Many of the UK’s most lucrative business sectors have traditionally favoured job applicants with the hallmarks of upper-class education such as private schooling, and attendance to Oxbridge or Russell Group institutions.
Research shows that this continues to be an issue, along with general diversity. Even today, many industries and sectors are male-dominated, with an under-representation of BAME employees. And despite taking great strides in recent years, the legal sector is no exception.
So while diversity has received much greater emphasis in recent years, social mobility in the legal sector still has a long way to go.
First, the good news
Including the Ministry of Justice, in 2019, the UK legal sector nabbed the four top spots in a league table of the 75 employers doing the most to improve social mobility. The best law firm was Baker McKenzie in fifth place, accompanied in the top ten by the MoJ (7th), Linklaters LLP (9th) and Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner in tenth place. This is a great sign for social mobility in the legal sector, as it means some of the UK’s most influential firms are leading the charge. But there’s a lot more progress to be made.
The road ahead for social mobility and diversity
Social mobility: In 2019, the Sutton Trust and the Social Mobility Commission released their Elitist Britain report, which looked at the educational backgrounds of employees across a wide variety of sectors with particular focus on elites such as business leaders and high-ranking government officials.
Among other more general findings, their research showed that senior judges had the highest rates of elitism of any public servant role across law, defence and academia. Almost two thirds of senior judges attended private schools, and over 70% graduated from Oxbridge. According to the report, more than half of senior judges ‘took the same pathway from independent school to Oxbridge and then into the judiciary.’
But even getting to that point comes with its own systemic barriers. For example, judges often have prior experience as a barrister. Many barristers are often privately educated, with applicants being a third less likely to obtain a pupillage if their parents hadn’t attended university. The report highlights the impact of so-called “mini-pupillages” which are often unpaid. As a result, they’re often inaccessible to applicants who lack the financial support net required to be able to work for free. Interning in a prestigious firm is often basically a full-time job, and unpaid internships do not realistically take into account the financial wellbeing of the intern, which is part of a responsible employer’s duty of care.
Diversity: This isn’t the first time we’ve discussed diversity in the legal sector, so we’d recommend having a look at our previous article on the subject for a bit more information. In 2019, the Solicitors Regulation Authority surveyed 96% of law firms in the UK to understand diversity and social mobility in the legal sector. Their report found that only a fifth of law firm employees were BAME, and only 3% of lawyers and 4% of other staff had some form of disability.
The SRA’s findings also show that women make up roughly half of UK lawyers, reflecting efforts to make firms less of a traditional “men’s club.” However, they only make up a third of partners in firms, but are the majority of in-house solicitors at 60%.
Of the 21% of law firm employees who were from an ethnic minority, only three per cent were black, and only two per cent were of multiple ethnicities. Despite BAME lawyers making up just over a fifth of partners overall, which is in proportion to the general percentage of lawyers, black and Asian partners were found to be ‘significantly underrepresented in mid to large size firms.’ According to the SRA, a large firm is one with at least six partners. This issue is most notable in the largest firms. In those with at least fifty partners, only 8% were BAME.
Supporting social mobility in the legal sector
It’s great that four law firms were in the top ten of the social mobility league table. But others could be doing more to reach a diverse range of potential employees. Some of the ways that the UK’s legal sector can help to enable greater diversity and social mobility include:
Supporting working class law students: The financial barrier to a solid legal education costs law firms a lot of potential top talent, as do unpaid internships that can often be a foot in the door in some firm cultures, which presuppose a certain level of financial security. Programs such as the Law Society Diversity Access Scheme that support students from poorer socio-economic backgrounds are absolutely essential for fostering the next generation of legal talent, and we need more like them. It’s in the best interests of the UK’s legal sector to support education both in and out of the workplace.
Using employee mentorships to nurture diversity: Mentorships are one of the most mutually beneficial workplace relationships it’s possible to have. In fact, research shows that mentorships enhance the career prospects of both the mentor and mentee. They have been shown to be especially useful for BAME and female employees. A good mentor should have a good first-hand understanding of what their protégé is going through. That’s why it’s important to have a diverse range of employee mentors in your firm to support anyone who needs it, including BAME and female lawyers who may experience workplace discrimination.
Investing in workplace flexibility: As we mentioned earlier, only 3% of lawyers and 4% of other staff in firms are disabled. This is despite disabled employees making up 13% of the UK workforce. The classic 9-5 with a lengthy commute either side can often be very demanding for people with physical disabilities or other chronic health conditions. But if 2020 has proven anything, it’s that a decentralised employee structure can work. Investing in remote work can help make legal and support careers in firms more accessible to a much wider range of talent, as can other types of flexible employment that may appeal to people with out-of-work commitments such as family obligations.
If you want to read more of our musings on the legal sector, learn more about employee engagement in general, or find out more about the Weekly10 platform, visit our blog today!
This article was submitted to be published by Weekly 10 as part of their advertising agreement with Today’s Conveyancer. The views expressed in this article are those of the submitter and not those of Today’s Conveyancer.
