Resources for Female Lawyers

Gender discrimination is a barrier to women’s legal career development. Find out the resources with which women lawyers can thrive in the legal services sector.

Gender discrimination isn’t absent in the legal profession. Many women lawyers, especially women of color, face various forms of discrimination in their professional lives as they climb the career ladder. Many gender issues are responsible for the unequal treatment of both sexes in law firms and other spheres of the legal profession. However, they all have one effect – the inhibition of female legal careers.

Therefore, we must keep having this conversation on gender until the participation of women in the US legal scene increases. Furthermore, women must have a secure career path, especially for lawyers of color. To achieve all this, Sara Williams set up a platform for women lawyers. By working with her, female lawyers stand a better chance of beating the odds and become successful attorneys.

What Percent of Lawyers Are Female?

If we claim that gender discrimination exists in the legal community, the first step should be finding out how many American women are lawyers. This is because the primary effect of discrimination often is the reduced participation of the discriminated class in the unwelcome field. For instance, 2008 employment statistics based on sex and race show that 34.4% of lawyers were women.

Furthermore, women made up only 43.6% of the judiciary. This class includes judges, magistrates, and other judicial workers. However, women made up a larger percentage of paralegals and legal assistants, at 87.7%.

Yet again, females were the highest source of miscellaneous legal support workers at 74.5%. Clearly, women are underrepresented in the more substantial aspects of the legal sector. However, they have a heavy presence in other law positions.

Previously, it was thought that the low representation of women in law started from law school. The argument was that there were fewer women law students to have a higher number in the profession. However, the number of female law students has significantly increased, even more than the number of men in the past few years.

Still, there are fewer women in the legal sector. For instance, more recent data from the Statista Research Department showed that in 2020, only 37.4% of lawyers in the United States were women attorneys.

Should You Hire a Woman Lawyer?

Yes, you should hire women lawyers. The right question would be, “why wouldn’t you hire women lawyers?” If you find an efficient attorney, why won’t you hire them because they’re women? Certain gender issues pose barriers to women in law practice.

The implication is that people are hesitant to employ women for some jobs, especially women lawyers. While you shouldn’t discriminate when hiring a lawyer, below are some reasons why it’s a great decision to get legal services from women law firms and practitioners.

Women Are Good Listeners

Popular culture believes that women are better listeners than men. Hilary Clinton, a former Presidential candidate, has even said as much. Contrary to popular belief, this claim may not be just some baseless stereotype as a Cambridge team has found some relevant brain differences in both genders.

If this is true, it also means that women lawyers are better listeners than their male counterparts. Many male lawyers are more interested in getting the facts of your case for documentation and arguing in court.

However, a woman will be interested in hearing what you have to say. Therefore, they’ll pick out more details that can help your case. Furthermore, by listening to you, they can connect easily with you. So, they won’t fight for you only to get their fees.

Women Are Better Attorneys for Family Law Suits

In family law cases, it would help to hire a female attorney. Women can lighten heavy arguments, and they’re more approachable. Furthermore, some women attorneys have experienced divorce before, so they know how it affects the lives of women. Add this to the fact that women understand women better; then they’re the obvious finer choice in family disputes.

Forms of Discrimination Against Women Lawyers

The legal sector is proving to be an unsafe environment for women. The equality of women is yet a myth in many of these establishments. Discrimination against women in the legal sector manifests in the following ways:

Pay and Promotion Disparity

Women lawyers receive relatively lower pay than their male colleagues. Many people allege that these gender disparities are fictitious. However, they’re very real. If a woman bags an achievement in a legal establishment, she’ll most likely receive less pay or no promotion, unlike when a male colleague does the same.  

No Credit for Initiatives

Women in law don’t also get credit for their work. A woman can do an excellent job, and a senior male colleague gets the credit. For instance, they don’t receive credit for:

• Improving and expanding client relationship
• Their input in successful pitches

Unequal Hearing Opportunities

Women in the law are often the victims of interruptions by their male counterparts. They don’t have an equal opportunity of being heard as their male colleagues. For instance, a study showed that male justices interrupt their female counterparts three times more than they do each other. Interruptions of speaking females is a widespread issue. However, it appears worse in law.

How Women Lawyers Can Beat Discrimination

How can women partners, female law students, and others achieve career development despite harmful bias? Since the problem is institutional, the responsible parties should play a greater role. Law offices and other legal establishments can make gender equality a priority through these ways.

• Publish Hiring and Promotion Qualifications: Employment and promotions shouldn’t be random. Companies make these decisions with careful thought and planning. Therefore, to prevent promotion bias, the entire firm should know the promotion criteria. So, if a qualified woman isn’t promoted while a less qualified man is, the bias will be apparent.
• Use Metrics: Law establishments should keep track of employee’s pay, quality of assignments, and performance ratings. This way, they can easily notice when there are discrepancies in these metrics. For instance, if the women receive lower cases, it’ll be a clear sign of discrimination that the firm should fix.
• Join a Community of Women: A community of women can serve as a support, defense, and encouragement for members. Furthermore, the group can always highlight the achievements of women, especially successful women lawyers. Consequently, other women will see that it is possible to beat the odds.

Sara Williams’ Gender Discrimination Resources Can Help You!

Are you currently experiencing gender discrimination as a woman lawyer? Or you know someone whose career has suffered because of gender bias? Do you think you can’t succeed in law practice, or you find making career decisions challenging? If so, then there’s help for you. With the right information, coaching, and motivation, you can build a successful career.

Furthermore, you can also have considerable success in your personal life. Sara Williams is dedicated to the development of women. If you reach out today, she can help make your dreams a reality despite all challenges.