Highly profitable senior dealmaking roles in º£½ÇÊÓƵ law firms continue to be predominantly occupied by men, leaving female partners struggling to make an impact in competitive legal fields.
According to data from legal recruiter Edwards Gibson, men constituted 80 per cent of partners hired into corporate and finance practices from 2019 to 2024.
Commercial and financial departments frequently generate the highest billings in commercial law firms.
Despite a concerted effort for diversity across the sector, women only made up approximately a quarter of such hires during that period.
However, in 2021, this figure declined, with women representing a mere 11 per cent, as reported by .
These statistics imply that advancements in the recruitment and retention of female partners at leading international law firms in the º£½ÇÊÓƵ have ultimately failed to significantly influence the most lucrative legal sectors.
Contrastingly, broader sectors are demonstrating a greater balance. The relatively low number of women in dealmaking hires is starkly different to the wider legal sector.
Female partners have consistently accounted for nearly a third of total hires each year since 2019, in other departments, as per Edwards Gibson.
This includes hires in areas such as employment, pensions and private client services.
The increasing number reflects the improvements in gender balances across law firms over recent years.
Recent statistics from the Solicitors Regulation Authority, overseeing lawyers in England and Wales, reveal that women constituted 37 per cent of total partners in 2023, a rise of 5 percentage points from the 2015 figure.
Fresh data from legal recruiter Macrae discovered that a mere 15 per cent of partner hires in private equity in London from 2020 to May 2025 were women.
This disparity is often attributed to obstacles such as primary caregiving responsibilities, which deter women from applying for senior positions.
Lesley Gregory, a corporate partner at Haynes Boone, told the Financial Times: "There are fewer networking opportunities for women at hours that suit their primary carer responsibilities or events which feel inclusive and welcoming."
One senior corporate partner at a leading º£½ÇÊÓƵ firm agreed the lifestyle was the most significant factor impeding women, stating these areas of law are the "least suited" to those desiring an "ordered life".
Scott Gibson, founding partner of Edwards Gibson, suggested a crucial factor was men's propensity to exaggerate their clients and business to potential firms, a tendency less common among women.
Gibson told the Financial Times, "Men tend to be far more optimistic about the size of their client followings...it often results in them achieving higher compensation.
"As a general rule, we multiply a man's business case by 0.8 and a woman's by 1.2".
