Law firms have made strides in diversity, equity, and inclusion—but where do they stand in 2022, and where can they go from here?

Year after year, our data has shown marginal progress in improving diversity at major U.S. law firms. We reviewed the numbers in September 2022 to see if the needle is finally starting to move on DE&I in the legal industry. Currently, 300 law firms and 80+ corporate legal departments have achieved Diversity Lab’s Mansfield Certification, which requires firms to consider 30% diverse candidates for hiring and 50% of corporation diverse candidates for hiring. The number of Mansfield Certified firms shows that the industry is committed to change, but what does the 2022 data show?

Leopard Solutions analyzed the hiring and retention data on new hires, lateral hires, and promotions to partner of attorneys who are diverse in 2022 compared to 2021, accounting for both ethnic and gender diversity. Although the data only accounts for the first half of 2022, it yielded fascinating insights that can inform on law firm practices and strategies.

Key Findings of 2022 Data:

• 18% of all attorneys in AmLaw 200 Law firms are ethnically diverse, up a full percentage point from 17%, which is where it sat for the previous 3 years
• 23% of lateral hires into AmLaw 200 firms were ethnically diverse
• 63 law firms gained a small number of ethnically diverse attorneys (0-10 hires)

• 94 firms experienced small gains for gender diverse attorneys (0-10 hires); 54 firms experienced losses for gender diverse attorneys at their film
• Non-diverse men in the Top 200 left and returned to Top 200 firms at a lower rate than ethnically diverse attorneys, at just 29%

While the number of diverse lateral hires remained stagnant in 2019 and 2020, there has been a marked rise in 2022 with 23% of laterals being ethnically diverse. However, the gap between high diverse and low diverse laterals increased sharply in 2022. Worth noting, the size of the gap varied based on hiring level. For instance, hires at the associate level saw a more significant increase in ethnically diverse attorneys, while partner and counsel lateral hires saw only slight gains.

In regard to gender diversity, the legal industry saw an increase in number of women associates, but they lost ground at the partner level. Overall, the data shows that although firms have made progress in hiring more ethnically and gender diverse candidates in the first half of 2022, there is still much progress to be made.

It is crucial to prioritize the recruitment of lawyers who are both ethnically and gender diverse—however, no guarantee can be made on retention without an equitable workplace. Leopard Solutions’ 2022 Women Leaving Law report provides data that informs on why women are leaving Big Law. The report highlights issues in the workplace for women, including feeling a lack of acceptance and advancement opportunities, while also shedding a light on firms who have implemented successful gender diversity initiatives. However, the data showed that women are not leaving their firms due to the common assumption of motherhood or COVID-19 changes—women are leaving law because of lack of support at their law firms.

Similar to the 2022 data on diversity overall, the report revealed that women have the lowest percentage of return of the three groups we analyzed for the 2022 time period. A staggering 65% of women did not return to Big Law after departing their firms—the number of women returning to Big Law since 2021 has dropped from 35% to just 28% in 2022.

But how can firms improve upon their DE&I efforts, and why is it important? Leopard Solutions sought to lay the groundwork for answering these key questions.

How Diversity Helps Law Firms

Through knowing the diversity of lawyers, and retention ROI, firms can improve their DE&I strategies. However, strategy is not enough—law firms must have inclusion and belonging embedded in their cultures for improved employee well-being and retention.

Not only do diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives increase the odds that your employees will feel fulfilled and comfortable in the workplace, but it also can lead to increased retention rates. Through retaining their employees, firms can see a higher return on their recruiting investment when it comes to new hires, lateral hires, and partners.

Furthermore, law firms must work as a team to create a culture of inclusion and belonging. This includes recruiting, onboarding, advancement opportunities, and employee training. Data can help inform upon where a firm stands and help them to set data-driven goals that align with their firm’s mission and values.

How Can Law Firms Use This Data to Move Forward?

Law firms can analyze their own recruiting and retention data to drive internal conversations on DE&I efforts. The data unveils that firms still have work to do when it comes to inclusion and belonging throughout an attorney’s time at a firm.

By hiring diverse attorneys and giving them a seat at the decision-making table to ensure that their voices are heard, law firm leadership can improve inclusion and belonging. By analyzing promotion data of ethnically and gender diverse attorneys to the partner level and developing a strategy and implementing action to increase these rates, they can give voices to those who may be more likely to feel unheard.

Through utilizing diversity probability in recruiting tools, law firms and legal departments can consider candidates that meet their hiring and organizational goals with ease. Further, benchmarking diversity in law firms can help DE&I in legal move forward. In creating and implementing successful DE&I strategy, law firms must use data sources to improve their law firm cultures and subsequent retention rates.

Firms can also learn more about the data and insights from legal industry leaders, click here to watch Leopard Solutions’ recent webinar: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Legal Industry: How Are Law Firms Doing When it Comes to Diversity? which featured insights from industry leaders from Frost Brown Todd, Diversity Lab, and Owens Williams & Associates.

Through analyzing data on recruitment, retention, and ROI data, law firms can improve upon their DE&I initiatives to make positive progress in both their firms, and the legal industry overall.