WINTER 2022
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Advocacy Within the Halls of the U.S. Department of Justice or the past four decades, the legal profession has undergone a gender representation transformation.2 A field once dominated by men 3 now consistently sees law school classes filled to near parity in gender representation. With more women than ever entering the legal field, a greater focus has been generated on the roles and opportunities available to women once they begin their postgraduate professional lives.5 Legal departments in every corner of the legal community, from the judiciary 6, the federal workforce 7, and academia 8, to law firms 9 and the corporate in-house community 10, have responded, and many
By Hon. Mimi Tsankov Vice President of Publications
are adopting policies that promote gender equality, often in the context of supporting concepts of diversity, equity, and inclusion among their ranks of attorneys. The results have been profound, with marked increases in gender equality evident throughout the profession, and in 2021, 37 percent of active attorneys were women, up 5 percent from 2011.11 Yet, when we dig a little deeper, the gains are not as clear cut, and these efforts have, at times, met with mixed results. For example, in the law firm context, despite a significant and sustained focus
With more women than ever entering the legal field, a greater focus has been generated on the roles and opportunities available to women once they begin their post-graduate professional lives.
