medium Risk. The company often yields to political activism in shaping corporate governance, potentially alienating consumers, dividing employees, and harming shareholders. The company implements race and identity-based policies that replace merit, excellence, and integrity with preferential treatment and outcomes. The company occasionally embraces corporate initiatives that redirect its central focus from business goals to partisan policies and divisive issues at times. This approach fails to safeguard free exercise, free speech, and free enterprise.

Rating Criteria

Corporate Weaponization Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Cancellations	Medium Risk
Discriminatory Philanthropy	High Risk
Employment Protection	High Risk

Corporate Weaponization ⓘ

Corporate Governance and Public Policy Risk Levels
Criteria	Risk Level
Advocacy Bias	Medium Risk
Funding	Medium Risk
Political Actions	No Data

Corporate Governance and Public Policy ⓘ

Rating Criteria Detail

Criteria Risk Level Rationale

Corporate Weaponization

Criteria:

Has canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors due to their political views or religious beliefs OR corporately boycotts, divests, or sanctions regions, people groups, or industries.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

Burr & Forman received a score of 50 on the 2025 Corporate Equality Index (CEI) from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), a political stakeholder group. The company recruits employees based on sexual identity issues. The company discriminates against vendors that do not promote divisive sex and gender policies, indicating it prioritizes sexual issues over merit. (1)(2)(3) However, the company has not publicly canceled customers, suppliers, or vendors based on political views or religious beliefs. (4)

Criteria:

Charitable giving (including employee matching programs) policies or practices discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or religious beliefs.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

Burr & Forman‘s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company will not donate to non-religious charities unless they embrace controversial sexual identity policies (1)(2). The company does not discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or beliefs (3).

Criteria:

Employment policies fail to protect against viewpoint or other discrimination and/or are ideological in nature.

Risk Level:

High

Rationale:

Burr & Forman offers unconscious bias DEI training to its employees. (1)(2) The company appears to prioritize diversity over merit in its recruitment, hiring, promotions, and leadership composition. From its Diversity page: “Our goal is to achieve inclusive diversity and equitable outcomes in recruitment, retention, development, promotion, and compensation.” (3) In 2023, Burr & Forman took down its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion webpage and launched a new page titled Opportunity, Growth, and Inclusion; however, it remains unclear whether the underlying divisive corporate policies/practices materially changed following the rebrand. (4)(5)
Burr & Forman is Mansfield Certified, indicating its support of DEI in its recruitment, hiring, promotions, and leadership composition. (6)(7)(8) The company does not provide viewpoint protections for its employees. (9)

Corporate Governance and Public Policy

Criteria:

Uses corporate reputation to support causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

The company supports DEI within its business practices, employing a DEI Committee and an Officer. (1)(2) Burr & Forman has a history of divisive corporate policies and practices. However, in 2023, the company removed DEI training, language, and policies from its website. To date, the company has not publicly addressed these changes, leaving shareholders without clarity regarding the company’s reasoning or future direction. (3)(4) Burr & Forman supports DEI within its business practices. From its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: “Burr & Forman is committed to promoting and cultivating a culture of diversity, equity, and inclusion.” (5) Burr & Forman scored a 90 out of 100 on the 2020-2022 Corporate Equality Index (CEI) from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), a political stakeholder group. (6)(7)(8) Burr & Forman has not supported ideological causes or policies. (9)

Criteria:

Uses corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level:

Medium

Rationale:

Burr & Forman‘s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company covers transgender related costs for its employees and their children, including paid short-term leave, puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, chest surgeries, genital surgeries, medical visits and lab monitoring, travel and lodging. By allowing a political stakeholder group to dictate operations, the company increases health care costs and risks dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders (1)(2). Otherwise, there are no publicly known cases of the company using corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies (3).