Firms introduce targets to increase number of women in high-level positions
City law firms are setting “gender targets” to increase the number of talented women in high-level positions.
Ashurst, Eversheds and Hogan Lovells have already introduced targets for the number of women in senior management, while seven law firms, including magic circle firm Linklaters, have signed up to a government initiative on the issue, Think, Act, Report.
A major survey of leading lawyers, conducted by legal information providers LexisNexis and published by the Law Society last week, found that, despite big steps forward by many leading firms, some employers are only paying lip service to flexible working.
The survey, to which nearly 1,200 lawyers responded, looked at the main reasons why relatively few women reach partner or management level. It was presented to an International Women in Law Summit which recommended introducing gender targets and embedding flexible working practices.
Law Society president Lucy Scott-Moncrieff says: “An increasing number of firms have genuinely embraced and adopted modern flexible working practices, allowing better work-life balance...But there remains an uncomfortable truth. In some firms, where the opportunities for those wanting to strike a balance between high-flying work and family life are still scarce, men dominate the boardrooms.”
