HARTFORD, April 14, 2021: In its 16th annual Top Firms 2021 Report for Gender Equity & Family Friendliness, Yale Law Women named Morgan Lewis the #1 firm for hiring practices, and recognized the firm’s dedication to racial justice and its exemplary COVID-19 response. The report’s stated goal is to raise awareness of disparities within the legal profession, recognize progress being made in the industry, and identify areas for improvement.
In identifying Morgan Lewis as the top firm for diverse hiring practices, the report highlights our strength in hiring and the presence of Morgan Lewis women in leadership roles. According to the report, “Women face greater levels of attrition and lower rates of promotion, so strong diversity in hiring is necessary to achieve much greater rates of diversity in leadership.” In 2020, well over half of both the lawyers who joined Morgan Lewis and those in the latest partner class are women.
“We have long recognized that while attracting female associates from law school and through lateral hiring is a key part of creating a diverse workforce, it isn’t enough to achieve true equity,” said Firm Chair Jami McKeon. “It’s only when everyone at the table is given the platform to succeed that the legal profession as a whole will move toward a truly inclusive environment. Our commitment to these goals is reflected in the high number of women in leadership positions in our firm.”
Morgan Lewis was also named an honorable mention for the firm’s efforts to combat systemic racism through both charitable contributions and community advocacy. Through our Mobilizing for Equality task forces, the firm supported multiple equal voting rights organizations in the run-up to the 2020 US presidential election and donated more than $1 million to various organizations working for racial justice. The firm was also recognized for its ability to pivot to a virtual work environment in the wake of the global pandemic, leveraging off our existing flexible work program that was quickly scaled up to accommodate all 4,000 of our people, while maintaining exceptional client service for companies that were facing unprecedented challenges themselves.
“For Morgan Lewis, and much of the world, there were two movements that defined 2020 – the COVID-19 pandemic and the call for racial justice. The firm mobilized on both fronts to provide actionable, practical guidance to our clients and our people, as well as to continue and indeed accelerate the focus on racial equity,” Ms. McKeon said. “We are very grateful to be recognized by Yale Law Women for the way we pivoted to address these important conversations head-on.”
Yale Law Women’s report is drawn from survey responses of both Vault Law 100 law firms and Yale Law alumni working at those firms. More than 40% of the Vault Law 100 firms and more than 250 alumni responded to the survey questions.