Beyond Bias, Second Edition

If you are a woman in legal practice – or if you simply want to know the state of play for women in the profession today – then this book is for you. Twelve chapters written by insider experts and illuminated by personal experience and interview data demonstrate both how far women have come even since the book’s first edition in 2017 and what challenges still (almost unbelievably) remain.

• Executive summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . viiAbout the authors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xvChapter 1: Authenticity and identity in law: building inclusive legal workplaces through intersectionality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1By Brie Stevens-Hoare KC, barrister, Gatehouse ChambersIntersectionality: shared struggles or diverse realities? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2Understanding inclusion and intersectionality through diverse lived experiences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Understanding barriers for women in law: an intersectional perspective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9The risks of intersectionality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11Applying intersectionality: tools and requirements for inclusive practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Chapter 2: Who made the rules? Dismantling gendered leadership in law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15By Rachel Spink, founder, Female Lawyers’ ClubWhere are the women? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17The gendered lens of leadership: what the research shows . . . . . . . . . . 17The consequences: how gendered leadership norms play out in law firms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21The shift: a new model of leadership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25Redefining leadership on our own terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27What needs to change: shifting cultures, systems, and self-perception . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29Discovering your unique leadership strengths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36The opportunity: redefining leadership; reclaiming ourselves . . . . . . 36Chapter 3: Technology, gender, and justice: AI’s role in women’s advancement in the legal profession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41By Priya Lele, chair and cofounder of She Breaks the Law, and Shilpa Bhandarkar, legal innovation and artificial intelligence consultantThe significance of the AI gender gap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42Explaining the gap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44The path forward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51Chapter 4: Beyond work–life balance: structural constraints and women lawyers’ progression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55By Claire Rason, executive director, Client TalkWhat is stalling women’s success? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55Corporate practice: a case study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56Unconscious bias at play . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59Changing workplace culture: a new approach to achieve gender equality in leadership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62Looking to the future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65Chapter 5: Rethinking pathways to partnership: advancing equity in a changing profession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69By Rachel Khiara, partner, HCR LawThe traditional partner track: a system in need of overhaul . . . . . . . . . 70Respectability politics: the invisible barriers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72Post-pandemic working practices and gender equity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74The role of clients and firm size: harnessing external and internal pressures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74Making value visible . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75Lessons learned and the call to action . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76Conclusions: building the new partnership model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77Chapter 6: Beyond the buzzwords: practical pathways to racial equity and representation in the legal profession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81By Hilda Kwoffie, founder and mentor, The BAME Woman in LawMentorship and sponsorship: a crucial distinction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81Networking and representation: the gatekeepers of opportunity . . . . 82Tokenism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83Deconstructing structural barriers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84Intersectionality: when identities intersect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84The power of collective voice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85Looking ahead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86Chapter 7: Beyond barriers: promoting gender and class inclusion in legal education and practice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89By Yanthé Richardson, president (2024–2025) and non-executive director, Chartered Institute of Legal Executives, and partner at Foot Anstey LLPThe current state of socioeconomic diversity in law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90Understanding intersectionality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93Systemic barriers to inclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94What the system can (and must) do: actionable solutions . . . . . . . . . . . 96What success looks like . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99Chapter 8: Breaking the mold: how neurodiverse women redefine legal excellence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103By Pam Loch, chief executive officer and founder, Loch Associates GroupAn overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104Conceptualizing neurodiversity: clinical and policy frameworks . . . . 105The prevalence of neurodivergent conditions among women in the UK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106The legal framework: employer duties and carers’rights . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108Intersectionality: neurodiversity, gender, and legal culture . . . . . . . . . . 109Fostering neuroinclusivity throughout the employment lifecycle . . 109Empowering neurodivergent employees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112Coping strategies for core legal work contexts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115Chapter 9: The leap to law: embracing experience and non-linear careers in the legal profession . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119By Melanie Arens, founder, Later on LawyersStage 1: The academic qualification process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121Stage 2: The elusive breakthrough role . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128Summary and recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132Chapter 10: Structuring inclusion: how women general counsel are shaping DEI through governance and procurement . . . . . 135By Sarah Clark, chief revenue officer, The Legal DirectorFrom performance to practice: why DEI must shape how power works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 137Designing for dissent: how governance enables DEI under stress . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139General counsel as strategic buyers: shaping the legal supply chain . . 141Box 1: Internal behaviors to operationalize DEI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144Box 2: External behaviors to operationalize DEI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145Chapter 11: Your own potential, your own terms: crafting your career through consultancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149By Rachel Brushfield, founder, EnergiseLegalThe consultant lawyer market: market size and trends . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149Private practice, women, and seniority: the data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151Consultancy: the way forward for women lawyers? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151Insights from women consultant lawyers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154The drawbacks of being a consultant lawyer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156The importance of building your career capital, personal branding, and client following . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158Building a portfolio career . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161Chapter 12: Your voice, your power: strategic amplification for women in law . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163By Joanne Brook, consultant lawyer, and Belinda Lester, managing director at Lionshead LawAll about you . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164Practice (verb): To carry out or perform a particular activity, method, or custom habitually or regularly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164Amplify (noun): To increase size or effect of something or add detail or information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167What do we mean by AMPing up? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167AI and you: artificial intelligence’s role in amplification . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173Amp (verb): To increase the level or amount of (something) sharply; to make (someone) feel excited and full of energy . . . . . . . . 175Final words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176About Globe Law and Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179