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Action Step – Insights & Lessons From Our 2022 Annual Conference

The Alliance’s Action Steps are designed to assist organizations with implementing practical strategies and policies related to diversity and flexibility. Members can access full versions of all of the Alliance’s Action Steps in the Member Resource Center.

As organizations wrap up 2022, a pivotal year for enhanced flexible work, the war for talent, and political, economic and global change, they are now strategizing and planning new initiatives and goals for the upcoming year. Organizations should reflect on the lessons learned at our 2022 Annual Conference, Cultivating a Holistic Work Culture – The Power of People, Purpose & Productivity, when planning for the future. The eventful day was filled with inspirational leaders, innovative programs, expert insights, and cutting-edge research on flexible/hybrid work, talent and D&I trends and best practices. We would like to share our top takeaways from the Conference that organizations should reflect on when planning and implementing initiatives in 2023:

Members: continue reading this Action Step in the Member Resource Center

To read this entire Action Step become a member of the Diversity & Flexibility Alliance. To learn more contact Manar Morales.

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57 Law Firms Recognized for “Tipping the Scales” Towards Gender Parity  in New Partner Classes

2022 New Partner Report Shows Decline in Percentage of Women New Partners

Washington, DC (November 4, 2022) – Yesterday, during the Diversity and Flexibility Alliance’s Annual Conference, fifty-seven law firms were recognized for having 50% or more women in their 2022 U.S.-based new partner classes.  The firms, recognized as “Tipping the Scales,” were identified through the Diversity & Flexibility Alliance’s New Partner Report, a compilation of public data released each year since 2012.

The Report revealed that 40.2 percent of new partners from 206 major U.S. law firms in 2022 were women, which represents a decrease from last year’s figure of 40.9 percent.  Further, when looking at a representative sample (only AmLaw 100 & Alliance member firms), 40.3% of new partners were women in 2022, which represents a substantial drop of 2.1% from last year’s figure of 42.4%. More information on the report can be found here.

Other highlights include:

  • The average new partner class increased substantially (by 2.4 attorneys), despite the decrease in the share of women.
  • The nation’s top grossing firms had significant declines in the share of women in their new partner class.  In fact, firms in the AmLaw 50 and AmLaw 51-100 had significant declines in the shares of women of 4.2% and 4.9%, respectively.
  • The number of firms with a 50/50 split or greater of women in the new partner class decreased from 67 firms in 2021 to 57 firms in 2022.
  • For Diversity & Flexibility Alliance member firms, 42.9% of attorneys promoted to partnership were women, representing a 2.7% higher share of female partners compared to the overall share of women in this year’s new partner class (40.2%).
  • The number of firms reporting no women in their new partner class decreased from eight to six, however.

“While the overall dip in women new partners may seem inconsequential, any step backwards in a trend towards gender parity is concerning. Additionally, when looking at the representative sample of larger AmLaw 100 firms, the decline of 2.1% in women partners was more significant,” said Manar Morales, President & CEO of the Diversity & Flexibility Alliance. “The legal industry must be mindful of these trends and renew its commitment to increasing the share of women partners by focusing on the recruitment, retention, and advancement of women,” she added.

To reap the benefits of gender parity, the Diversity & Flexibility Alliance advises that law firm leaders pay close attention to building a pipeline of women and focusing on equity in their work distribution, mentorships, training, pay and evaluation systems. Additionally, firms are encouraged to develop intentional and inclusive hybrid working initiatives that benefit everyone.  It is important to note that many Alliance member firms have made systematic changes and taken intentional steps towards increasing gender diversity and therefore have seen quantifiable results in their promotions of a higher share of female new partners than nonmembers.

The “Tipping the Scales” firms recognized for having 50% or more women in their 2022 new partner class included:

 

1. Akerman

2. Arnold & Porter**

3. Baker Donelson

4. Bilzin Sumberg

5. Boies Schiller Flexner*

6. Bracewell

7. Brown Rudnick

8. Choate Hall

9. Clark Hill

10. Cole Schotz

11. Cole Scott

12. Davis Wright Tremaine**

13. Day Pitney

14. Debevoise & Plimpton

15. Dechert

16. Dickinson Wright

17. Epstein Becker & Green*

18. Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath 

19. Fisher & Phillips

 20. Foley Hoag*

21. Fox Rothschild 

22. Fredrikson & Byron

23. Haynes & Boone

24. Hinckley Allen

25. Hirschler

26. Hughes Hubbard & Reed

27. Jenner & Block

28. Jones Day*

29. Kutak Rock

30. Lane Powell

31. Lathrop GPM**

32. Loeb & Loeb

33. Marshall Dennehey

34. McCarter & English

35. Michael Best

36. Miller & Chevalier*

37. Nelson Mullins

38. Offit Kurman

 39. Parker, Hudson, Rainer & Dobbs 

40. Porter Wright

41. Robinson & Cole

42. Rutan & Tucker

43. Schulte Roth & Zabel

44. Shook, Hardy & Bacon*

45. Smith Gambrell

46. Squire Patton Boggs

47. Steptoe & Johnson

48. Stoel Rives

49. Thompson Coburn

50. Tucker Ellis

51. Vorys

52. Warner Norcross + Judd

53. Wiley Rein*

54. Willkie Farr & Gallagher

55. WilmerHale

56. Wolf, Greenfield & Sacks

57. Womble Bond Dickinson*

 

*Firms that have been recognized as “Tipping the Scales” for at least three years.

** Firms that have been recognized for all four years since we began the “Tipping the Scales” recognition. 

Diversity & Flexibility Alliance Member Firms are highlighted in orange

The Alliance has been compiling this data since 2012, when the data revealed that women only made up 33% of new partners.  It is important to note that, in 2021 as well as this year, the Alliance expanded the number of law firms included in the report, examining all public data from law firms in the AmLaw 200 (versus only AmLaw100 in previous years), as well as Alliance member law firms.  New partner data was collected from 206 law firms this year versus 187 firms in 2021.  For purposes of comparing data and trends to previous years, a Representative Sample was identified in this and last year’s report, including firms in the AmLaw100 as well as member firms.

The Diversity & Flexibility Alliance’s New Partner Report is a yearly compilation of data from the nation’s largest and top-grossing law firms (206 this year) examining the gender breakdown of attorneys promoted to partnership in their U.S. offices.  The data is based upon publicly available firm announcements and other self-reported sources on new partner classes with an effective date of promotion between October 1, 2021 and September 30, 2022.  Eight firms from the AmLaw 200 were not included because either data was not available or they had no partner promotions.

For ten years, the Diversity and Flexibility Alliance has collaborated with organizations to develop non-stigmatized flexible work policies that promote inclusive work cultures and help to advance more women into leadership positions. The Alliance provides practical research-based solutions, training workshops, and strategic advisory services that increase organizational effectiveness through diversity and flexibility.

 

Contact: Manar Morales

manar@dfalliance.com

301-580-2490