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WIPR Influential Women in IP 2019
www.worldipreview.com Women in the boardroom
companies to attract and retain the very best talent in
the market,” says Beasley.
To understand the current landscape, World IP
Review undertook a global survey. We wanted to
find out about your experiences in your current
organisation regarding gender equality, as well as find
out what more the legal profession can do.
Law schools,
in-house legal
departments and
law firms must
come together
to implement
practical
solutions to
attack the
problem from
multiple angles.
SHUTTERSTOCK / RAWPIXEL.COM
discussion around diversity and inclusion—in an
increasingly disruptive and competitive legal market,
clients are looking to partner with law firms that
can bring the different perspectives and innovative
solutions that diverse and inclusive teams are bestplaced
to deliver.”
Increasingly, big brands are stipulating diversity
criteria for law firms they partner with.
Social media company Facebook requires that
women and ethnic minorities account for at least 33%
of law firm teams working on its matters, while US
technology company HP has threatened to withhold
up to 10% of costs invoiced by law firms if they do not
meet minimum diversity requirements.
Egon Zehnder’s “2018 Global Board Diversity
Tracker” found that in 19 of the 44 countries, all
the major publicly traded companies with market
capitalisation of €7 billion ($7.9 billion)-plus have at
least one female director, up from 15 countries in
2016 and just eight in 2012. Nine of these countries
have instituted a quota.
On the other side, 25 countries (including China,
Brazil and Germany) are home to large companies
with no women on their boards at all.
Only one-fifth of board seats of the largest
companies globally are now held by women, although
this is an increase from 18.5% in 2016.
“Diversity and inclusion matter for the simple
reason that they drive better business performance,
support innovative and agile thinking and enable
Company breakdown:
65%
2%
22%
11%
Other
Service/IP Office
In-house
Private practice
Survey respondent