Seramount, now part of EAB (formerly Working Mother Media), revealed its annual list of Best Law Firms for Women on June 23, recognizing firms that utilize best practices in recruiting, retaining, promoting, and developing women lawyers. Bass, Berry & Sims was among the 50 firms that earned spots on this year’s list. This was the fourth year in a row that Bass, Berry & Sims was included on the list.
“Our Best Law Firms for Women continue to improve in many critical areas,” said Subha V. Barry, president of Seramount. “Representation of women managing partners has increased significantly and we’ve seen progress for multicultural women lawyers at every level. Our firms recognize the importance of recruiting and retaining this important talent pool and have developed the family-friendly benefits to prove it. All of these combined are important steps toward parity.”
“In 2021, we took time to collaboratively define our culture to ensure our strategy and our day-to-day work across the organization reflect who we are and who we want to be for our people and our clients. We retain our competitive advantages by investing in individuals’ development, anticipating trends and leading from our culture. We are honored to be included among these other peer firms and recognized for this continued commitment to women attorneys,” said Todd Rolapp, managing partner of Bass, Berry & Sims.
Highlights of the 2022 Best Law Firms for Women
- The percentage of women managing partners (or equivalent prominent leader and spokesperson for the firm, other than the chairperson or equivalent) increased to 43%, up from 34% in 2021.
- Critical assignments went to women, further leveling the playing field:38% of members of the firms’ management committees were women (vs. 35% last year); 38% of those deciding promotions to equity partner were women (vs. 34% last year); and 36% of those determining compensation were women (vs. 34% last year).
- There are more multicultural (MCW) women at every level: 29% of all women lawyers were MCW (vs. 27% last year); 36% of women associates were MCW (vs. 34% last year); 18% of women equity partners were MCW (vs. 16% last year); and 22% of women equity partners promoted were MCW (vs. 18% last year).
- As hiring and retention became more competitive, law firms stepped up their family-friendly benefits: The average fully paid gender-neutral parental leave for associates increased to 16 weeks (vs. 13 weeks last year); 67% of firms now cover in-vitro fertilization (vs. 52% last year); and 80% of firms are now hybrid workplaces.
About the Methodology
Seramount’s 2022 Best Law Firms for Women application includes more than 300 questions about attorney demographics at different levels, flexibility, paid time off and parental leaves, and development and retention of women. Questions also include ability to work from home some of the time, family-friendly benefits, and mentoring and sponsorship participation.
About Seramount
Seramount, now part of EAB, is a strategic professional services and research firm dedicated to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in the workplace. Over four decades, partnering with over 450 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. Learn more at www.seramount.com.
About Bass, Berry & Sims PLC
Bass, Berry & Sims is a national law firm with over 300 attorneys dedicated to delivering exceptional service to numerous publicly traded companies and Fortune 500 businesses in significant litigation and investigations, complex business transactions, and international regulatory matters. Our people are true partners who work seamlessly across substantive practice disciplines, industries and geographies to deliver highly-effective legal advice and innovative, business-focused solutions. In 2022 the firm celebrates its centennial anniversary and continues to build on our foundational attributes of agility, tenacity and collaboration. For more information, visit bassberry2022.wpengine.com.