As scrutiny of diversity policies continues to rise in the US, a new survey of legal professionals has found that around half feel their employer is not doing enough on DEI.
Amid US President Donald Trump’s targeted attacks on law firms and other businesses, InterLaw Diversity Forum – a network of legal professionals from law firms, chambers, and corporates and financial institutions – this February canvassed almost 200 people from in-house teams and international, US, and UK-headquartered firms, with the research taking place after the Trump administration had already signed multiple executive orders taking aim at DEI in the days following his inauguration.
The results evidence widespread concerns about the future of DEI in the legal profession, even before the Trump administration escalated its attacks on law firms with a wave of executive orders against firms.
This culminated in the launch of an investigation into 20 of the biggest law firms in the world for alleged discrimination in relation to their DEI recruitment practices, with the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission requiring firms including Kirkland & Ellis, Latham & Watkins, Freshfields and A&O Shearman to provide detailed information on all applicants for jobs since 2019.
The responses to the InterLaw research paint a picture of an increasingly concerned profession, with 50% of respondents feeling their employer is not doing enough on DEI, and 75% of those surveyed expressing a desire for their employer to reaffirm their commitment to diversity, inclusion and fair treatment’.
The survey also notes anecdotal evidence of anxiety and reduced morale. ‘I feel really disempowered for myself and upset about the long-term damage that the rollbacks will do to the talent pool across the industry’, said one respondent.
‘It’s almost as if everyone will now question how and why we have these jobs’, said another. ‘Is it merit or because of the colour of our skin, our gender, or another protected characteristic?’
The data backs this up, with more than a quarter of respondents feeling uninformed and unsupported, placing their feelings at a one or a two on a five-point scale (16% and 12% respectively). Twenty-nine percent of respondents felt well informed and supported, with 13% scoring five and 16% scoring four.
The report also found appetite for employers to take a public stance on DEI, with one respondent saying: ‘I would love it if [my employer] actually affirmed their commitment to DEI publicly, but the atmosphere is so challenging I do not think they can.’
In its report summarising the finding, InterLaw Diversity Forum – which is led by co-chairs Daniel Winterfeldt, EMEA and Asia GC at investment bank Jefferies and Patti Kachidza, GC at foreign exchange company Monex Europe – highlights the importance of a data-focused approach to DEI communications, with both qualitative and quantitative data used to identify issues faced by underrepresented groups and communicate the benefits of DEI policies, ensuring that they are not perceived as ‘a zero-sum game or a threat to meritocracy’.
‘One of the reasons the targeting of law firm diversity and inclusion efforts feels so unsettling is that years of progress to create a fairer and more inclusive landscape risk being undone’, said InterLaw Diversity Forum executive director Justine Thompson (pictured above).
‘One of the loudest themes coming from InterLaw Diversity Forum’s survey, and our wider engagement with the UK legal sector, is that recent events have created uncertainty, fear and anxiety for staff at all levels.’
She continued: ‘Against a complex backdrop in this space with many competing interests, law firms must not lose sight of the potential impact their decisions may have on their talent.’
InterLaw Diversity Forum intends to carry out more research on ongoing sentiments around DEI in the coming months – if you would like to take part, you can get in touch via the network’s website.
