When Ericsson’s legal department needed outside counsel to conduct an investigation, it hired a law firm that touted its bilingual capabilities and claimed to have partners who could conduct interviews in Spanish. But when the interview took place, Ericsson’s in-house team was shocked to see it led entirely in English by a white partner while a Spanish-speaking associate sat silent.

Such was the story relayed at a panel discussion on in-house and outside counsel relationships last month at the Women, Influence & Power in Law conference in New Orleans, where in-house lawyers spoke candidly about how law firms are often all words and no substance on diversity.