Male clients less likely to nominate women lawyers for top lawyers’ database

Male clients are half as likely to nominate a woman lawyer for a global database of top lawyers, according to new analysis.

Acritas, which publishes a yearly Star Lawyer guide, said it had examined nominations from the past three years and discovered that male clients were half as likely to nominate a woman.

More than 8,000 lawyers have been nominated by 4,300 clients over the past three years.

Male clients were less likely to nominate a woman even though clients rated male lead partner performance the same as female lead partner performance on every single performance attribute.

Lisa Hart Shepherd, CEO of Acritas, said: “Only 15 per cent of male-nominated Stars were women. This compared with 29 per cent of female nominated Stars being women – almost twice the level.

“The effect of this bias is multiplied when you consider four out of five senior in-house counsel are male. It is therefore easy to see why female partners find it hard to get equity partnerships in law firms.”

She added: “The gender gap at equity partner level will only see material change if clients use their buyer muscle to give female lawyers in private practice more power. Money still talks in law firms and those who bring in the business are the ones who rise to the top.”