There is a great divide between the numbers of women qualifying into the legal profession as either solicitors or barristers (greater than 50%) and the numbers who make it into law firm partnership ranks (in most cases less than 20%) or as Queen’s Counsel. Such a disproportionate attrition rate represents a huge waste of talent and money and the picture is not going to change overnight. So where is the legal profession going wrong?
My view is that it boils down to workplace culture. Women want to work in an environment where empowerment and transparency are key values. Most importantly, they want to work for organisations that are willing to discuss the potential and actual barriers to their advancement and are willing to tackle them.
