Legal sector urged to step up diversity and inclusion monitoring

Emma de Sousa, managing director, at legal technology provider Access Legal, discusses why law firms need to take their diversity and inclusion policies seriously to ensure opportunities are available to people from all backgrounds.

Taking note of the diversity and inclusion policies within a company can help to understand the make-up of all our workplaces to ensure we are creating an environment where employees feel safe, understood and represented.

While companies in all sectors are looking at, and changing, their diversity and inclusion policies and procedures, the legal industry still has work to do to take issues more seriously. Employment test platform, Test Gorilla, recently revealed the law sector is one of eight industries falling behind in diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I), along with finance, STEM and tech.

Recent research by Access Legal indicates that more than half of the UK’s law firms are potentially missing out on 96 per cent of talent entering the sector by only hiring law graduates from the ‘top eight’ universities. The data showed more than 140,000 students studied law in 2022 with just 5,975 (four per cent) studying at the top eight establishments. This suggests that potentially thousands of graduates entering the sector were missing out on roles – at a time when many firms are facing talent challenges.

With the Solicitor’s Regulatory Authority (SRA)’s bi-annual diversity survey it’s a good time for firms who are not already scrutinising recruitment policies to start doing so. The survey can also be completed using Access Legal’s easy to use survey tool which safely, quicky and anonymously, collates staff data.

All regulated law firms, regardless of their specialism or size, have an obligation to collect, report and publish data about the diverse make-up of their workforce every two years. But while it is not compulsory for employees to provide their diversity information, law firms should encourage as many of their team as possible to complete it. Law firms were given until 23 July to gather and report their data to the SRA and process what the information means for their business.

This survey helps build a picture of where improvements are needed and how law firms can create a positive company culture with happy and productive teams. More than anything, it helps to attract and retain talent if a law firm can show they embrace diversity and promote belonging among their teams.

What can the diversity data show?

 The diversity survey, which collects information on the racial backgrounds of legal workers, gender, age, socio-economic backgrounds and their disabilities, is used by the SRA to see the make-up of law firms across England and Wales and for wider sector analysis and research.

Last year, the SRA found that 52 per cent of lawyers are now female, 18 per cent are from black, Asian or ethnically diverse backgrounds and only five per cent declared themselves as having a disability. This, they said, showed a gradual increase in the diversity of the legal workforce compared to previous years, but there is still a significant under-representation of disabled lawyers, compared to the rest of the UK workforce.

Firms can’t force someone to respond to the survey, but they have to share it and publish the results to help gather as much data as possible. It is there to motivate firms to collectively help make our industry more diverse and inclusive.

Access Legal’s survey tool protects the confidentiality and anonymity for everyone and without a need to login in or create an account it’s easy and quick for staff to complete and aggregates the results.

Attract and retain talent

As the Social Mobility and Child Poverty Commission stated in ‘Elitist Britain’ (2014) a lack of diversity and understanding of different backgrounds affects “group think” and so certain professions should be representative of the public for “reasons of legitimacy”.

More diverse teams make better decisions and law firms can use the survey to better understand the people and communities they represent, the issues affecting them and the issues they are fighting for, which is positive when attracting both clients and talent. It shows they are a company committed to practise excellence and investing in their people, and that they take diversity and inclusion seriously.

It gives a law firm personality, improves image and creates greater engagement. Prospective employees will increasingly seek out organisations that align with their values and provide opportunities for personal growth, and greater representation within the profession also means a better experience for the public when using legal services.

Ignoring the survey could cost you

A firm’s requirement to collect, report and publish diversity data is set out in the Code of Conduct for Firms, and aligns to upholding the SRA’s Principle 6 to “act in a way that encourages quality, diversity and inclusion”.

Those who didn’t share the questionnaire with their team, might find themselves facing questions from the SRA or on the regulator’s radar for the wrong reasons.

Once the data has been collated, the onus is with the law firm as to how they publish and use it, but we must all be encouraged to use this information to get a good picture of the make-up of our companies, and the industry as a whole.

Tackling inequalities and making the legal profession accessible undoubtedly should be on everyone’s agenda in the running of a successful law firm. It will help us to see whether more training is needed and where policies and procedures need to be revised. But more importantly it shows how our industry is evolving for the better and for the benefit of a firm’s employees, their work and the clients they represent.