Women lawyers are being held back, despite the fact that they make up half of legal graduates, according to those behind a new initiative aimed at cracking the profession's glass ceiling.
The Leadership Foundation for Women Lawyers is backed by some of Scotland’s most eminent lawyers. They say that although equal numbers of men and women have been graduating from Scotland’s law schools for three decades, this is not reflected in the numbers reaching top posts and too many women are leaving the profession.
Although numbers are rising, by last year women made up only 22 per cent of sheriffs and 26 per cent of senators of the college of justice, and there is a gender-based pay gap.
Men are more likely to hold the top jobs and get there quicker, according to network founder and former head of Edinburgh Law School, Professor Lesley McAra. “It is vital that the legal profession reflects the society which it serves,” she added.
“For over 30 years there has been gender parity among graduating students but this has not translated into gender parity in the top echelons of the profession. In spite of best efforts, too many talented women are leaving the profession.
“Edinburgh Law School strongly believes in equality of opportunity and the leadership foundation has been born out of a conviction that universities should play a leading role in supporting positive social and legal change.”
Jacquelyn MacLennan, of White and Case LLP said: “I am delighted to be part of the founding group of the Leadership Foundation for Women Lawyers.
“The Foundation will be an important accelerator to women's success in seizing opportunities, by providing an arena for senior women from a wide spectrum of the profession – who like me are passionate and committed to seeing change now - to give concrete guidance and mentorship to women law students/recent graduates. The Leadership Foundation is also gathering, creating and communicating best practices to the profession itself.”
A more equal opportunities profession would benefit everyone, she said: “Research findings are clear. Diverse teams are better teams. Women leaders in the legal sphere are an economic imperative. The Leadership Foundation is a valuable tool to realize this, and I support it whole heartedly.”
The Foundation is calling for more flexible working and job share arrangements, while it says stronger and better role models are needed for women and also for men, to persuade them of the benefits of flexible working.
It also wants to see mentoring schemes for young women lawyers, transparent pay bands across the profession and new ways for young people to penetrate hierarchical structures within legal firms and influence the strategies of their boards.
The foundation will be launched at its inaugural public debate tonight (Tues) in Edinburgh, at which Professor Susan Murphy of Edinburgh business school will present the findings of research into the challenges faced by women across the workforce, particularly on transitions through motherhood and dealing with lingering implicit and explicit bias towards women, as well as the findings of the recent Law Society Women in Law report, as part of a discussion about how equality in the legal professions compare to that in other professional service sectors.
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