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29 January 2016 / Funke Abimbola
Issue: 7684 / Categories: Features , Training & education , Profession
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Lessons in gender diversity

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Opening up or shutting out? Funke Abimbola turns the spotlight on the legal profession

The legal profession continues to face a real crisis with the lack of progression of female lawyers. This issue is consistent across all arms of the profession but is particularly marked in the judiciary, the Bar and among the top 50 UK law firms. While the majority of trainees in the firms surveyed for our recent report on social mobility within the profession are female (58%), the proportion of women making it to partnership is disappointingly small—just 24% among the firms we surveyed. (Opening up or shutting out? Social mobility in the legal profession (October 2015) Abimbola and Byfield Consultancy).

This is particularly disheartening when the talent pool at trainee level is so female-heavy. Where does it all go wrong?

Diversity matters

The business case for diversity is a strong one. Recent research has shown that gender-diverse companies are 15% more likely to outperform the national industry median in terms of financial performance yet the legal profession has

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Sponsored by
Switalskis—Naila Arif, Harriet Findlay & Ellie Thompson

Switalskis—Naila Arif, Harriet Findlay & Ellie Thompson

Firm awards training contracts to paralegals through internal programme

Ward Hadaway—Matthew Morton

Ward Hadaway—Matthew Morton

Private client disputes specialist joins commercial litigation team

Thomson Hayton Winkley—Nina Hood

Thomson Hayton Winkley—Nina Hood

Cumbria firm appoints new head of residential property

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