june 2019 focus on uk legal sector - 20-first.com · june 2019 at 20-first, we believe leaders are...

JUNE 2019

At 20-first, we believe leaders are key to building gender balanced businesses. In legal firms, this means the partnership as a whole. Partners, individually and as a group, define the day-to-day running and culture of the firm, and drive (or don’t) the gender balance agenda. This report looks at the top 10 UK firms’ partnership balance as well as that of the top 10 US firms operating in the UK.

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The ranking data for this survey is based on The Lawyer Top 200 UK Firms by Revenue (2018) and The Lawyer Top 50 US Law Firms in London (2018). Gender ratio data is taken from firms’ websites and diversity reports, as of May 2019. Where firms do not publish their UK partner gender ratios, we have used third party, publicly available data. Each firm was given the opportunity to confirm the research for their organisation.

Survey Methodology Our Rankings

Asleep: Fewer than 20% female UK partners.

Starting: 20% to 29% female UK partners.

Progressing: 30% to 39% female UK partners.

Balanced: A 60% maximum of either gender in the UK partnership.

20-first research analyses progress on gender balance in the top companies of a number of industries and countries, as well as across the Top 100 companies of the Fortune Global 500. For more, go to https://20-first.com/thinking

Focus on UK Legal SectorMost Firms Still Stuck at Imbalance

The top UK firms’ partnerships have 24% women and 76% men. Nominally the same as the top US firms in the UK, where 23% of UK partners are women and 77% are men.A MODEL OF IMBALANCE? Partnerships are notoriously difficult to gender balance, due to their decentralised authority and non-transparent promotion criteria. Yet they are increasingly under pressure from many of their corporate clients to do so. The UK legal sector reflects this struggle. None of the top UK firms, or top US firms in the UK, have achieved gender balance in their UK partnerships. Only 1 of the 20 is edging into the ‘Progressing’ zone, with 30% female UK partners. Four firms are stuck in ‘Asleep’, with fewer than 20% female UK partners.LEADING THE PACK: Congratulations to CMS, the only top firm to crack the ‘Progressing’ banding with 30% female UK partners. Closely followed by Baker McKenzie, the best of the US firms in the UK, with 29% female UK partners.STUCK IN THE MIDDLE: The majority of firms are stuck in the ‘Starting’ zone, with between 20% and 29% female UK partners, including the only two firms lead by women. A few of the firms are nudging towards the top of this band and so will hopefully break through to ‘Progressing’ soon.THE BOYS’ CLUBS: At the bottom of the balancing scale we find DLA Piper on the UK side, with only 19% female UK partners. Amongst the US firms in the UK, Shearman & Sterling brings up the ‘Asleep’ rear with 18% female UK partners.

GENDER BALANCE SCORECARDs 2019

Key Findings Gender Balance of the UK’s Top Law Firms

76%

24% 23%

77%

UK Firms US Firms in the UK Women Men

The firms on the following pages are segmented into one of the following four phases:

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2019 Gender Balance Scorecard – Focus on UK Legal Sector 2019 Gender Balance Scorecard – Focus on UK Legal Sector

Top 10 UK Firms

DLA PiperSimon Levine 19% 81%

Asleep

Clifford ChanceMatthew Layton

Starting

Hogan LovellsStephen Immelt

Starting

Allen & OveryAndrew Ballheimer

Starting

LinklatersGideon Moore

Starting

Norton Rose FulbrightPeter Martyr

h1%

Starting

Freshfields Bruckhaus DeringerStephan Eilers

Starting

CMSStephen Millar

Progressing

Herbert Smith FreehillsMark Rigotti

Starting

Eversheds SutherlandLee Ranson

Starting

White & CaseMelissa Butler

Latham & WatkinsJayanthi Sadanandan

Kirkland & EllisDavid Higgins

Baker McKenzieAlex Chadwick

Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & FlomPranav L. Trivedi

Reed SmithAndrew P Jenkinson

DentonsJeremy Cohen

Shearman & SterlingMatthew Readings

Squire Patton BoggsStephen Mahon

Weil Gotshal & MangesMichael Francies

Starting

Starting

Starting

Starting

Asleep

Starting

Starting

Asleep

Starting

Asleep

Women Men

21% 79%

27% 73%

20% 80%

24% 76%

27% 73%

23% 77%

30% 70%

25% 75%

27% 73%

26% 74%

22% 78%

21% 79%

29% 71%

19% 81%

28% 72%

24% 76%

18% 82%

25% 75%

19% 81%

Top 10 US Firms in the UKWomen Men

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• The business Imperative:We help companies to unlock 21st century Market and Talent opportunities

• Focus on leaders, not onwomen: We equip leaders witha strategic understanding andmanagement competenciesto work across genders

• Global perspectives:We are experienced working with global companies across all regions and cultures ofthe world

20-first is one of the world’sleading global consultanciesfocused on gender balance as a business and economicopportunity.

We work with many of the bestknown global companies that seekto move from 20th centurymindsets, management styles andmarketing approaches into moreprogressive 21st century forms –and to stay first at the game.

Hence our name. It underlies ourpurpose, and those of the clientswe serve.

For more information, please contact [email protected]

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And just published by Harvard Business Review,the new e-book: Seven Stepsto Leading Gender-BalancedBusinesses 7S E V E N S T E P S T O L E A D I N G A

G E N D E R - B A L A N C E D B U S I N E S S

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20-first © 2019 | www.20-first.comInfo: [email protected]










Who we are





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BuildManagement




Sustain theChange



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Who we are





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BuildManagement




Sustain theChange



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Implementation Strategy Talent Leadership


The business imperative We help companies to unlock 21st century Market and Talent opportunities

Focus on gender bilingual leaders We equip leaders with a strategic understanding and management competencies to work across genders

Global perspectives We are experienced working with global companies across all regions and cultures of the world

Build Gender Bilingual

Management Skills









Who we are





1

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BuildManagement




Sustain theChange



3

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june 2019 focus on uk legal sector - 20-first.com · june 2019 at 20-first, we believe leaders are...

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