Bass, Berry & Sims was named one the 50 firms included on the 2021 “Best Law Firms for Women” list released by Seramount (formerly Working Mother Media) on June 22. This annual list recognizes firms that utilize best practices in recruiting, retaining, promoting and developing women lawyers. This is the third consecutive year that Bass, Berry & Sims has been included on the list.
“We know that women have left the workplace in droves since the onset of COVID-19,” said Subha V. Barry, CEO of Seramount. “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 homelife.”
“Last year was a challenging year for everyone, especially working parents. I am proud of the ways our firm reacted to these challenges by creating flexibility to help our women attorneys continue to be successful. It’s an honor to be recognized for our continued commitment to helping women attorneys among this group of outstanding firms,” said Kathryn Walker, one of the co-leaders of the firm’s Women’s Initiative and member at Bass, Berry & Sims.
Below are some significant highlights from the 2021 list:
- The list features law firms that averaged 25% women among equity partners, compared with 23% last year.
- 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%).
A few key parental-leave, work-life and career-advancement initiatives taking place at firms featured on the list include:
- 100% of firms let new parents come back to work at reduced hours.
- The average number of paid parental leave offered is 13 weeks, the same as the previous year.
- 86% of firms offer subsidized in-home backup childcare.
- 72% of the firms on the list have formal sponsorship, and 74% have formal succession planning.
- 70% tie partner compensation to women’s advancement.
About the Methodology
Seramount’s 2021 Best Law Firms for Women application includes more than 300 questions about attorney demographics at different levels, schedule flexibility, paid time off and parental leaves, and 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.
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, Seramount has built a deep, data-driven understanding of the employee experience, which lays the groundwork for everything we do. Seramount’s 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.