Diversity in the legal profession
backgrounds, led by theBridgeGroup and involving eight City firms. The firmhas a strong focus on attracting high potential talent from state schools andnon-Russell groupuniversities.
Attainment for diverse talent at the entry level of the legal professionhas improved in recent years, particularly among solicitors.While the senior ranks of law firms, barristers’ chambers and the judiciary continue tobe narrowly representative, increasingly public is firmaffirmative action about addressing this inequality. Hiring candidates fromdifferent backgrounds is a leading objective for firms’ graduate recruitment teams and a priority for theBar Council. The ‘NoBar to theBar’ initiative has been a part of efforts leading to 22.9%of pupils coming fromBlack andminority ethnic backgrounds. Gender equality is increasingly visiblewithin the junior ranks of both sides of the profession, with around 50%of pupils and trainees beingwomen. Anumber of organisations assist diverse talent aspiring to enter the legal profession. Leading these efforts areAspiringSolicitors, PRIME, RARE, theSutton Trust andSEOLondon. Below are examples of best practices among firms keen to address the disparities in opportunity. Gender BakerMcKenziewas the first major global law firm to appoint a female headwhenChristine Lagarde became ‘madame chairman’, with an increasing number of firms appointing female senior partners in recent months. Disability Twicewinner of theCommendation for Diversity at the LawCareers.Net (LCN) Awards, Shoosmiths has been focusing on disability access, solidifying its commitment to being a government-backed ‘TwoTicks’ employer, whichmeans interviewing all candidateswith a disabilitywhomeet theminimum requirements. Social mobility BryanCave LeightonPaisner (BCLP) initiated a research exercise based on the experiences, retention and progression of early careers solicitors from lower socio-economic
Ethnicity BCLPwas awarded the 2021 annual
Commendation for Diversity, as judged by LCN, AspiringSolicitors andRare. The firm’s initiatives impressed the judges. LCN’s BethanyWren said: “Initiatives such as Race for Change and their Commercial Cafes (whichwas launched during the pandemic and involves senior lawyers and clients) have directly led to candidates fromunderrepresented backgrounds, particularly Black candidates, receiving training contract offers.” AspiringSolicitors: increasingdiversity throughopportunities Since2014, AspiringSolicitors (AS) has become the largest andmost impactful diversity platform in the legal profession. AShas assisted4,500 diverse candidates secure training contracts and vacation schemes, including individualswho are: • Black, Asian andminority ethnic; • sociallymobile (eg, from low-income families, received free school meals, state school educated or the first generation in their family to go to university); • disabled or with long-termhealth conditions; or • LGBTQ+.
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