BSN Diversity League Table 2020

BSN Diversity League Table 2020 - build08

welcome from the black solicitors network welcome to our new and refocussed diversity league table (dlt) study 2020. with this edition, we aim to inspire law firms, chambers and other organisations in shaping your initiatives, culture and strategy to help shift the dial on gender and race equity, diversity and inclusion. policies and practices actually work. that is the genesis of dlt 2020. dlt 2020 aims to add new insight by focussing on where change is happening within the profession and what it takes to make progress on diversity and inclusion. dlt2020 profiles, by way of case studies, 7 leading global law firms that are delivering successful change on diversity and inclusion (d&i). as well as profiling what works, firms also share the types of challenges that exist when considering how to deliver meaningful change. these case studies are the result of detailed review and analysis of d&i interventions by participating interviews with firms and key stakeholders (sponsors/leaders) and beneficiaries of the interventions conducted by the dlt’s research team led by professor peter urwin. the journey towards change is not an easy one beset with challenges along the way but these firms are committed to navigating that path and are seeing signs of success, which will ultimately enhance the firms’ overall performance. in-depth in our lead article – the need for disruption, professor urwin and dr maatwk take a critical look at d&i policies and practices that have gained popularity and why inclusion and belonging are necessary but not sufficient to drive radical organisational change. the blm protests following the killing of george floyd in may 2020 have catapulted issues of race and racism to the top of the world’s agenda. in june 2020, bsn published an open letter to the profession calling on firms and organisations to walk the talk on racial diversity. many firms have since announced strategies to tackle issues of racial diversity. in july 2020, rare launched the race fairness commitment (rfc), a comprehensive roadmap for firms to measure, and talk about, race annually. raph mokades, founder and managing director of rare, joins us on this edition to share details about how the rfc supports these strategies and serves to combat career obstacles faced by minority ethnic lawyers. we are delighted to celebrate bsn’s 25- year anniversary of striving towards an equal profession and share our 25-year journey in this publication which we hope you enjoy reading! we would like to thank all the individuals and organisations that have supported our work (including the dlt) over the years and look forward to continuing to work together to drive change in the legal profession. best wishes paulette mastin chair, black solicitors network editor, diversity league table since 2006, the black solicitors network (bsn), in conjunction with the law society (our sponsor), has conducted research and analysis into the state of diversity and inclusion in the legal sector, culminating in bsn’s annual publication, the dlt. the dlt has been widely legal profession’s considered as the leading diversity initiative. after 10 successful years of the dlt and having spent the past couple of years re- evaluating the publication as a diversity survey and measure in consultation with the relevant representative and regulatory bodies, we are delighted to embark on a new refocussed dlt study, beginning with this publication: dlt 2020. reporting why change, why now? we commissioned a review and analysis of the datasets collected from firms over the preceding 10 years of the dlt. the review focussed on aspects of change from a demographic perspective (across diversity strands of gender, ethnicity and social mobility) and presented new and useful insights on the progress of diversity across the legal profession, taking account of extrinsic factors impacting the profession. the 2017 dlt 10-year study brought us up to date with progress on diversity in the sector. an overarching theme emerging from this retrospective was that despite the development of a wide body of experience, knowledge and initiatives in the area of diversity and inclusion, there has been little discernible change in terms of gender and ethnic diversity at the middle to senior levels of the profession. this prompted us to look beyond the annual reporting of diversity issues (via the traditional dlt and other surveys) towards identifying and exploring what success in diversity and inclusion looks like, whether there is tangible commitment beyond ‘box- ticking’ policies and practices and what diversity league table 2020 3

contents d&i in the legal profession: the need for disruption 10 3 welcome from the black solicitors network 6 statement of support from the president of the law society of england and wales 9 statement of support from the chair of the solicitors regulation authority 10–13 d&i in the legal profession: the need for disruption by professor urwin and dr maatwk 17 proﬁling successful change in diversity & inclusion: diversity league table case studies 2020 – introduction 18–32 case studies 18–19 allen & overy proﬁling successful change in diversity & inclusion 20–21 bryan cave leighton paisner (bclp) 22–23 freshfields bruckhaus deringer 17 25 years of driving change in the legal profession 38 24–25 herbert smith freehills 26–27 latham & watkins llp 28–29 linklaters 30–31 norton rose fulbright 32 conclusion 35 interview: jane malcolm, executive director, solicitors regulation authority – the importance of diversity data in the profession 37 making the elite professions more diverse by raphael mokades, md, rare 38–40 25 years of driving change in the legal profession – the black solicitors network 43 acknowledgements 4 diversity league table 2020

editor in chief paulette mastin chair, black solicitors network head researcher – case studies professor peter urwin, centre for employment research, university of westminster sponsor the law society of england and wales design & production leaf communications publisher black solicitors network, may 2021 the black solicitors network (hereinafter referred to as the bsn) has made every effort to ensure that the information provided within this publication is accurate. however, the content and entries are based on the latest information available at the time of going to print. • naturally during the lifespan of this publication names, addresses and telephone numbers may change but this edition will not be amended and reissued as a result of any such changes. • this disclaimer is effective in relation to editorial content, research and advertising. • the bsn does not under any circumstances whatsoever accept liability for any damages or loss which may arise from any error or omission of information contained in this publication. the bsn does not represent or act as agents for organisations and/or individuals within this publication. professional qualifications, trade certification and membership of trade associations, shown against an organisation or individual’s advertisement are not endorsed or supported by the bsn or this publication. • the views expressed in this publication are not necessarily the views of the editors or the publisher. © black solicitors network 2021. all rights reserved. no part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form, stored in a retrievable system or transmitted in any format without the written permission of the black solicitors network except in accordance with the provisions of the copyright designs and patents act 1988. applications for the black solicitors network’s written permission to reproduce any part of this publication should be addressed to the black solicitors network, rowlandson house, 289/293 ballards lane, london n12 8np or email enquiries@blacksolicitorsnetwork.org. belong as you are. diversity, equity, and inclusion are hallmarks of our culture. we are committed to supporting the success of the next generation of underrepresented lawyers and leaders. to learn more about our commitment, visit www.belongasyouare.com. follow us:

statement of support i. stephanie boyce, president, the law society of england and wales the law society is committed to creating a modern, diverse and inclusive profession. in doing so, we are keen to work with partner organisations and members of the profession to challenge harmful stereotypes, promote equality, diversity and inclusion at all levels, and identify what is most effective in creating change. for years, the black solicitors network’s diversity league tables have provided transparency on the performance of law firms and chambers. the data captured allowed us to identify where progress was being made and where there were ongoing issues affecting diversity and inclusion. it has allowed us and members of the profession to focus on where targeted support is still needed. we are pleased to be sponsoring the 2020 diversity league table/case studies (dlt) especially as it sheds new light on what is being done to drive change. the dlt 2020 looks beyond the annual reporting of diversity issues captured through the dlt surveys and has moved towards identifying what success looks like. it rightly questions whether there is a tangible commitment to diversity and inclusion beyond ‘box-ticking’ and looks at what practices and policies work within the profession. to the profession with the introduction of mandatory gender pay gap reporting in 2018 and the black lives matter movement we have seen the increased determination of implement practices that increase accountability and accelerate change. the new insight of dlt 2020 informs us of where change is happening fastest in the profession and what it takes to make progress on diversity and inclusion. the findings from this report will allow members to see what works and in turn maximise their chances of success. together with our race for inclusion research and the insight captured from our achieving change together roundtables looking at the experiences of black solicitors in 2020, this bsn publication will help us to promote a legal profession that is inclusive of all. i. stephanie boyce president of the law society of england and wales diversity league table 2020 7

statement of support anna bradley, chair, solicitors regulation authority i am pleased to support the black solicitors network (bsn) in its work to promote race equality across the legal sector. the bsn has led the way in driving change, using its voice at every opportunity to challenge inequality, encourage data collection and provide transparency through the diversity league table it started in 2006. to many the bsn also offers invaluable support and mentoring talented students and young lawyers, through its jobs board and other initiatives. and it’s great to see the use of practical case studies to help law firms think about how best to make a difference in race equality within our sector. the events of 2020 and the wider black lives matter movement really bring the importance of this work into focus. we can all learn from each other and that is why last year and this, we have been bringing together experts and those with first-hand experience in the field of race equality in a series of virtual events. bsn chair, paulette mastin, joined the fawcett society and black men in law to discuss key issues for law firms in the first of these events. we considered the intersection between race and class with aspiring solicitors and rare recruitment. and most recently, we heard from senior white allies in law firms, on how important it is not to be a bystander. we want to help drive the culture change we all know is necessary and we see good information as key to this. the sra biennial firm diversity data collection is our key contribution. we also provide support and resources and are always happy to have ideas about what else we could do. of course, we also have a few ‘regulatory levers’ we can pull, including around entry into the profession. we see the new solicitors qualifying examination as a once in a generation opportunity to sweep away many of the barriers to diversity in the profession. we want it to open up flexible, low-cost routes to becoming a solicitor, and with everyone taking the same exam, everyone should also have more opportunity to shine, regardless of background. of course, none of this will be enough; there is much, much more to do to achieve a truly diverse profession. in my view, we can achieve our aims only by working together and so i look forward to continuing our work with the bsn. diversity league table 2020 9

improvements witnessed over the past 10 years go hand-in-hand with increasing frustration at the slow pace of change and uncertainty regarding the effectiveness of workplace practices that are supposed to be driving such change. the law society’s report race for inclusion: the experiences of black, asian & minority ethnic solicitors sets out a number of challenges experienced by black, asian and minority ethnic (bame) solicitors. despite firms’ efforts to manage diversity, career paths of bame groups in the profession are overshadowed by barriers to entering the profession, experiences of microaggressions, and non-inclusive organisational cultures. there have been some successes, with a significant increase in the share of bame males becoming partner. this is especially driven by those of asian origin and there are still concerns over the number of black partners; and men are still much more likely to become a partner than their female counterparts. in the year ending july 2019, the law society’s annual review suggests that 10% of partners and 12% of associates and assistants were of bame origin; and whilst 62% of the latter group are female, this is true of only 31% of partners1. looking in- depth at ethnicity figures shows an even more dire situation with only 1% of partners in large firms being of african/african caribbean origin. it is worth noting that the number of partners not sharing their ethnic origin almost doubled between 2015 and 2019, which makes accurate assessment of the ethnic composition at leadership level more challenging. despite many firms and chambers positively changing their practice regarding entry level recruitment, progress is slow on ensuring that this translates into increased diversity at middle and senior leadership levels. the dlt’s new case-study approach is a response to this continuing challenge, fac t s a n d f i g u r e s taking a new approach that allows a sharing of insights into specific interventions, so that the sector can achieve more. considering evidence on the impacts of diversity policy, we need to re-assess whether some of the interventions which have driven progress to now, are sufficient for the challenge that remains. the 10- year dlt retrospective study critically evaluated evidence on whether firm- level diversity policies drive improvements in diversity. whilst specific components of the policy score, such as staff development and support, are seen to drive higher levels of both ethnic and gender diversity, there are questions over the efficacy of many other areas of policy and practice. a firm’s specialist areas of practice are the key determinants of its gender and ethnic diversity, with international areas having greater ethnic, but little gender, diversity; and areas such as family or employment law seeing the opposite. some difference is down to choices made, but it also speaks of deeply rooted practices that potentially limit the effectiveness of policies designed to effect change. the we need to be more critical when considering impacts we expect of policies and programmes, and this extends to ‘buzzwords’ such as the recent concept of ‘belonging’. there are various claims made for d&i policies that gain popularity, but evidence of their impact is often lacking. for instance, unconscious bias training (ubt) has been widely used to enable individuals to identify and reduce their prejudices, but any impact on individual attitudes remains unclear2. even without extensive evidence, we might question whether prejudices constructed a person’s lifetime can be overcome by, at best, a few days training. the mere knowledge throughout of one’s bias is unlikely to be sufficient to drive behavioural and attitudinal change. ubt risks being used as a quick-fix by organisations to tick the eliminated/ reduced bias box and avoid more radical institutional changes that may be needed3. to have a chance at impact, one-off training sessions should be avoided and training instead needs to take different many of the case studies in this year’s dlt publication highlight the need to adopt more substantial interventions to tackle bias at the workplace forms over a longer period of time; and be aligned with other organisational initiatives that aim to debias. many of the case studies in this year’s dlt publication highlight the need to adopt more substantial interventions to tackle bias at the workplace. for instance, reverse mentoring programmes require a significant resource commitment (when compared to one-off ubt) and as such they provide us with a clear message – debiasing will not be quick or inexpensive. whilst we do not suggest that the case studies provide causal evidence, it is clear that significant resource needs to be committed to support well-designed interventions that tackle a clearly identified need. they provide a key lesson – we need to adopt a more critical approach, questioning whether being promoted are really likely to be up to the job, especially when they are claimed to achieve change at relatively little cost. prescriptions the inclusion and belonging are necessary but not sufficient one of the key goals of firms adopting diversity in the form of ubt or other), is to create ‘inclusive’ workplaces and cultures. initiatives (whether 10% 1% 12% 62% 31% of partners were of just 1% of partners bame origin are of african/african of associates and assistants were of of associates and assistants are female of partners are female caribbean origin bame origin 1 the law society (2020) trends in the solicitors' profession 2 https://www.cipd.co.uk/images/7926-diversity-and-inclusion-report-revised_tcm18-65334.pdf 3 https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0950017017719841 diversity league table 2020 11

the notions of inclusion, and also belonging, are increasingly apparent in d&i narratives – aiming to improve both the experiences of diverse employees and also their performance. this shift it is no longer sufficient for leaders to ‘set the tone’ at the top and assume this translates into inclusive organisations based on claims that diversity improves firm financial performance, but there is a lack of recognition that such gains are often not achievable without significant disruption and resource input. if leaders are to create truly ‘psychologically safe workplaces’ within which diversity is a learning resource and discrimination and subordination are combatted4, it can’t be done on the cheap. simply put, we cannot in ‘include’ diverse employees organisational that are not designed to welcome them and we need to recognise that some of the existing discourse is simply wrong. structures in the long-term organisations must change to reflect the increasing diversity in all areas of economy and society. but at the operational level, managers need specific direction and a focus on what needs to be achieved now, to meet long term objectives – this is a standard requirement of strategy which is often omitted when considering issues of diversity. translating strategic-level diversity visions into tangible resources at level enables managers to take action and achieve diversity targets5. the operational to initiate this disruptive process, the tension between leaders’ celebratory diversity statements, managers’ lack of drive to manage diversity and employees’ apprehensive experiences need to be resolved. a key step in this process to consider moderating factors that influence of diversity on team performance, which is key to achieving business objectives. understanding how diversity influences team performance and which factors it shapes – i.e. creativity and conflict – is crucial. form the is the key takeaway here is that to foster diversity, changes to the core of how a firm operates are inevitable; and there is a cost to such disruption that falls upon everyone involved in the process of change. making a real change to the way a business operates in terms of allocation senior strategic managers need to engage with the operational changes that are needed to drive diversity and be more honest that change is often costly of individuals to different operations, perhaps losing some less enlightened clients and building new ones requires taking a short-term risk, for long-term gain. that is why the dlt is taking a new approach to uncovering of ‘what works’. the unconscious nuances of racism and sexism, combined with a tendency to focus on generating quarterly income rather focused on diversity, creates concrete walls, rather than glass ceilings. we are thus in need of leaders and companies that are willing to take the hit when initiating change. these firms narrate diversity differently, they look different and eventually they will encourage others to follow their lead. remaining than prof. peter urwin and dr fatima maatwk diversity league table 2020 13 from towards inclusion mirrors a long-term shift legislative obligation, to ‘managing diversity’, to valuing diversity by creating an inclusive and welcoming organisational culture. however, these concepts can be considered as standard good workplace practice, and whilst we would therefore not argue against them, we would question the likelihood that they are sufficient to drive radical organisational change, not just at the top, but throughout the organisational structure. inclusion and belonging are worthy ideals, but they are not sufficient to drive the more radical disruption that is needed at the core of many organisations. inclusion and belonging represent a minimum standard – the question is, what other disruptive approaches do we need to drive diversity at the top and throughout? we would suggest that bclp’s highly innovative programme of disrupting usual practice in the selection of teams by partners, is an excellent example. by involving an independent resource manager to support selection, this acts to disrupt and bring about fundamental change. we have already mentioned the reverse-mentoring schemes that require substantial resource, but have the potential to secure much greater impact than ubt. the spaces created by networks are necessary for effective workplace support, but also need disruptive elements to avoid the risk that they become segregated spaces where only people of certain affiliations ‘go’ to be heard. to leading with more than words the role that leaders play in creating inclusive organisational cultures, flagging their commitment inclusion and belonging as organisational priorities, could equally benefit from a recognition that disruption is needed. it is no longer sufficient for leaders to ‘set the tone’ at the top and assume this translates into inclusive organisations. leadership support for diversity initiatives is often 1980). for instance, middle managers are often seen as the permafrost between senior managers who commit to a strategic diversity and inclusion perspective, and the employees who are the focus of such approaches. this view of middle managers as a problematic layer of ‘permafrost’ that is hard to break down is hard to fathom, as senior leadership pronouncements on ‘valuing difference’ and ‘supporting diverse employees’ are easily made and clearly not sufficient. any real commitment needs resource and a change in the criteria on which operational managers are judged. the story of middle managers as impediments to progress has a long history – ‘hey there all you middlemen!’ (ac/dc, strategic managers need to engage with the operational changes that are needed to drive diversity and be more honest that change is often costly. designing diversity initiatives that truly aim to create psychologically safe workplaces, means going through an uncomfortable, radical yet slow, and costly process of change. strategic managers and leaders are increasingly fluent in talking-the-talk of diversity, but walking- the-walk involves difficult steps. similarly, understandably middle-managers respond more effectively the performance criteria on which they are appraised – but they do need to be responsive to the strategic positioning of diversity and inclusion by senior leaders. senior to without more disruptive change and substantial resourcing, the policies that we have relied on to get here, are unlikely to get us much further. there is a clear gap between strategic and operational management perspectives. at a strategic level the business case for diversity seems obvious and straightforward – 4 https://vpfo.tamu.edu/_media/documents/pdf/getting%20serious%20about%20diversity.pdf 5 https://www.cipd.co.uk/images/7926-diversity-and-inclusion-report-revised_tcm18-65334.pdf

race for inclusion: the experiences of black, asian & minority ethnic solicitors representation of black, asian & ethnic minority solicitors is improving but varies greatly between different backgrounds... the annual statistics report 2019, states that black, asian & minority ethnic solicitors represent 17.5% of pc holders with known ethnicity. results from this research: a significant proportion of solicitors participating in the roundtable discussions are the first within their family to go to university. they often don’t have the knowledge or connections others might benefit from. they are often not ‘expected’ to go into professions like law by careers advisers. however, representation across black, asian & ethnic minority groups shows a mixed picture… 10% 3% of lawyers are asian compared to 7% of the workforce in 2019. of lawyers are black matching the workforce in 2019. “ i came from a rough area but got into a good university where others had parents in law. they had invisible advantages, of getting work experience, knowing how to talk better. they had support with applications, and i didn’t.” black, asian & ethnic minority representation is lower in larger firms and black, asian & ethnic minority solicitors are also less likely to reach senior positions in these organisations. the largest firms (50 + partners) have only... 8% of black, asian & ethnic minority partners 20% in single partner firms in the top 50 uk firms, more than twice as many white solicitors as black, asian and ethnic minority solicitors achieve partner equivalent status. black, asian & ethnic minority solicitors are more likely to work in particular sectors and earn less overall... the study found black, asian & ethnic minority solicitors felt white trainees were typically encouraged towards corporate and commercial work, whilst they were ‘pushed’ towards personal injury, legal aid, immigration and family work. a 2017 sra report shows an increasing share of black, asian & ethnic minority solicitors leaving private practice to work in-house, especially black, asian & ethnic minority female solicitors and particularly asian females. several barriers to progressing to partnership have been identified, including a lack of sponsorship and guidance, differential allocation of good work opportunities and, more generally, not fitting in to the (predominantly white) culture of the company. the desire to raise issues around diversity and discrimination, is felt to be at odds with progressing to the level of partnership. “ in my firm, partnership is still an exclusive bubble. you have to be likeable. i need to be agreeable and moderate myself. if i am seen as the troublemaker raising these issues, they won’t want me at the table.” some solicitors recall that recruiters often suggested they enter into less lucrative and competitive fields of law. the common perception is that black, asian & ethnic minority candidates are more likely to be successful with applications to these areas. “ i did a vacation scheme, and the feedback was ‘you are very engaging. you come across really well. i think you would make it in the legal profession, but you should stick to high street firms. people like you are better suited there’.”

black, asian & ethnic minority solicitors report lower levels of wellbeing at work... 24% of black, asian & ethnic minority solicitors report severe or extreme stress compared to 18% of white solicitors. adverse discrimination is reported by 13% of black, asian & ethnic minority solicitors and 16% reported bullying, compared to 8% and 13% respectively for their white counterparts. ethnicity was the most frequently recorded factor for black, asian & ethnic minority solicitors. when black, asian & ethnic minority solicitors speak up on matters of race and inequality, they feel disheartened that the ‘safe’ environments in which to do so, often just become talking shops. there are few opportunities to raise such issues with those at the top. the feeling of having no voice, has led many to struggle with their mental health, paying for counselling or taking a break from the profession. some note feelings of guilt for not doing enough to raise these issues. “ i burnt out. now that i’m on a break, i haven’t been afraid to say controversial things. if i don’t, the cycle won’t change. people need to feel uncomfortable, because what i have experienced is the reality, and a lot of people who look and sound like me have experienced the same.” what works: best practice highlighted by the research some of the initiatives respondents have said worked in supporting diversity in the legal profession. 1 . e n t r y t o t h e p r o f e s s i o n measure entry level representation and breakdown data for groups within the black, asian & ethnic minority category. audit recruitment standards and advertising for bias, demand diverse shortlists, and ensure recruiters are diverse and trained in avoiding bias. focus outreach, paid work experience and internships on people who face greatest barriers (e.g. because of socio-economic background). use fair recruitment practices such as blind shortlisting or contextualised recruitment. set targets if intake is not representative for some groups (e.g. black solicitors). 2. retention, development & progression monitor representation, retention and progression for different black, asian & ethnic minority groups. set targets for senior partners/ leaders and for key points in the pipeline. provide structured mentoring programmes so black, asian & ethnic minority/all solicitors can easily establish mentoring relationships. monitor work allocation to ensure more equitable distribution of development opportunities. put in place a more systematic approach to partner selection. 3. focus on inclusion 4. data & evaluation encourage and lead conversations about race, and have a senior level sponsor for race inclusion. address any gaps in ethnicity data and improve response rates by being clear about how data will be used. use reverse and reciprocal mentoring to develop more inclusive leaders. provide diversity training – ideally face-to-face and impactful – including on allyship. ensure confidential ways of reporting racism, bullying and harassment, and microaggressions so staff feel safe speaking up. take a data-driven approach to d&i, use metrics to identify problem areas and design interventions. publish key metrics such as the ethnicity pay gap and representation in workforce and at senior levels. evaluate d&i interventions to learn what works and what further action is needed. include questions in staff surveys to assess inclusion and well-being, and analyse results by ethnicity. tie senior leaders’ pay and bonuses to d&i outcomes. ensure culturally diverse and inclusive corporate and staff events. www.lawsociety.org.uk

profiling successful change in diversity & inclusion: diversity league table case studies 2020 – introduction from 2006 to 2015, the bsn diversity league tables (dlt) have encouraged firms and chambers to promote diversity, by celebrating organisations that achieve a high level of diversity; and those that still have some way to go, but have put in place a variety of supporting policies and initiatives. in the 2017 study, which analysed 10 years of information from the dlt, dame linda dobbs d.b.e., a former high court judge, suggested that, “since publication of the first diversity league table… there has been positive change, for which the dlt can take much credit”. however, the 2017 publication also noted that across both chambers and firms, any continuing upward trends in gender and ethnic diversity amongst senior staff are now at a very slow pace. as a result of the subsequent review led by paulette mastin we have a new- look dlt2020, detailing seven law firm case studies focussing predominantly on issues of race and ethnicity. these case studies set out the d&i objectives in each firm and the challenges faced; the actions being taken across the firm to drive change; and focuses on a specific d&i intervention, sharing details of its purpose, operation, benefits and next steps. the aim is to further drive the development of evidence-based d&i practice across the legal sector. (bame) backgrounds; we consider the reach and smart start schemes at allen & overy (a&o); norton rose fulbright’s (nrf) career strategies programme for high potential lawyers from black, asian and minority ethnic the stephen lawrence scheme launched by freshfields bruckhaus deringer (freshfields) in 2013; and the race for change programme at bryan cave leighton paisner (bclp). as with the work of the black lawyers group at latham & watkins (l&w), these activities aim to promote and support the progress of lawyers from a variety of bame backgrounds. as the following case studies suggest, these interventions are often seen by participants as having a range of benefits, working to change attitudes and address organisational culture across the firm, in addition to supporting those who are the target of intervention. the understanding diverse perspectives reverse mentoring scheme at herbert smith freehills (hsf) has a particular focus on securing these impacts on organizational culture; and the linklaters inspire development programme for bame staff brings together a variety of activities to drive diversity. the pandemic has caused some understandable delays to dlt 2020, but has also underlined the importance of studies that uncover ‘what works’ – covid19 has had a disproportionate impact on women and those from bame backgrounds, shining a spotlight on many of the uk’s existing gender and ethnic inequalities. the following case studies will help those who are determined to drive change in the sector, and we encourage firms who are keen to do more, to get in touch. read the case studies on pages 18 – 31 case study allen & overy page 18 – 19 bryan cave leighton paisner (bclp) 20 –21 freshfields bruckhaus deringer herbert smith freehills latham & watkins llp linklaters norton rose fulbright conclusion 22 – 23 24 – 25 26 – 27 28 – 29 30 – 31 32 diversity league table 2020 17

c a s e s t u dy allen & overy founded in 1930 in london, allen overy, with its 5,337 employees, of whom 550 are partners, is one of the largest law firms in the city of london. operating globally with over 40 different offices in a number of regions, including europe, the usa and uae it is recognised internationally for its positive contribution to the diversity arena and has won numerous awards. for example, within the uk it was ranked the most attractive employer by female law students in 2020; similarly, it was listed in the times top 50 employers for women, 2020; while for the second time running, stonewall, recognised it as a top global employer in 2019. 2020 diversity statistics, uk gender partnership percentage: 22% (of 550 uk partners) gender associate lawyer percentage: 50% women ethnic minority partnership percentage: 9% ethnic minority associate lawyer percentage: 22% race targets: by 2025, the firm aspires to achieve 15% ethnic minority partners, 25% ethnic minority lawyers and support staff. in addition, the firm aims to achieve a yearly target of 35% ethnic minority trainees, including 10% black trainees. d&i objectives: responding to challenge acknowledging that the black community is still under- represented, the firm plans to address the relatively low ethnic minority rate of retention by a variety of measures. a&o’s race and ethnicity strategy is formed around three core stands: recruitment, retention and culture. the action plans within each of these strands are based on detailed analysis of the data relating to ethnic diversity at the firm, and focus groups and consultations with colleagues. retention and culture are not areas where there is any quick fix, but one of the interventions in place here includes mentoring. over the last year, as a result of efforts made to support a more diverse cohort on their road to partnership, the number of women at partner level increased to 22%. crucially the firm ensured progression by embedding ‘managerial accountability’ for achieving gender diversity goals alongside ensuring support for women at the earliest stages of their career. as an hr manager points out, ‘in banking, for instance, each partner is asked to take on at least one d&i objective whether that’s gender or race and ethnicity. crucial to the ways in which a&o operates are the ways in which it treats its people (clients and employees). it makes a point of giving all employees the opportunity to develop personally and professionally in order that they might flourish. key to this is its approach to diversity and inclusion. strategically aware of its diverse client base and a need to take the lead on diversity and inclusion, a&o places an emphasis on being transparent, clearly demonstrating to those inside – and outside – the organisation the value of positive initiatives designed to change the socio economic, ethnic, racial and gender biases within the firm. as part of this transparency initiative, a&o published its ethnicity pay gap alongside its gender pay gap – the first law firm to do so in the uk. such public acknowledgement, together with publicised targets around diversity, helps drive changes towards improved inclusivity and a multi ethnic workforce – ‘when targets are public it puts us under some pressure, which is great because then it means things will change’ [reach mentor]. action for change across the firm with aims ‘to become the world’s most advanced law firm’ and strategic ambitions split into three dimensions of high- performance culture, lasting relationships and global reach- local depth; a&o has set, as a global priority, the creation of an inclusive environment for a diverse range of people. the strategy is implemented, in part, by targeting areas of need through; training, sponsorship, coaching, mentoring and promoting a listening culture across the firm. for example, it has replaced its annual performance reviews with compass, a performance and development system that promotes and allows for ongoing feedback in order that associates have 18 diversity league table 2020

regular, developmental conversations receiving – and giving – appropriately timed feedback. considered a legal career) an insight into the legal environment and potential career opportunities. students retain the same mentor from the scheme if they join the firm after graduating. d&i initiative: reach and smart start mentoring a&o’s d&i programme has a long-term goal of greater inclusion across all underrepresented groups, including a focus on gender, race & ethnicity, lgbt+, social mobility and disability. a&o are keen to listen to the workforce and many of their initiatives have been driven from the bottom up: this, coupled with forensic analysis of data, has driven the new diversity initiatives such as the reach mentoring programme for ethnic minority employees. as a reach mentor says; ‘the statistics are not that great and i think that makes them think, you know, we must do something, we’re not quite sure but tell us. … they’ve always been willing to listen… so, i think they realise that change is needed and they’re happy to … put money behind it.’ purpose: the reach programme aspires to support ethnic minority employees and those from disadvantaged socio- economic backgrounds in their career progression by creating an internal network. by creating a safe space, it aims to raise issues and trigger discussions around matters surrounding ethnicity. reach is designed to support colleagues (both from the fee earning and business teams) by offering them the opportunity to have a mentor to encourage and support them; aiding their development, helping them to build a stronger career platform and enhancing their ability to create successful networks within the firm. the mentors support their mentees, provide career advice, helping them to achieve their goals and importantly championing them within the firm – facilitating introductions, highlighting their achievements/ potential etc. the programme was initially developed by london associate, adeola adesola, and targeted at vacation scheme students. following its success, it was rolled out in the london banking practice where everyone was told about the programme and invited to participate if they wanted to take part. the hr team then made the appropriate mentor/mentee matches for interested participants based on what they anticipated the programme would give them and on what the mentors had to offer. beneﬁts: around 25 lawyers participated in the first tranche of reach and it has since been rolled out across all of a&o london. feedback from the participants has been overwhelmingly positive; as a mentor explained when talking about linking up with her new mentee of a similar background; ‘it was very much like a big warm hug …we connected quite easily’. the reach programme has been so well received with such positive results that a toolkit has been created so the programme can be rolled out to all the other london practice groups and business teams. one mentee summed up reach by saying; ‘the main practical benefit i’ve got is ... exposure to someone that’s senior that i didn’t [previously] know …understanding the way things work in other teams, because a&o is a big firm and there are different ways of doing things, …it’s very much in terms of bouncing back ideas … someone who’s just interested in helping me, i think that has been great… i think it will have a positive impact… because it helps raise your profile’. smart start has proved very successful: 'all of my mentees have gone on to have successful university careers and one has a training contract with a&o. that’s a great testament to smart start. i am still in contact with nearly all of them – it’s always great to hear what they’re doing – i find the students so inspiring.’ [smart start mentor] successes and next steps a&o has promoted a number of initiatives to ensure greater diversity, inclusivity and opportunity for those who might be disadvantaged by joining the firm from a ‘different’ non-traditional background. it is rolling out the reach mentoring to a wider audience and continues to listen to a range of diverse groups, such as the black lawyers affinity group and the society of east asian lawyers, and make changes where appropriate. the publication of data around pay gaps and ethnicity ‘stay’ gaps (retention) ensures transparency and shows a willingness to alter ingrained practices. by future-proofing the firm in this way the intention is to make a&o more resilient in the market place with an increasingly diverse workforce reflecting a more diverse clientele. beyond its reach programme, a&o is endeavouring to make sure that minority ethnic staff are more equally represented, particularly at senior levels. the firm further broadened and widened its d&i approach, evaluating work processes and gauging where, and how, bias might be reduced and retention and career progression enhanced. as part of this, it has further enhanced its smart start scheme – in existence since 2009. this is a work experience programme designed to give students (who, because of their background, might not have moving forward, a&o makes a point of highlighting its commitment to hiring from the whole population ‘because it strengthens and enriches our values, our culture and the creativity of our people and enables us to do the best work for our clients. to this end, the firm has set new ethnicity targets for its london office'. by 2025, the firm aspires to achieve 15% ethnic minority partners, 25% ethnic minority lawyers and support staff. in addition, the firm aims to achieve a yearly target of 35% ethnic minority trainees, including 10% black trainees. diversity league table 2020 19

c a s e s t u dy bryan cave leighton paisner (bclp) bclp is an integrated global law firm with over 1,400 lawyers operating from 31 offices worldwide. a total of 1,065 staff in the uk are based in london, manchester and southampton – with london accounting for around 700 of these staff. bclp can claim to be one of the most ethnically diverse partnerships in the city of london, with over 15.7 per cent of 134 partners identifying as being an ethnic minority. the firm’s diversity commitment has gained wide recognition. for instance, bclp has received perfect score on the hrc corporate equality index for 14 consecutive years. the firm has been named a stonewall top global employer and in 2019 bclp secured second place ranking in stonewall’s uk workplace equality index, recognising the work of its lgbtq* group. 2020 diversity statistics, uk gender partnership percentage: 29% (of 134 uk partners) gender associate lawyer percentage: 67% women bame partnership percentage: 16% bame associate lawyer percentage: 13% race targets: by 2030, the firm aims to increase the representation of ethnic minority partners in the uk and us to 18%. given the current diversity within its uk partnership, this goal is 22% in the uk. d&i objectives: responding to challenge bclp intentionally changed the narrative the firm uses on diversity to put inclusion first. the firm’s commitment to inclusion & diversity aims to make sure that the experience for people is equally as good as the brand of just being a diverse firm…something that is really visible. inclusion and diversity are regarded as key components of the firm’s core values and are hard-wired into its infrastructure. we know that diversity enriches the quality and fabric of our culture and makes us a stronger, better firm. increasing diversity is not enough, inclusivity, and ensuring everyone feels ‘at home’ is crucial. retention, training and recruitment, are viewed as essential strategic constituents for furthering a diverse workforce and critical for the ways in which bclp wants to develop and grow. the diversity strategy focuses on four key areas: • entry and lateral hiring • talent development • leadership accountability • culture and inclusive behaviour. these four strands are vital to the ways in which bclp functions strategically; aligning its aspirations, operational and developmental activities; and cultural environment to all four strands. bclp is widening the base from which it draws recruits, encouraging the sharing of ‘open and candid’ personal stories, and developing a culture within which everyone can feel at home. action for change across the firm bclp/off script is a firm-wide inclusion and diversity podcast launched in june 2020. it features honest conversations between colleagues across the firm discussing experiences, perspectives and stories. as the title implies, there is no script and the only agenda is for people to speak honestly. more than 1,000 bclp colleagues have tuned into the weekly podcast series to hear deeply personal, powerful and professional conversations – many covering aspects of race and career development, told by a diverse range of staff from across the firm’s hierarchy. the goal of bclp/off script is to provide 20 diversity league table 2020

colleagues with the opportunity to expand awareness and understanding of different experiences, as well as to promote continued conversations among colleagues, friends and family. offers went to black candidates, while in 2020 12% of black candidates were offered places (40% of total offers in 2020 went to black, asian and minority ethnic candidates). bclp prides itself on a thorough salary review process to ensure equal pay for men and women and those in different ethnic groups where there is parity within roles. equal pay in the firm’s fee earner roles is at near parity (with 0.57% difference for men and women and 0.83% difference for white and ethnic minority lawyers). in the 2020 pay gap reporting year, the firm’s mean and median gender and ethnicity pay gaps narrowed across the three populations the firm measures: partners, employees and partners / employees combined. the gender pay gap exists in part because of the higher proportion of women in administrative and secretarial roles in the firm. the recent increases in the intake of ethnic minority trainees and junior employee hires have skewed the ethnicity pay gap in a similar way. bclp has an “inverse” partner ethnicity pay gap, meaning the gap in compensation between ethnic minority and white partners is in favour of ethnic minority partners. the importance of diversity and inclusion extends beyond workplace boundaries. bclp’s dedicated social inclusion & ethnicity group led by two uk partners promotes and runs schemes such as, outreach to schools, work experience and opportunities for school leavers. these well-established pre- recruitment initiatives showcase the legal profession to those who might not have considered it as a career option. as a result, bclp has featured in the top 10 of the annual uk social mobility employer index for the last four consecutive years. d&i initiative: race for change purpose: in 2014 bclp created an event explicitly aimed at aspiring black lawyers, to increase diversity in private legal practice across the sector. this would showcase how they could achieve as black lawyers by providing ‘insider’ knowledge and practical tips on joining, staying and thriving within the profession. six years on, race for change has made a considerable impact on recruitment of black lawyers at bclp and other firms. applications are made via a covering letter, screened to ensure that those with a realistic chance of future success are supported by the scheme. beneﬁts: race for change participants accounted for 12.5% of bclp’s 2018/9 vacation scheme cohort and 13% of the training contract offers made by bclp in 2019. it is hoped that over time, the talent race for change has introduced to the firm will impact diversity at the top of the firm’s hierarchy. the recruitment figures are impressive – in 2016 just 6% of the participants are enthusiastic about the race for change experience – finding it honest, motivational and inspiring: ‘i was able to attend the race for change event … honestly, a year ago today i was faced with a lot of rejection. the most important lesson that i have learnt is that being a black female from a non-russell group university means nothing if you embrace the difference’. ‘…but when you don’t see people like yourself, it’s hard to imagine where it could be – you aspire to it, but it’s not as motivating as when you see someone…who is now [a] current managing partner, and it’s incredible and you think, wow, okay, that’s really possible’ race for change does not stand alone. it is integrated into the ways in which the firm approaches recruitment of black lawyers, and importantly, the subsequent development of participants. following the main event there are training activities and opportunities to network. the firm has more recently introduced commercial café, an offering exclusively available to race for change alumni, providing a safe space to build confidence and experience in discussing current affairs and business issues. small group commercial café sessions take place every six weeks, each discussion is facilitated by a group of bclp lawyers and business services professionals, with topics and articles shared with attendees ahead of time. successes and next steps bclp is in the process of bringing to life plans to hold quarterly events for all race for change alumni – whether or not they have secured contracts with bclp or elsewhere. activities around and within the community are continuously being developed to broaden access to legal careers. the firm continually strives to improve its offering, for instance by diversifying further its recruitment pool and increasing the representation of individuals with disabilities amongst trainees. bclp is confident these measures will ensure a steady flow of bright, ethnically diverse candidates who, following exposure to bclp activities, are motivated to succeed, thrive and progress within the profession. it is hoped that black trainees who successfully become part of the fabric of bclp will evolve into diversity ambassadors, both for aspiring new recruits and across the firm, helping to maintain and nurture an inclusive and diverse workplace. diversity league table 2020 21

c a s e s t u dy freshﬁelds bruckhaus deringer established in the uk in 1743, now with uk offices in london and manchester, freshfields is the oldest global law firm, operating from 28 offices internationally. freshfields continues to demonstrate its commitment to diversity and inclusion, with its diverse culture recognised through a number of awards. in 2018 freshfields won the uk diversity legal award for recruiting diverse talent; examples in 2020 include being named a stonewall top global employer for the fifth year; annette byron and tim wilkins, both partners at the firm, appeared in the top 100 ethnic minority executives list and london managing partner claire wills was named a champion ally at the ethnicity in the city awards. 2020 diversity statistics, uk gender partnership percentage: 25% gender associate lawyer percentage: 56% women bame partnership percentage: 6% bame associate lawyer percentage: 24% race targets: by 2023, the firm aims to achieve ethnic diversity at all key global leadership functions, and by 2026 the firm aims to double the number of black associates globally. d&i objectives: responding to challenge freshfields aims to be a diverse and inclusive workplace where everyone has the opportunity to achieve their potential. they are focused on creating a positive and supportive environment in which all can flourish, regardless of their gender, race or ethnicity, background, religion, disabilities, sexual orientation, gender identity or any other dimensions of difference. over recent years freshfields has substantially increased initiatives aimed at enhancing diversity within the firm and the community in which it operates. its burgeoning programme of interventions has been bolstered by workshops designed to strengthen inclusive leadership skills, alerting senior staff to the consequences of potential bias. a reverse mentoring scheme piloted in 2019 was considered to be extremely valuable for participants, and freshfields global black affinity network (ban), which brings together lawyers of black african and black african caribbean heritage from across the firm, continues to take practical action to support workplace diversity and inclusion. action for change across the firm the firm appreciates and respects the numerous perspectives that diversity brings. it aims to reflect the diversity of its clients and to be connected with local communities. freshfields broadens its reach, influence and opportunities to make a difference by partnering with organisations such as aspiring solicitors, rare recruitment, delta alpha psi and the black british business awards. they are a founding signatory of the charter for black talent in finance and the professions and recently signed up to the rare race fairness commitment. in 2020, ban created a network of non-ban freshfields colleagues to act as senior ambassadors for the ban community (informally known as banbassadors) through their commitment to practical action to support ethnic diversity and inclusion. in 2021 the firm will be launching a global talent programme for junior black and minority ethnic colleagues. 22 diversity league table 2020

the firm’s d&i efforts have yielded promising results. for instance, 21% of the employee population and partners identified as black, asian or minority ethnic in the uk. the firm announced the appointment of 22 new partners globally in april 2021, 50% of whom are women. freshfields has a strong pipeline in their legal population of black, asian and minority ethnic talent and are focused on developing and retaining colleagues across all roles. d&i initiative: freshfields stephen lawrence scheme purpose: freshfields is committed to widening access to the legal profession for the most talented students, irrespective of their ethnicity, sexual orientation and other background characteristics. the intersectional, ground-breaking stephen lawrence scheme launched in 2013, seeks to address the disproportionate under-representation in large commercial law firms of black men from less privileged backgrounds. there is no minimum grade requirement and potential is the key, rather than paper qualifications. the scheme aims to potentially ‘change the colour’ of elite businesses and institutions in the uk and beyond’. aimed at first year university law students at most universities and, at some universities, other students too, the scheme has had positive influence on the 70 participating universities, encouraging them to think about the ways in which they deliver on their own diversity and inclusion obligations and how they commit to support students. university engagement is crucial as they nominate students (based on potential) and apply to the scheme on their behalf. the scheme selected 13 new scholars in november 2020 for the 15-month development programme, so bringing the total number of scholarship awards to 82, with the 2021 process, the ninth year of the scheme, also now under way. in total 17 of the scheme’s alumni have been offered training contracts with freshfields and others have received offers from other leading commercial law firms, barristers’ chambers and investment banks. beneﬁts: the scheme benefits not just the successful scholarship participants, but also the other 400 (and rising) scholarship candidates who gain from the application process (which showcases the opportunities available and provides feedback on their assessment centre strengths and development areas). ‘you can give someone a fish, or you can give them a fishing rod. i think the scheme was a fishing rod.’ [participant]. crucially it broadens the range of possible career opportunities that, prior to this, candidates may not have considered. for many young black men, the thought of working in such an environment is alien and the process is enlightening: ‘when i went there … on the open day, it was like nothing i’d ever seen before; just the big corporate law firm … and there’s 60- 80 black men in their suits, and like, that’s a sight i had never seen before… [it] was actually quite an impactful day. … the way the firm was engaging with us on that day it was really unique… really exciting … something that i would really want to do’ [participant]. overall, the freshfields stephen lawrence scheme has had a significant impact on freshfields’ culture, particularly in the way it views and addresses inclusion – importantly it kick- started, ‘far-reaching conversations about potential, difference and ‘who we are (or could be)’ as a community, which has in turn shaped our culture’ [hr manager]. conversations are not limited to the firm and discussions of intersectionality also take place with client partners in order to inform and influence their attitudes and behaviours around social mobility – helping to provide access for underrepresented groups to a broader range of city professions. successes and next steps freshfields is not standing still: the covid pandemic meant that some parts of the stephen lawrence scheme in 2020 and 2021 had to be undertaken online. some learnings from this will feed into future programmes, complementing face-to-face delivery in future years if access to opportunity will be increased and digital exclusion can be avoided. its alumni are among the colleagues who participate in outreach events and in pro bono work: for example, freshfields has provided support for a case before the court of justice of the european union with far- reaching implications for lgbtq+ rights. building on the stephen lawrence scheme, spring 2021 saw the launch of the freshfields aspiring professionals programme, in partnership with the social mobility foundation. this new three-year, gender-neutral programme, is designed to promote social mobility and racial equality in professional careers. it will cater for an annual cohort of 100 uk students from less- advantaged socio-economic backgrounds, aiming to increase their aspirations, raise their confidence, and encourage networking, so that participants will eventually gain access to professional careers. the successful participants (aged 16-17) will receive mentoring, attend skills sessions and participate in work shadowing facilitated by freshfields staff; they will also be eligible for a paid internship at one of the firm’s uk offices. diversity league table 2020 23

c a s e s t u dy herbert smith freehills herbert smith freehills (hsf), with its full-service legal expertise and international reach, is recognised globally for its emphasis on diversity and inclusion. with over 5,000 employees operating from 26 offices across europe, the middle east, africa, asia pacific and north america, the firm fosters an inclusive culture. it is a core business priority that everyone can be themselves and contribute their perspectives. 2020 diversity statistics, uk gender partnership percentage: 25% (uk partners) gender associate lawyer percentage: 53%* women *2019 figure bame partnership percentage: 6% bame associate lawyer percentage: 22% london ethnicity targets: we will rigorously focus on addressing the disproportionate under-representation of individuals from black backgrounds across practice groups and business services. by 2025, minority ethnic partners will comprise 10% of the london partnership, up from 5.6%. the proportion of minority ethnic trainees retained as nqs will be at least the same as the proportion of minority ethnic trainees in each intake. d&i objectives: responding to challenge hsf’s approach is market leading. from bold and ambitious targets to drive gender diversity across leadership and launching market-leading parental policies in asia – to improving ethnic minority representation across offices and developing a truly global approach to mental health and wellbeing, and leadership on lgbt+ advocacy. these efforts have been widely acknowledged with, for example, hsf recently ranked seventh in the social mobility employer index (2020), and named as one of only 17 worldwide stonewall top lgbt global employers. since first setting gender targets in 2014, the percentage of women in the global partnership has increased from 18% to 27%, and the number of women partners has more than doubled. in terms of ethnic diversity, the firm shows good diversity at the junior levels of lawyers, but only approximately 6% of partners are from a minority ethnic background, none of whom are black. recognising the need for change, the firm launched 10 actions for change in 2020; a global set of commitments aimed at creating a truly anti-racist organisation, improving ethnic diversity at hsf and racial equality within the communities it serves. the firm recognises the underrepresentation of ethnic minorities within the sector, and is committed to doing better. the pattern of recruitment reflects the firm’s desire to build a more diverse and inclusive firm and sector, showing how it continues to increase diversity in the staff it hires. this coupled with a robust data collection system (tracking activities and results that subsequently inform activities) means hsf is on its way to building a successful pipeline, leading directly towards the creation of a diverse group of partners and an inclusive environment. action for change across the firm there is an emphasis on inclusion and a concerted effort to ensure that everyone is able to be themselves without pretence while they are at work. the firm deploys a number of tools and strategies to encourage diversity, including scrutinising people processes with a diversity lens; setting diversity targets; unconscious bias training and supporting a number of employee networks. hsf’s approach is becoming increasingly nuanced, ensuring a focus on intersectionality and increasingly engaging and collaborating with its clients. to ensure the culture of the firm progresses, members of the firm’s leadership are always open to hearing from colleagues, listening to suggestions and using their role to effect change. 'diversity is being invited to a party but inclusion is being invited to dance. i think our programme is not focused on just being invited to the party, because anybody can come to the party, ... but the people who really enjoy the party, the people who really enjoy their career, who really enjoy working with different people, are those who are on the dancefloor. when it comes to truly enjoying the experiences that you have within your firm, that is 24 diversity league table 2020

dancing and being truly yourself. you can tell the dj, … 'hey, can you change the song please? [it] is not really working for me.' … the host might be your line manager, somebody from hr…or one of your colleagues, but you have an opportunity to change the dynamic, should you wish to, and i think that is what our diversity and inclusion programme is focused on.' it is this listening aspect of the culture, together with a determination to improve the experiences of black employees that led to the creation of the reverse mentoring scheme. d&i initiative: understanding diverse perspectives: reverse mentoring the reverse mentoring initiative turned traditional mentoring on its head, pairing a senior business leader (the "mentee") with a more junior employee (the "mentor"). the pilot programme included all uk executive committee members. a typical pairing would be a senior person (a partner or a senior business services professional), with a more junior colleague from a minority ethnic background. the pairs do not work together and are not associated within the firm. the purpose is to have an honest deeper conversation about race and personal experiences, alongside having more general discussions on the firm and its culture. although conversations between pairs are wide ranging there are four main areas of focus: diversity and inclusion, culture and engagement, health and wellbeing, technology and innovation. the purpose is to give mentees a better understanding of working life through the lens of a black or minority ethnic colleague, to facilitate more inclusive leadership behaviours, and to build better leaders for an increasingly diverse workforce. ‘i thought here’s a great opportunity for me to mine her mindset and to understand about somebody of a different generation and different ethnicity to me and working in a part of our firm about which i know very little. …we have, over time talked about race, … what it’s like to be a black woman in our firm … i’ll be honest with you, it’s probably not a question i even asked myself before this initiative’ [reverse mentee]. beneﬁts: there are now 100 individuals involved. it is not just the mentee who gains, the mentor has an insight into the way in which senior management works and the activity helps create cross-group relationships and increases experience beyond peer groups, exposing junior staff to senior leadership challenges and vice versa. initially pairs meet every six weeks or so for at least an hour. feedback on the progress of each pair is sought after three months. the indirect benefits of the scheme have been that people are making links across the organisation, discrete groups are becoming more connected and conversations are taking place which, before the programme, would have been unheard of. ‘i think the difference is my confidence levels … in feeling comfortable about talking about issues and vocabulary which i probably had a lot of discomfort about’. [reverse mentee] ‘it’s fantastic that the firm is really keen to hear more from different voices that are not typically present in senior leadership meetings.’ [reverse mentor] ‘it gives you a lot of insight into the thought processes that our senior leaders have to go through to make decisions that affect the employee population of the firm. he’d come to me and he’d say, ‘i’ve got to make a decision about this – what do you think i should do?’ my [reverse] mentee has been so receptive to my support, consequently, when i get to that level in my career, i’m going to be receptive to the experiences and opinions of those who are more junior because they can still bring great wisdom when it comes to making decisions.’ [reverse mentor] the reverse mentoring scheme works because it has become one of symbiosis, with both sides gaining positive experiences that help them as individuals; but it does more than this, as it improves the overall inclusivity of the organisation. ‘the mentoring relationship is, technically speaking about me helping him, so it was really nice to know that he’s ready to be my sponsor and willing to connect me to other people who can make my life easier.’ [reverse mentor] to ensure the success of the reverse mentoring programme, hsf supports both mentors and mentees in building a meaningful relationship, whilst empowering both to take initiative in defining their relationship. to do so, the firm regularly seeks feedback from both mentors and mentees and also supports mentors throughout the mentoring relationship. furthermore, the firm supports mentees in preparing for the mentoring relationship and identifying what they wish to gain from the programme. successes and next steps hsf recently announced its 10 actions for change, which include commitments to deliver anti-racism workshops across hsf; improve the retention of black, first nation, asian and minority ethnic groups via opportunities such as mentoring and work experience; and to hold regional executives accountable for progress on ethnic diversity. through its targeted approach and aspiration to develop an inclusive diverse culture where everyone can flourish, hsf has shown that change is possible. the initiatives have had a profound impact on the culture, and the overall willingness to address uncomfortable subjects bodes well for the future of the firm, its existing and potential employees. ‘we are trying as a business, to improve and to catch up a little bit and there’s an awful lot to do but there has been good determination in our leadership … to push this and our teams … have been generally receptive to it.’ [member, uk executive group] diversity league table 2020 25

c a s e s t u dy latham & watkins llp latham & watkins is a global law firm with 2,900+ of the best and brightest lawyers in 29 offices around the world. currently it is the world’s second largest law firm by revenue. the firm stresses its commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, especially with regard to recruiting and retaining diverse talent, and notes that “at latham, you belong as you are.” 2020 diversity statistics gender partnership percentage: 22% (of 107 uk partners) gender associate lawyer percentage: 42% women (uk) bame partnership percentage: 15% (uk) bame associate lawyer percentage: 17% (uk) global gender partnership percentage: 24% women d&i objectives: responding to challenge the firm continues to focus on creating a more diverse and representative workforce, and is making progress in recruiting. in 2020, for example, among first-year associates hired by latham in europe, the middle east and asia, over 50% were women. latham is led by a nine-member executive committee, which is elected by the partnership. four of the nine members are from traditionally-underrepresented groups. with no designated headquarters, management of the firm is undertaken on a cross-border basis, enabling teams to serve clients with the talent, subject matter experience, and seniority level most suited to the matter at hand. this non- hierarchical, client-focused, and collegial management style is perhaps the key to latham’s evolution as a workplace where inclusivity and diversity flourish. as an international leader with world-class mentoring and training programs, and a diverse, inclusive culture, latham prioritizes recruiting, retaining, and advancing lawyers from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds as essential to its success. the acceptance and celebration of difference, along with an explicit and continued commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, means the firm has established itself at the forefront of d&i practices. it is typical for many teams to be almost fully composed of individuals from a variety of traditionally underrepresented backgrounds. ‘almost no one member of the group has any … similar characteristics to another! it’s the [most] diversity you could possibly imagine. … we did have a female pakistani lawyer, ... we have two african lawyers, a british indian lawyer, an irish lawyer, and an lgbtq lawyer, all at partnership level. and, you know, in a team of only five or six partners, that’s quite diverse.’ [mentor from the black lawyers’ group, discussing their specific area of practice]. action for change across the firm: latham implements various initiatives such as unconscious bias training for all lawyers, a set of work-life balance policies, professional development programmes for associates traditionally underrepresented backgrounds, and from investment in pipeline initiatives to support recruitment of underrepresented talent. specific diversity and inclusion initiatives include: • firm-wide training to ensure inclusive selection in all progression and recruitment activities • diversity leadership and women’s leadership academies. • women enriching business committee • affinity groups representing asian & middle eastern, black, first generation professional, hispanic & latin american, lgbtq+, native american, parent, women, and us military & veteran colleagues and their allies in total, there are over 1,960 members representing all of latham’s offices worldwide. these groups ‘allow colleagues who share an affinity in terms of a particular life experience (or are allies to those who do) to come together, have a forum for discussion, and share strategies for professional success.’ d, e & i leadership: london black lawyers group the extremely active, associate-led blg is an affinity group that exists across more than 15 latham offices, and boasts nearly 70 members in the london office alone. three associates serve as global leaders and there are associates who serve as local leaders in each office. liaison partners are responsible for ensuring each office stays connected with the blg, serving as both a sounding-board and a conduit for issues that should be elevated to firm leadership. 26 diversity league table 2020

purpose: the blg’s principal objective is to support black lawyers in their progression to partnership and other leadership positions through the recruitment, retention, and promotion of black lawyers. membership is voluntary and open to all black trainees and lawyers as well as those allies who support the blg’s mission. potential trainees and new recruits learn about the blg as well as all of the firm’s global affinity groups in their introduction to the firm. blg activities range from one-on-one mentoring to group programs, and from local to global initiatives. for example, a london-based lawyer could work with a local mentor, attend global video conferences, and take part in a number of professional and social activities such as a pro bono seminar or a virtual chocolate tasting. participation in the blg gives lawyers an informal view into the business and operations of the firm, and creates a formal avenue for advice and practical insights around performance, progression, and other aspects of professional development. there are two main mentoring schemes. in the first approach, the blg attempts to ‘match people together in a family with a partner, and the objective of this connection is to have meaningful conversations about career progression, challenges you’re facing in your role, your pace, your feedback from your appraisal, [and] growing your profile. so, they’re focused on actual things that will make a difference to your career' [senior blg member]. secondly, the blg provides a layered mentoring approach. ‘partners mentor the senior associates, the senior associates mentor more junior associates and trainees, in a way that we hope that you would feel, at each stage of your career, supported, and, at each stage of your career, it’s not so intimidating' [blg member]. beneﬁts: participants say that the blg has improved their internal networking and, equally important, has helped promote a strong sense of inclusion and belonging. in addition to providing a global platform for members, the blg endeavours to educate others about the specific differences and topics that members of the black community face, such as unconscious bias and ‘micro-aggressions’. fostering a shared understanding of what it is like to be a black lawyer is a crucial, ongoing, culture-changing aspect of the work of the blg. ‘we’re trying to focus our narrative more on these issues facing our black associates, and let’s not be afraid of using the word ’black’ and talking about some of the things that challenge our black lawyers’ progression'. [senior blg member] ‘finding support, being listened to and understood, is a powerful tool. they can’t necessarily fix the problems that i’m coming to them with, but having someone listen and understand and perhaps make suggestions has been really very helpful to me’ [blg member] the blg is divided into a number of organising committees. committee members interact with other important groups within latham. influence and ‘we’ve spoken with [the training] team, with the recruiting team, [and] the people who are involved in making sure that the trainees stay on’ [blg member]. in addition, every two years there is a blg retreat, ‘which has just been phenomenal, like the energy it galvanises among people, a feeling of, i think, camaraderie, of course, but [also] a feeling [that] the numbers are changing. every time we meet, there are more of us and this is getting better and better. it’s really rewarding… you can feel the energy in the room, that people really want to continue that momentum’ [blg senior member]. successes and next steps ‘it’s fair to say, without going too far, [that] without the black lawyers’ group, i may very well have left latham at some point. it would probably be one of the key factors in my retention’ [blg member] latham won the bsn managing diverse talent award at the 2019 uk diversity legal awards, which honoured latham and the blg for creating and maintaining an inclusive culture with its ongoing, frequent initiatives to attract, retain, and promote talent from underrepresented backgrounds. equally impressive, in 2020, the blg was recognised for contributing towards the long-term success of black lawyers within the firm, the legal profession, and the wider community when latham won the diversity innovation (ethnicity focus) award at the legal week innovation awards. this was the second time the firm had received this award; it was honoured in 2019 for its first generation professionals lawyers group’s work in advocating and assisting in the progress of first generation lawyers. diversity league table 2020 27

c a s e s t u dy linklaters priding itself on putting its clients at the heart of everything it does, linklaters (est. london 1838) is a leading global law firm that operates from 30 different offices, with 5,340 employees based across 20 countries. it is recognised for its client service and global capabilities across its three divisions – corporate, finance and dispute resolution; and its commitment to diversity & inclusion which is core to the firm’s values and an integral part of the firm’s vision and strategy. the firm has been recognised internationally for its positive contribution to the diversity arena, reflected in numerous accolades it has received. for example, the firm has been named a leader in diversity by the financial times (2020, 2021), the firm was recognised as a top 20 employer for advancing social mobility in the social mobility employer index four years in a row (2020) and has been named a top 50 employer for women by the times for seven consecutive years (2020). 2020 diversity statistics, uk gender partnership percentage: 24% (of 201 uk partners) gender associate lawyer percentage: 54% (includes counsel, managing associates, associates and trainee solicitors) bame partnership percentage: 11% bame lawyer percentage: 25% (includes counsel, managing associates, associates and trainee solicitors) race action plan (2020): starting in the 2020/21 recruitment cycle, the firm has pledged to recruit more diverse talent by having 35% of its trainees from minority ethnic backgrounds yearly. by 2025, linklaters aims to achieve a 15% black and underrepresented minority ethnic target at partnership level, and to have 5 times as many black partners at global level by 2027. d&i objectives: responding to challenge in 2020, linklaters announced its race action plan affirming its commitment to creating meaningful change within its firm. linklaters acknowledged that it had a lack of black racial diversity and took action to address this imbalance. the firm had a particular lack of diversity at partnership level, with numbers for uk employees below partner level more even (although still predominantly caucasian) and the uk 2019 graduate recruitment process awarding just under half of the successful training contracts to non-white applicants. of the total successful candidates 41% were asian or asian-british and 3% black or black-british. action for change across the firm: combined with more diverse recruitment patterns in the uk, since 2012, linklaters has evolved a range of different training, mentoring and coaching programmes, each designed to promote, encourage and value inclusivity by addressing the ways in which employees can raise their profiles, develop and excel within the firm. these programmes include its inspire minority ethnic talent programme, and its popular reverse mentoring scheme, which gives senior leaders the opportunity to learn about under- represented perspectives. linklaters is focused on developing its leaders’ understanding of different people’s perspectives and experiences, and their responsibilities to create an inclusive culture. there is a strong feeling that, ‘if you don’t have the right kind of culture for the diverse population…coming through your firm, then ultimately, you’re going to start falling behind’ [hr manager]. just making sure that the recruitment process is inclusive and broad in scope is not enough. to this end, linklaters has endeavoured, by means of its ‘talent programmes’, to ensure that minority ethnic employees have more developmental and sponsorship opportunities. running alongside such programmes are activities that reinforce linklaters’ inclusivity values such as: • career storyboard workshop – this is an immersive visual experience depicting the subtle, often understated and complex, factors that impact upon female recruitment, retention and progression. • diversity week, running annually, where all cultures within the firm are honoured and diverse stories are celebrated and shared. not only is this educational for everyone but it helps build a culture where everyone feels at home. 28 diversity league table 2020

the inspire programme has been designed specifically to enhance and promote minority ethnic talent. it was started in 2018 as a pilot for 19 participants and, despite initial scepticism, they found the programme empowering, helping them to be more confident and providing a safe space to discuss race and ethnicity. greater range of relevant collegiate networks but importantly gives participants access to additional role models and career sponsors who can act as advocates/mentors. interviews conducted with participants of the programme offer valuable insights into how the firm’s culture has evolved. 'it came from … a need and a desire, driven internally really, to broaden out what we were doing across the diversity streams and turn our attention to more than just the recruitment of minority ethnic talent, which is what had been happening – lots and lots of focus on recruitment and attraction, ensuring selection processes are spot-on, but just not enough on retention and retaining and sponsoring that talent during their time at the firm, throughout the firm.' (hr manager & inspire participant). d&i initiative: inspire – a development programme for black and minority ethnic staff this inspire programme is part of a conscious effort to address the organisational culture surrounding ethnic diversity. it sets out, and delivers on, an ambitious management strategy the purpose of which is to embed race and ethnicity into the linklaters culture, thereby creating an inclusive workplace environment. the overseeing of the programme by the hr department indicates linklaters’ resolute commitment to address ethnic diversity holistically across the firm. further, it helps enshrine the firm’s position within the uk legal sector with regards to race and ethnicity. the central philosophy behind the inspire programme is one of inclusivity and of changing the culture to one that feels ‘less white’. it is designed to be a career accelerator and to promote line manager confidence in enabling healthy discussions about race and ethnic diversity. focussing on the career progression of ethnic minority lawyers, the programme consists of several components including: individual and group coaching, career development plans, and a series of webinars on topics such as authentic leadership, confidence and managing change. it strengthens the participants’ and the firm’s understanding of the mechanisms through which ethnicity can impact career outcomes. through their participation, linklaters’ lawyers are provided with support to navigate their career paths and reach senior roles in the firm. ‘i think this programme is really helpful because it …breaks down barriers…one thing that is good about it is that you’re involving line managers so that they can hopefully go back to their groups with some of the things that they’ve learnt’ [inspire participant]. acknowledging that addressing diversity in general (and ethnic diversity specifically) is a collective responsibility, line managers involved in the programme evaluate their own roles in the career progression of their team members. ‘my job is to celebrate and make sure other people know about their successes, so that when it comes to their assessment… people know about [them]…so i … try and cascade, but also [to] try and do what i can to be the… advocate at my level for people … i need to reflect their…strong qualities, and make sure other people know about their successes’ [line manager, inspire participant]. since the end of the first iteration of inspire, five individuals from the original cohort of 19 have been promoted to partner, managing associate, manager or counsel roles. successes and next steps through its range of programmes and desire to encourage and enhance an inclusive diverse culture linklaters has shown that change is possible. the range of programmes, training and mentoring (reverse and otherwise) has made an ongoing difference to the employee composition of the firm. the range and scope of initiatives have fundamentally altered the employee infrastructure of the firm and have set a benchmark for the industry. the firm is not standing still, more developmental programmes encouraging talent are envisaged; in particular they will be addressing social mobility and widening the participation rate of inspire. beneﬁts: although operating for just two years this programme has been extremely well received within the firm, in part because alongside the black and minority ethnic participants it trains their line managers who, in turn, appreciate and promote their sponsored colleagues. it has been particularly successful because it offers a ‘safe space’ in which to address issues concerning the lived experiences of inequality and often unconscious microaggressions experienced by the participants – and by this means deepens the firm’s understanding of the challenges associated with being a black or minority ethnic lawyer. the programme is particularly successful because it not only provides individuals with access to, and awareness of, a ‘reinforced by our race action plan, we will create meaningful and long-term change within our firm and are committed to ensuring that we are home to and have an inclusive culture for everyone’ [senior partner and senior champion for race and ethnicity]. as part of its aim to achieve demanding race action plan targets, linklaters will tie social impact work contributions to performance reviews; increase participation from black students in key programmes, increase representation of black and minority ethnic lawyers at senior leadership, create an inclusive culture by training 100% of employees on anti-racism, establish a black diversity council and hold all directors and partners accountable for ethnic diversity in their teams. diversity league table 2020 29

c a s e s t u dy norton rose fulbright with a global reach of more than 50 offices spanning five continents, norton rose fulbright provides the world’s preeminent corporations and financial institutions with a full business law service across the key industry sectors of financial institutions; energy; infrastructure, mining and commodities; transport; technology and innovation; and life sciences and healthcare. the firm is mindful of the development of its 7,000 people globally with a recognition that the more ‘comfortable’ they are to bring their whole selves to work, the more likely they are to be creative and prosper at the firm. the strategy and culture are therefore knitted together, such that the interlinking of the two – client and staff development – are embedded in the firm. 2021 diversity statistics, uk gender partnership percentage: 29% (of 162 uk partners) gender associate lawyer percentage: 57% women bame partnership percentage: 9% bame associate lawyer percentage: 20% race action plan: as a signatory to the race at work charter, launched in the uk in the autumn of 2018, the firm is party to the uk government’s, ‘push to drive forward a step-change in the recruitment and progression of ethnic minority employees’. as a signatory of the race fairness commitment, launched in july 2020, the firm has signed up to a series of commitments for the recruitment, progression and retention of bame talent. d&i objectives: responding to challenge diversity and inclusion are central tenets of the firm’s global business strategy. norton rose fulbright has continued to take the transparent approach of going beyond statutory requirements by publishing its uk partner data in the annual uk gender pay gap report and for the third year running, will also be publishing data relating to its black and minority ethnic employees and for the second time on the data held for its employees who identify as lgbtqi+. norton rose fulbright has made concerted efforts to strengthen its commitment to diversity and inclusivity. in april 2019, the firm replaced its dignity at work policy with a respectful behaviour one that sets out, in detail, which behaviours the firm finds unacceptable (such as bullying and discrimination); delineating the consequences of such behaviours; and spelling out the range of options available to individuals should they need their concerns addressed, and to be supported. all employees and partners have completed mandatory e-learning training on respectful behaviour and, from september 2020, a mandatory “active inclusion” e-learning course. the firm wants to create an inclusive culture and make diversity and inclusion part of decision-making by: • ensuring visible leadership of diversity and inclusion • fostering collective accountability and ownership of diversity and inclusion outcomes in every team and at every level of the firm • establishing a set of goals, targets and objectives and track progress against these. in 2012, the firm created a global and inclusion advisory council, comprising regional managing partners and members of senior management. this senior level of support sends a strong message that diversity and inclusion, a crucial part of the strategy and culture, is not to be ignored but embraced and valued. the concerted effort to improve the gender imbalance, with new global gender diversity targets announced in 2020, is paying off and recent staff development initiatives like active inclusion and active bystander training have strengthened the culture, highlighting each individual’s responsibility to be inclusive. the active bystander training was explicitly designed to talk about issues linked to race and has increased constructive dialogue in this regard. employee networks contribute to creating a more inclusive workplace by providing safe spaces and opportunities to 30 diversity league table 2020

support and influence the firm’s policies and practices. in the uk, the eight employee networks include: win, which supports the firm’s gender balance strategy; pride & allies, which aims to create a more inclusive environment for lgbtqi+ individuals; compass, a forum for learning about islamic culture; origins, which supports the firm’s race and ethnicity strategy and promotes ethnic and cultural awareness; advance, which focusses on social mobility; shine, which focusses on disability, long-term health conditions and carers ; family matters, which supports working parents; and breathe, which focusses on mental health. the firm’s progress on d&i has been recognised in the market. norton rose fulbright was named as one of the uk’s best employers for race by business in the community in both 2017 and 2018; stonewall has regularly placed the firm in its top 100 employer workplace equality index, 2014-2019; the times ranked the firm as one of the top 50 employers for women, 2017-2019; and the firm was ranked as a top 30 employers by working families, 2018–2020. d&i initiative: a career strategies programme for ethnic minority lawyers since 2010, the firm has run a career strategies programme (csp) for high-performing women. the programme develops women’s confidence for partnership, while highlighting to managers the empowering role they play in helping women to progress. since its inception, the programme has contributed to increasing the representation of women in the annual partner promotion cohorts. in europe, middle east and asia, 41% of partners made up between 2013 and 2021 were women and 79% of them were csp alumnae. in aiming purpose: to achieve an increase in the ethnic diversity of lawyers at senior associate and partner level, this successful women’s programme represented an ideal starting point and the firm designed a new development programme to help prepare high calibre ethnic minority lawyers for partnership. following discussions with more than 20 minority ethnic lawyers, to consider what was needed and what help might be effective, the programme was developed and rolled-out in 2018. participants are nominated by their manager based on their high level of talent and potential for making partner. the modular programme includes two blocks of two-day training, and half a dozen executive coaching sessions. beneﬁts: feedback from the 25 people on the first iteration of the csp for ethnic minority lawyers has been impressive – so much so that the programme has been made into a permanent feature of the talent development programmes at the firm. ‘i was assigned an … independent personal coach and … without underestimating the effects of it … she was transformative, both in my … personal development but also, more importantly, in my career development. i’m still in touch with her… she understood what i needed. she understood my weak points. she understood my challenges within the work environment. and the way she approached it was very effective’. [participant] ‘personally, i can feel a huge improvement in just my mental wellbeing, in my sort of positive outlook, in my confidence, and career wise…i’m more productive, more efficient and, as a result i’ve just been promoted to senior associate’ [participant] ‘the training has been a motivator and, as a result, i made a programme for myself and have now got two deals from company x’ [participant] successes and next steps it is too soon to accurately gauge whether the programme will facilitate participants’ eventual transition to partnership, but if the outcomes mirror that of the programme for women there will be an appreciable increase in the number of bame partners in the decade ahead. specific programmes to support the career development of women and ethnic minorities will continue to run and will thereby influence the make-up of the firm’s pool of senior associates and partners. however, norton rose fulbright is not standing still and continues to aspire to create a culture of respect for each individual. in january 2020, it set new targets for both partnership and management boards of 40% men, 40% women and 20% flexibility – it is well on the way to achieving these. the firm is also focussing on improving the recruitment, progression and retention of bame talent. as part of its new race and ethnicity strategy announced in october 2020, the firm set new bame representation targets in the uk to achieve by 2025: 25% bame overall; 15% bame partners; 25% bame lawyers; 25% bame business services. the firm introduced a bame reverse mentoring programme in late 2020 which will evolve into a sponsorship programme and it will also launch three new career development programmes for bame employees in 2021. data collection within the firm is set to improve, giving senior management a stronger picture of, for example, pay gaps, and this will inform approaches to address them. career development programmes will continue to be designed and run in-house, tailoring the needs of a diverse range of employees to the requirements of the firm and vice versa. diversity league table 2020 31

conclusions across all firms there is a joined-up approach to the promotion of diversity and inclusion, with specific case study interventions embedded within wider strategic programmes. including their wider communities, clients and universities. one area that might be strengthened as part of next steps, is the systematic collection of data to identify success and areas where more change is needed. feeling clumsy, their members firms clearly see a strong role for affinity groups, and many work in partnership with to develop interventions. these groups ensure a robust infrastructure for bame lawyers to be heard throughout the organisation and provide spaces for staff to comfortably talk about issues of race and ethnicity, without intrusive or uncomfortable. these structures facilitate ‘workplace voice’ and are essential for the development of effective support mechanisms. through a wide range of activities they help create a culture where people are not repercussions or embarrassment if they speak out, ask a question or even make a mistake. scared of that tackle initiatives firms detail the strands that form their strategic focus – broadly recruitment, retention and culture – working to develop the challenges identified. the very best firms create action plans based on detailed analysis of their people data forms of consultation, and other in partnership with internal and external stakeholders – interventions developing all of the case study interventions recognise the need for new staff from diverse backgrounds to gain insight into the way the firm works, both in terms of formal processes and informal expectation affinity groups can be instrumental in developing trust relationships with employees from a variety of backgrounds, and these case studies show how to avoid the risk that they become segregated spaces where only people of certain affiliations ‘go’ to be heard. firms draw on moral and ethical drivers for their diversity initiatives, but there is also an acceptance that this makes business sense – inclusion and belonging are about ensuring everybody can bring the best of themselves to work, feel valued and therefore bring value to the organisation. to ensure that these business case arguments are underpinned by operational realities, a number of firms are embedding d&i in the operational objectives of their partners, for instance ensuring that they have at least one d&i objective. the embedding of key performance indicators in the performance review of managers and into staff development and appraisal processes is key to ensuring that lofty aims are underpinned by operational realities. 32 diversity league table 2020

more generally, we can see from the case studies those firms that are committing significant resource, recognising that change cannot be achieved on the cheap. well-thought-out approaches to d&i are seen as essential investments, having the potential to reap significant benefits – all companies realised that they were missing out on untapped potential, with clear implications for productivity but also their external reputation and perceptions of brand. firms have publicised their programmes to encourage a more diverse recruitment pool and ensure they are seen as progressive to a new generation of lawyers, no matter what their background. it is interesting to note the generational dimension of reverse mentoring schemes, with older more senior lawyers valuing the insights they gain not just into issues of diversity, but also the perspectives of a younger generation. a significant resource commitment from firms, recognising both a moral and business case for change, is encouraging for those who are becoming frustrated with the pace of change. but it also has a significant impact on perceptions, particularly when we consider programmes that target groups who would not necessarily consider a legal career. showing that the firm is willing to commit resources to drive change and has specifically targeted, for instance, black men from less advantaged socio- economic backgrounds, has quite a profound effect on the perceptions and subsequent aspirations of many individuals from these groups. similarly, an increasing drive to be transparent, for instance making public various statistics on pay gaps and representation, facilitates an open discussion of where the firm needs to take further action and is best accompanied by clear targets and commitments. their gender, ethnicity, these actions are essential if we are to widen access to the legal profession for the most talented students, irrespective of sexual orientation and other background characteristics. however, whilst raising aspiration and widening participation in the sector are key to future progress, ‘next steps’ emphasise the need to ensure that raised expectations are met. the issue for the sector is increasingly one of progression – ensuring that increasing diversity at junior levels translates into diversity at the top. further support for promotion, retention and a changing of culture are essential to this. programmes the article on pages 10–13 – the need for disruption – speaks of the need for disruption, particularly in terms of breaking the tendency for more senior staff to promote and support those ‘in their own image’. mentoring and career development attempt to raise the profile of budding black lawyers and ensure they are considered for prestigious work. in the ‘next steps’ many firms recognise the need to go further and ensure that this profile- raising and equipping for promotion, does not raise expectations that are again not met. reverse mentoring and wider culture change help to ensure that this does not happen, but it may be that more disruptive approaches are needed. all of the case study interventions recognise the need for new staff from diverse backgrounds to gain insight into the way the firm works, both in terms of formal processes and informal expectation. in the opposite direction, mentoring programmes, reverse mentoring and other activities identify the learning secured by more senior staff into the experiences and perspectives of more junior colleagues from a diversity of backgrounds. in the long term many firms would wish to see a substantial change in ‘the way the firm works’, but this is a long-term objective that will only be fully realised when newly recruited bame lawyers achieve a senior level of practice – to achieve this, there is a short-term need to ensure new recruits can navigate the culture ‘as is’, hopefully driving change when they reach the top. the sharing of experiences and perspectives across senior and junior colleagues will help to change cultures so that they are no longer exclusively ‘white and male’. but most firms recognise in their next steps that only when ‘black and female’ is as likely to be observed at senior, as at junior levels, of practice will culture have truly changed. ultimately the challenge remains, to transform the increasing diversity at more junior levels of practice into diversity at the top. here we have seven case studies of firms that are trying to do just that. we can see from the case studies those firms that are committing significant resource, recognising that change cannot be achieved on the cheap diversity league table 2020 33

we are a people business. we value diﬀ erence and promote a culture of respect for each individual. we believe that high performance can only be achieved in a culture where unique ideas and diverse perspectives are valued and encouraged. we look for individuals with the ability to approach challenges, solve problems and make decisions and see opportunities diﬀ erently. embracing this means we attract and retain the best talent and provide our clients with the most considered and innovative advice. our people are at the heart of what we do. from our global network of 50 employee resource groups, our d&i events, our early careers work experience programs and apprenticeships, and our career development programmes for diverse talent we are here to support you. find out more: nortonrosefulbright.com/ukdiversity law around the world nortonrosefulbright.com

the importance of diversity data in the profession the black solicitors network is a believer in the power of data and started the legal sector’s first diversity league table back in 2006. this belief is shared by the solicitors regulation authority (sra), who have made it a regulatory requirement for firms to track and record their workforce diversity data and they publish the aggregated data for all 10,000+ firms they regulate every two years. paulette mastin, bsn chair, recently spoke to jane malcolm, executive director at the sra, about why the sra thinks it is important that diversity data for the profession is captured and published on a regular basis. paulette: the sra made it a regulatory requirement for law firms to collect, report and publish diversity data. why did you feel this was important? paulette: how have firms reacted to being asked to collate this data? jane: since we first began collecting this data in 2014, we have seen year on year improvements in both response rates and the quality of the data supplied to us by firms. our most recent biennial firm diversity data exercise saw 96% of firms submitting their information, covering data from more than 186,000 people. jane: diversity in the profession matters for so many reasons – firstly it has to be right that the profession reflects the communities it serves and wider society. diversity also increases public confidence, supports access to justice, helps the profession to attract the best talent from every community and, finally, we know diverse businesses are better businesses. law firm data is key to understanding what’s happening in the profession as a whole, so everyone – including each firm – can look at what more needs to be done. it’s a credit to the legal sector that law firms are now leading the way in monitoring for diversity in the professional and financial sector. i don’t think that’s just because we are telling them they have to, but rather that it’s seen as genuinely important and valuable for the profession as a whole and for the business itself. paulette: other than supplying it to the sra as required, what should law firms be doing with the diversity data they collect? for example, the underreporting of disability among law professionals potentially points to a lack of trust that people declaring a disability will be treated fairly and supported by their employers. knowing this, led us to work with law firms to develop resources which would help employers understand the importance and the benefits to businesses and employees alike, of developing disability inclusive workplaces. jane: whether you employ one person or one thousand, simply asking for the diversity data in the first place is a great opportunity to talk to your staff about diversity and inclusion issues. and of course the information flows into wider business management, for example supporting recruitment, retention and career development. it also helps you to understand how you reflect your potential client base and how they see you. our website allows firms to benchmark against their peers, so you can consider whether your diversity profile is in line with other firms and what steps you might want to take. paulette: as well as anonymised firmwide data, the sra also asks individuals to provide their individual diversity information within their mysra account, can you explain how this differs from the employer collated data? jane: the diversity data provided by individual solicitors through their mysra account, is used for reporting, research and evaluation and is crucial to us in ensuring the transparency and fairness of our work. information is provided on a strictly confidential basis, meaning your employer can not see what you have entered for any of the questions. we use this data in a number of ways, for example, monitoring the diversity of people in our enforcement processes. we recently reported on the longstanding pattern of overrepresentation of men and solicitors from a black, asian or minority ethnic background in the complaints made to us and investigated by us. it’s a pattern seen across many professions, so now we are commissioning significant research into the societal and structural factors underpinning this. without the data people have supplied in mysra this would not have been possible. jane malcolm, executive director, the solicitors regulation authority diversity league table 2020 35

making the elite professions more diverse rare was founded with the aim of getting more ethnic diversity into the elite professions. that project has been broadly successful. most of our longstanding clients now recruit graduate classes that are as ethnically diverse as the population, and in many cases more so. as well as growing our undergraduate development programmes that focus on the most under-represented ethnic groups, we have developed vantage: a piece of software that enables graduate recruiters to target students based on 23 different criteria including ethnicity and social background. but ethnic diversity at entry level has not led to sufficient ethnic diversity at management level. in 2020 we published a report, closing the ethnicity stay gap, which highlighted the disproportionate attrition of ethnic minority lawyers in law firms. for this report we carried out 50 interviews with people who had both stayed and left. these interviews painted a clear picture. ethnic minority people have a harder time in law firms. black solicitors have probably the hardest time of all. as one black lawyer put it, “people assume you’re junior. you have to say something 15 times to be heard compared to your white counterparts”. this finding is perhaps unsurprising, when you black solicitors have probably the hardest time of all. as one black lawyer put it, “people assume you’re junior. you have to say something 15 times to be heard compared to your white counterparts” consider that bsn’s 2017 review showed that, over the 10 years preceding the study, there had been little discernible change in ethnic diversity at the middle to senior levels of the profession. the murder of george floyd and subsequent global protests served to push race up the agenda everywhere. the challenge is to institutionalise the response such that it becomes regular and part of the way business is done. the 30% club and its success in getting women onto corporate boards shows it can be done. launched we the race fairness commitment (rfc) in july 2020 as a roadmap for firms to measure, and talk about, race annually. we launched with 17 law firm signatories and at the time of writing this article seven months later, we have more than 40. we have seen many firms announce strategies in relation to race, and the rfc should work to support these strategies. we have also seen firms publicly release race targets across all areas of their businesses. whilst it is encouraging to see this level of public commitment, targets alone do not work. if a firm set a target of 50% ethnic minority partners but the pool of senior associates from which partner are made up is entirely white, that target will not be met. firms need a holistic approach to pipeline management, that involves developing home grown talent and monitoring their lateral hiring processes in the same way they have their graduate hiring processes. we are supporting our client firms with the next step of what that development looks like and assisting with diversifying their lateral pipelines. the rfc website contains open-sourced data tools to help firms manage their pipelines. the rfc contains real teeth, in the form of very specific data points relating to adverse impact during recruitment processes, promotion rates, retention and the ethnicity stay gap, which firms signing up are mandated to calculate and strongly encouraged to make public. publishing progress or lack thereof against the rfc metrics will hold firms accountable. the rfc also ensures that race and racism are talked about in every induction and every exit interview, and that junior ethnic minority staff have access to the most senior management. it also looks specifically at the experience of the most underrepresented groups, reflecting the shift from firms reporting on ‘bame’ statistics and understanding that each ethnic group has different experiences. reaching partnership we hope that it will make a real difference, and that in ten years’ time, those the top law firms, and getting into senior management in other organisations, are as ethnically diverse as those entering those firms today. in raphael mokades founder and managing director diversity league table 2020 37

25 years of driving change in the legal profession pandemic of inequality the far-reaching impact of the covid-19 pandemic has pervaded all levels of society globally. the harsh reality of this seismic event is the disproportionate impact it has had on black and minority ethnic communities underscoring racial and ethnic health disparities. in parallel, the killing of george floyd in may 2020 was described as the result of a “pandemic of racism” by his lawyer, rev al sharpton. a pandemic within a pandemic that has laid bare the pervasive racial disparities, injustices and inequalities that exist within our society and our profession. in a pivotal moment the ensuing outpouring across the world with the black lives matter movement culminated in history when people and organisations around the globe were listening and wanted to understand issues of racism, racial injustice and inequality that plague the lived experiences of people of colour. as the primary voice of black solicitors in the uk, the black solicitors network (bsn) seized the opportunity to call on leaders in the legal profession to take action on racial diversity at a time when both the nation and the profession were listening. bsn’s open letter to law ﬁrm leaders in june 2020, bsn published an open letter to law firm leaders in which we challenged firms to “walk the talk” and to turn positive intentions into positive action and create a level playing field for all. it was important that statements of solidarity and vocal commitments on racial diversity in the law were being operationalised in 38 diversity league table 2020 a lasting and sustainable way. our open letter outlined 5 action points for driving meaningful change: 1. metrics, targets and accountability: audit and identify diversity gaps, establish ethnicity targets and action plans and finally, hold leaders accountable for delivery on those targets and plans 2. retention: implement initiatives and measures to tackle the persistent retention issue for black lawyers at the early and mid-level phase of their career trajectory 3. promotion: commit to, and invest in, black talent management, sponsorship and progression 4. organisational culture: implement tools with appropriate accountability to ensure the process of interviews, evaluations/appraisals, work allocation, pay and promotion (and the criteria behind them) is open, transparent, fair and free from bias 5. external diversity engagement/ social impact: understand and care about the impact of your business on external communities. the response to our call to action has been both encouraging and commendable. firms and other organisations are now stepping up their engagement with bsn in driving their ethnic diversity agenda and many have launched race and ethnicity action plans and targets. it is equally important to recognise that meaningful change is a multi- dimensional process. it takes more than touch point initiatives like unconscious bias training and cultural activities (which in the workplace have their place). organisational change is long term, it is systemic and is reinforced by accountability at the top (senior leadership/partners) and throughout all levels of the organisation. accountability requires more than delivery on quantitative measures, which is needed, but also cultural and behavioural changes that create an inclusive working environment and equality of opportunity for all colleagues and involve active allyship. leaders can act as role models of inclusionary practices by addressing and tackling racial stereotypes, prejudices and slights that pervade the organisation as these in turn affect the way leadership is performed and accepted. this cultural shift is needed in order to reduce the attrition levels for black talent and build a diverse pipeline for promotion to senior roles. bsn has been advocating for change since its launch in 1995. we have a current membership of 5,000 and are committed to equality of access, retention and progression of aspiring and existing black solicitors. we have seen positive change in the diversification of the profession at the entry level over the years, however, progress at the top for black and minority ethnic (bme) lawyers has been painstakingly slow. whilst it is disheartening that fundamental change is still needed 25 years after bsn’s inception, now is as important a time as ever to continue our drive. bsn’s early years bsn was founded in 1995 by a group of like-minded solicitors sharing a vision of a dynamic body that promoted and represented the interests of black solicitors in england and wales. in the early years, bme solicitors were predominantly concentrated in smaller firms headed by 1-3 partners – this remains the case today. a significant proportion of those firms were legal aid funded and gave ordinary people with ordinary problems access to justice. the successive years of deficit reduction policies by governments has resulted in these firms and their clients receiving reduced funding and reduced access to justice and has reduced the livelihoods of both the solicitors and their clients. bsn’s founding members, being sole practitioners running small firms, came together to discuss proposed legal aid reforms and how they could prepare for the future challenge to their businesses. they mobilised like-minded practitioners

and lobbied the representative body for the profession, the law society, the regulatory body and the government to drive through change. bsn continues to actively participate in consultations initiated by the law society, the solicitors regulation authority and other regulatory, parliamentary and government bodies regarding matters affecting bme lawyers. bsn city over the years, bsn’s mission and purpose has broadened to encompass improving access to the profession for individuals from other minority ethnic backgrounds. bsn’s attention turned to the city as we observed an underrepresentation of bme lawyers in corporate life. this led to bsn developing and publishing the first diversity league table (dlt) in 2006. the dlt is widely considered as the profession’s leading diversity reporting initiative. sponsored by the law society, the dlt details demographic trends of major law firms covering core diversity strands: gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation and disability. at its inception, the dlt represented a ground-breaking piece of work predating all current cross- strand diversity monitoring initiatives and requirements, leading to greater transparency around diversity measures in the legal profession and, importantly, challenging employers to do more in this space. our upcoming edition of the dlt will focus on the success factors of diversity and inclusion in the legal profession through a series of case studies. to tackle issues around the underrep- resentation of, and challenges faced by, bme talent in corporate and commercial law, in 2008, in the midst of a challeng- ing economic environment (with wide- spread redundancies), we established bsn’s city branch (bsn city group). the group’s core mission is to focus on the needs of, and issues affecting, black corporate and commercial lawyers (in- house and in private practice) practising in london. bsn city group has grown exponentially since its inception as city lawyers avail themselves of this much needed support network. both the diversity league table and the work of bsn city group have had a major impact on access to the profession and how lawyers of bme backgrounds are perceived in the profession and other industries. these initiatives put to rest the misconception that there is only a limited pool of talented bme lawyers to recruit, 40 diversity league table 2020 building a diverse pipeline into the legal profession has always been a priority for bsn or promote, from. one of the meaningful ways in which bsn city group has sought to address the significant under- representation of bme lawyers in the senior ranks is with the launch in 2014 of its “creating pathways through mentoring and sponsorship” programme. from outside this yearly programme provides mid- level bme city lawyers with access to insights and perspectives on professional development their organisations. successful applicants to the programme are paired with senior city lawyers as mentors, who provide tailored mentoring and career coaching to their mentees. the programme is enhanced by professional developmental seminars hosted in partnership with city firms and other organisations. through the creating pathways programme, we hope to accelerate positive change in the progression of bme lawyers in the city. more recently in 2018, bsn launched its junior lawyers’ group which focuses on connecting junior bme lawyers for relationship building and provides a forum for support, inspiration and guidance. regional talent an important challenge in the legal sector is the need to develop regional talent. bsn relaunched its offering in the north of england, bsn north (based in manchester), in april 2016 with the aim of raising awareness of the region’s talented bme legal communities. in a region with a large student population, bsn north works collaboratively with its partners to provide skills workshops, career training and a wide range of developmental opportunities. bsn relaunched its midlands branch in 2020. based in birmingham, we provide network and career support to bme lawyers in the region. the next generation building a diverse pipeline into the legal profession has always been a priority for bsn. we have delivered careers workshops for our undergraduate and graduate student members for the past 12 years, primarily in london and manchester. 30% of bsn’s membership is comprised of students, so we have expanded our careers workshops into a national student offering: bsn grassroots programme. supported by partner universities and industry sponsors, this comprehensive programme designed to promote and increase equality of access to the legal profession for bme students, will be delivered through a series of careers and skills workshops, networking events and unique opportunities. bsn grassroots will be launching in late spring 2021. celebrating excellence in furtherance of our mission of striving for an equal profession, 11 years ago bsn launched its diversity legal awards programme. the uk diversity legal awards showcase and celebrate the excellent work being done by individuals, teams and organisations to engender greater diversity in the legal profession. it is the only industry awards in the uk which focus solely on recognising and promoting diversity, inclusion and equality across the legal profession. to, and these awards are open nominations are received from, law firms, chambers, in-house legal teams, suppliers to and individuals within the legal profession. submissions may cover one, some or all aspects of diversity, including gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, disability, social mobility, mental health and wellbeing, and access to justice. nominations for these awards will open in late spring 2021. in 2020, as part of our commitment to support the economic growth and empowerment of bme-led organisations and legal professionals, we launched bsn connect, an online directory of bme solicitors, law firms, barristers, chambers the profession. bsn connect is a gateway to receiving and sharing opportunities, information, advice and connections among lawyers and legal suppliers. suppliers and to get involved bsn’s mission is pursued through its extensive initiatives and programmes which present exciting opportunities to get involved with bsn’s unique platform of services which benefit its members and stakeholders alike. we have been doing this since 1995 and our impact is far reaching. we are not complacent, however, and continue to strive for an equal profession. there is still more work to be done to achieve this goal. we value your help in delivering on our mission – if you are interested in hearing more about our initiatives and programmes or getting involved, please contact us at enquiries@blacksolicitorsnetwork.org. we look forward to hearing from you. paulette mastin chair, black solicitors network www.blacksolicitorsnetwork.co.uk join us on social media: linkedin: black solicitors network twitter: @bsnofficial instagram: @blacksolicitorsnetwork this article ﬁrst appeared in the modern law magazine: https://www.modernlawmagazine. com/editor-picks/25-years-of-driving- change-in-the-legal-profession/

for general information including nominations, sponsorship and event details please visit: www.diversitylegalawards.org or email: enquiries@diversitylegalawards.org the winners of the uk diversity legal awards 2021 will be announced at a prestigious ceremony to celebrate their acheivements, share best practice and champion diversity and inclusion throughout the legal profession nominations for the 2021 awards are now open – nominate today by visitingwww.diversitylegalawards.orgkey datesnominations open: 29 april 2021nominations close: 30 july 2021finalists announced: 6 september 2021awards ceremony: 25 november 2021 recruiting diverse talentmanaging diverse talentd&i initiative of the yearbsn sp / high street firm of the yearaccess to justiceoutstanding race & ethnicity networkmental health & wellbeingdisability inclusiondiversity championbsn lawyer of the yearbsn rising star2021 award categories#diversitylegal@diversitylegalawards sponsorsthe uk diversity legal awards are the only industry awardswhich focus solely on recognising, promoting and celebratingequality, diversity and inclusion across the legal profession awards ceremonythursday 25 november 2021from 6:00pmthe uk diversity legalawards is an initiative of:

diversity e a g u e l t a b l e we acknowledge the continuing support of the following organisations and individuals lead supporter and sponsor: partner and supporter: editorial contributors and supporters: professor peter urwin dr fatima maatwk jane malcolm raphael mokades many thanks to the university of westminster research team: cecilie bingham, dr elisabeth michielsens, dr fatima maatwk and dr sylvia snijders firms: allen & overy bryan cave leighton paisner freshfields bruckhaus deringer herbert smith freehills latham & watkins llp linklaters norton rose fulbright www.blacksolicitorsnetwork.co.uk diversity@blacksolicitorsnetwork.org diversity league table 2020 43