*/
Clifford Chance is to track its use of female barristers in a bid to increase the diversity of those it instructs.
Matthew Newick, global head of litigation and dispute resolution at the Magic Circle firm, told Counsel that he also wants to achieve a default position where there must be a ‘very good reason’ for there to be no women on the list of counsel suggested to clients, adding: ‘I can’t imagine any time when there would be a list without a woman.’
He said that the firm already kept data on who it instructed, but is in the process of ‘formalising’ the tracking of that information in order to ensure it instructs a more diverse range of barristers.
He said he was against setting a target for the percentage of female instructions, but that he wanted to see an ‘upward trajectory’. Having looked at the number of women already instructed, Newick said he was ‘surprised and pleased’ to see it was already high and at varying levels of seniority.
Newick said: ‘It reinforced the fact that if we look outside the concentrated bastions of senior male talent at the top end of the Bar, it’s amazing what talent is out there.’
‘We want to find the hidden gems,’ he said, laying down a challenge for chambers to ‘show us your wider talent – make sure we can see it and make it easy for us to find’.
Clifford Chance is to track its use of female barristers in a bid to increase the diversity of those it instructs.
Matthew Newick, global head of litigation and dispute resolution at the Magic Circle firm, told Counsel that he also wants to achieve a default position where there must be a ‘very good reason’ for there to be no women on the list of counsel suggested to clients, adding: ‘I can’t imagine any time when there would be a list without a woman.’
He said that the firm already kept data on who it instructed, but is in the process of ‘formalising’ the tracking of that information in order to ensure it instructs a more diverse range of barristers.
He said he was against setting a target for the percentage of female instructions, but that he wanted to see an ‘upward trajectory’. Having looked at the number of women already instructed, Newick said he was ‘surprised and pleased’ to see it was already high and at varying levels of seniority.
Newick said: ‘It reinforced the fact that if we look outside the concentrated bastions of senior male talent at the top end of the Bar, it’s amazing what talent is out there.’
‘We want to find the hidden gems,’ he said, laying down a challenge for chambers to ‘show us your wider talent – make sure we can see it and make it easy for us to find’.
In this month’s column, Chair of the Bar Sam Townend KC highlights the many reasons why barristers should pay the Bar Representation Fee and back the Bar Council’s efforts on behalf of the profession
Leading legal DNA, drug, and alcohol testing provider AlphaBiolabs has made its first Giving Back charity draw of 2024 with Andrew Sibson, a Legal Officer at Leeds City Council, being chosen as its first winner
Discover Lloyd’s unique approach to financial planning and experience working with barristers
Trust Delaunay Wealth to stand by your side amid the uncertainties ahead, writes Lloyd French
Win £500 for your chosen charity
Paul Magrath on the law reporter's craft and history of the headnote
Lighting fires that cast unfairness into the shadows, creating history at home and abroad, and being comfortable with who you are – the remarkable criminal and international human rights barrister Kirsty Brimelow KC
GLD barrister Caroline Croft, one of the largest legal heads in the country, tells Anthony Inglese what drew her to public law and politics
Deaccession, repatriation and the British Museum thefts. By Fahrid Chishty and Natalia Ameen
Bibi Badejo reports from a packed Inns of Court Women’s Alliance event examining the experiences of Black women barristers and imparting crucial advice for Black women navigating the legal profession
With AI models the subject of litigation worldwide, courts are grappling with what copyright protects, what it should protect, and how. Mark Wilden reports