Faegre Drinker Recognized as One of the “Best Law Firms for Women” by Seramount
Faegre Drinker is proud to be named one of the 2021 Best Law Firms for Women by Seramount (formerly Working Mother Media). The recognition listed 50 firms that utilize best practices in recruiting, retaining, promoting and developing women lawyers.
“We are honored to have once again earned a spot on the list for our continued efforts to support gender equity and equality,” said Maria L.H. Lewis, Faegre Drinker’s chief diversity officer. “Faegre Drinker remains committed to promoting diversity, equity and inclusion and fostering an environment where women and other diverse professionals can advance and succeed at our firm and in the legal profession.”
The Best Law Firms for Women polls law firms on more than 300 questions about attorney demographics at different levels, schedule flexibility, paid time off and parental leaves, and the development and retention of women. This year, in light of COVID-19, several questions were added about the success of working from home for lawyers.
The full list highlights law firms that averaged 25% women among equity partners, compared with 23% last year, and women represented 40% of all lawyers overall (up from 39% in 2020). Of all female equity partners, 16% were multicultural, and multicultural women represented 27% of overall women lawyers (up from 26%). The honor also outlines key parental-leave, work-life and career-advancement initiatives taking place at the 50 recognized firms.
Subha V. Barry, CEO of Seramount, said, “We know that women have left the workplace in droves since the onset of COVID-19. But the fact that representation of women equity partners, and women lawyers overall, has increased during this turbulent time just shows how supportive our Best Law Firms for Women are to parents and caregivers. They stepped up and offered increased flexibility and new benefit programs to help this critical talent pool balance both work and home life.”
Faegre Drinker holds itself accountable for progress in building a diverse workforce. The firm was also recognized as a ‘Best Place to Work for LGBTQ Equality’ by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2021 Corporate Equality Index, was ranked in Law360’s 2020 Glass Ceiling Report and was among 48 U.S. law firms to receive Gold Standard Certification by the Women in Law Empowerment Forum in 2020. In addition, Faegre Drinker is proud to be recognized by Diversity Lab as a Mansfield Certified Plus firm — one of the “trailblazing law firms” that demonstrate meaningful progress in creating diverse leadership teams and develop diverse pipelines to leadership.
The full 2021 Best Law Firms for Women list is available online.
About Seramount
Seramount is a strategic professional-services firm dedicated to advancing diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace. Over four decades, partnering with some of the most iconic companies in the world, we’ve built a deep, data-driven understanding of the employee experience, which lays the groundwork for everything we do. Our comprehensive DE&I toolkit includes actionable research and insights, membership, strategic guidance and consulting, and inspiring events, meeting each client’s needs no matter where they are on their journey and guiding them along an ever-changing landscape. Seramount has empowered more than 450 organizations to realize the business benefits of diversity, equity and inclusion. Learn more at seramount.com.