Freshfields boosts diversity with a quarter BME intake
More than 25 per cent of the next intake of Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer London trainees are from black and minority ethnic (BME) backgrounds, according to the magic circle firm’s latest corporate social responsibility report.
Kevin Hogarth
The latest figures mean that the proportion of trainees from BME backgrounds will have almost trebled in six years. In 2004 only 9 per cent of the intake classified itself as BME.
Currently 18 per cent of the firm’s trainees are from minority backgrounds.
Global HR director Kevin Hogarth said: “We knew that 9 per cent was probably a bit low. We felt we needed to do more and that, as one of the leading firms, that we had a responsibility to the profession as a whole.
“Improving access to the profession for people from [BME] backgrounds is something we’ve focused on.”
The firm admits that there is still work to be done in translating the improvement in non-white recruitment at trainee level to the wider fee-earning ranks. Currently only 10 per cent of lawyers at the firm are from BME backgrounds.
“This is our next challenge,” said Hogarth. “It’s no good bringing good candidates in to the firm if we can’t progress them towards senior positions and partnership.”
He added that the steps the firm has taken to improve gender diversity could act as a “blueprint”.
“We’re at an early stage, but this is the blueprint because we’ve been getting great feedback on these programmes.”
Freshfields launched its gender diversity initiative, which features counselling and mentoring programmes, at the start of the year.
Readers' comments (6)
Anonymous | 13-Dec-2010 10:46 am
Very pleased to see city law firms taking diversity seriously, but especially pleased to see its one of the biggest firms.
The law profession has come a long way since when I first started and it clearly gravitating closer towards the cosmopolitan and inclusive industry that it should be.
Good on freshfields for leading the way
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John Fitzpatrick | 13-Dec-2010 12:46 pm
So they recruited solely on the basis of aiming to make their intake more diverse? Surely, this can be said to be discriminatory against non-BME candidates
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Anonymous | 13-Dec-2010 2:59 pm
Surely candidates should be chosen on merit, not race / gender / ethnicity?
Any white British candidate who missed out fancy a trip to the Employment Tribunal?
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Christine Brown-Quinn | 14-Dec-2010 2:17 pm
I applaud Freshfields target setting in order to create a more gender balanced legal practice. While setting targets for women and other minorities may seem discriminatory, the fact is that the data indicate that there is a problem. As an example, females now represent the majority of new solicitors in the UK, yet their representation at the senior levels is minimal
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Anonymous | 15-Dec-2010 4:41 am
To John Fitzpatrick - Where does the article say that the BME candidates were "recruited solely on the basis of making the intake more diverse" or is this something you have extrapolated to grind your own axe?
To the anonymous poster @2.59 pm above - you are having a laugh aren't you?
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Anonymous | 19-Dec-2010 7:43 pm
John Fitzpatrick and Anon at 2.59pm on 13th Dec above, you obviously read what you wanted to read - chip, shoulder - get over it. There's no positive discrimanation here, just fairness.
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