Year in and year out, we watch law firm after law firm pay lip service to their commitment to diversity in the legal profession, with promises to recruit, retain, and promote more minority attorneys. Despite these continued assurances, and despite the fact that a number of firms have made great efforts to improve the stature of their diverse hires in the law, there is still much more to be done. If there’s ever going to be any real change in the legal industry, diversity has to be more than just a buzzword — it must be a priority at every law firm.
According to the American Lawyer’s 2020 Diversity Scorecard — a ranking that tracks the average number of full-time-equivalent minority attorneys (both partners and nonpartners) at Am Law 200 and National Law Journal 250 law firms — there’s been some progress over the past year, but it’s been slight:
As in years past, the bulk of the minority representation at the top firms lies in their ranks of Asian and Hispanic attorneys. Black partners are vastly underrepresented among the top firms in the scorecard. …
Since 2010, the total share of minority attorneys included in the Diversity Scorecard grew by an average of 0.9 percent each year. This year did not buck the trend: The total share of minority attorneys grew by 0.9 percent, from 16.9 percent to 17.8 percent.
The firm that took top honors this year — Berry Appleman & Leiden — is a newcomer to the list, pushing Fragomen down to second place after a year as the nation’s most diverse firm. Overall, 71 firms had at least 20 percent minority attorneys (an improvement over last year’s numbers, which saw 55 firms meet that benchmark), and seven firms had at least 20 percent minority partners.
Half of Berry Appleman’s attorneys, 49.7 percent, identify as a racial minority, and 22.7 percent of the firm’s partnership are minority attorneys, according to ALM data. Berry Appleman did not respond to a request for comment.
The second-highest scoring firm—immigration shop Fragomen—reports that 35.1 percent of its head count is composed of minority attorneys. Fragomen did report a higher share of minority partners than Berry Appleman, 24.4 percent.
Which law firms are the best for diversity in 2020? Here are the Top 25:
1. Berry Appleman
2. Fragomen
3. Wood Smith
4. White & Case
5. Kobre & Kim
6. Fenwick
7. Cleary Gottlieb
8. Wilson Sonsini
9. Best
10. Morrison & Foerster
11. Curtis
11. Procopio Cory
13. Munger Tolles
14. Irell
15. Debevoise
16. Paul Hastings
17. Knobbe Martens
18. Kasowitz
19. Orrick
20. Finnegan
21. Hanson Bridgett
22. Paul Weiss
23. Fish
24. Davis Polk
25. O’Melveny
Check out the full rankings, as well as a breakout of demographics, at Law.com.
Congratulations to all of the Biglaw firms that are doing their part to move the needle on diversity. For all other firms, the pressure is on to do better — and fast.
The 2020 Diversity Scorecard: Rankings and Demographic Leaders
[American Lawyer]
The 2020 Diversity Scorecard Shows Progress, but It’s More Precarious Than Ever [American Lawyer]
Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.