Lee & Thompson is proud to announce its commitment to The Women in Law Pledge – an initiative created by The Law Society, the Bar Council of England and Wales and the Chartered Institute of Legal Executives to drive greater equality, diversity and inclusion across the legal profession.

Karen Genuardi, Head of People at Lee & Thompson said, “we believe that supporting our people to reach their full potential is central to our long-term success. By signing the Pledge, we are reaffirming our dedication to creating a workplace where women are supported to thrive at every stage of their career and where barriers to progression are actively removed“.

Our Targets

As part of our commitment, we have set clear and measurable goals to be achieved by 2030:

• At least 33% female junior partners
• At least 25% female senior partners
• At least 33% female members of the management team

Our Actions

To achieve these targets, we have agreed on a comprehensive set of actions which will be monitored by our Senior Leadership Team. These include:

• Reviewing career development structures and processes to identify and tackle barriers that women face, supported by a firm-wide action plan.
• Strengthening support for those transitioning to and from maternity and parental leave to ensure retention, progression, and a positive employee experience.
• Assessing the impact of our policies to ensure they do not disproportionately disadvantage women.
• Reviewing our employer brand across our website and social channels to ensure our commitment to developing women into leadership roles is clear, authentic, and visible.
• Enhancing recruitment processes to reduce unconscious bias and support all candidates in performing at their best.
• Providing leadership and management development, including training on unconscious bias, sex discrimination, harassment, and the responsibility of leaders to champion women.
• Embedding accountability by incorporating delivery of the Pledge into the Membership Agreement and partner performance criteria for our management team.

A Firm-Wide Commitment

Nicki Parfitt, partner and Head of Film & TV said, “our commitment to the Women in Law Pledge is more than a statement of intent. Recognising the work we have already done, this further reflects our belief that talent should be nurtured, recognised and rewarded regardless of gender, and that leadership within the legal profession must represent the diverse communities it serves“.

By holding ourselves accountable through measurable targets, transparent reporting, and ongoing review, we are determined to foster a culture where women are supported not only to succeed, but to lead.

We are proud to stand alongside our peers in the legal industry in working towards a more equitable profession and look forward to sharing our progress on this important journey.