Women in the Legal Profession

Chapter Outline

Demographics

The percentage of female lawyers has slowly inched up in recent years, according to the ABA National Lawyer Population Survey, a tally of lawyers by licensing agencies in every state. In 2010, fewer than one-third of all lawyers (31%) were women. Twelve years later, in 2022, 38% of all lawyers were women.

The long-term trend is easier to see when viewed over the course of decades. The biggest growth in female lawyers came in the 1980s and ’90s. From 1950 to 1970, only 3% of all lawyers were women. The percentage increased to 8% in 1980, 20% in 1991 and 29% in 2000.

The trend is also apparent at law schools. The number of male students has declined every year for the past 11 years – from 78,516 in 2010 to 52,058 in 2021. Meanwhile, the number of female law school students has increased every year for the past five years – from 55,766 in 2016 to 64,861 in 2021. Women now significantly outnumber men in U.S. law schools, and the gap is widening. In 2021, there were 12,800 more female students than male students.

Women in the Legal Profession by Decade: 1951 - 2022

The number of female federal judges has increased dramatically. The first woman was appointed to the federal judiciary in 1928, when 217 men held that position. By 1950, there were still only three female federal judges. That rose to 46 in 1980. And by July 1, 2022, there were 424 women on the federal bench – nearly one-third of all federal judges (30%).

Women fare better in state Supreme Courts, where they make up 41% of all high-court justices, according to a 2022 survey by the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University. That’s nearly the same as the share of all lawyers who are women nationally: 38%.

Sources: ABA National Lawyer Population Survey; American Bar Foundation Lawyer Statistical Reports; ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar

Women in the Legal Profession: 2010 - 2022

Sources: Federal Judicial Center; Brennan Center for Justice

Women in Law Firms

Although more than half of all law school graduates are women, the number of women in senior leadership roles at U.S. law firms is far less than half – even with the number slowly edging up in recent years.

About 22% of all equity partners were female in 2020, according to the National Association of Women Lawyers. The number has risen every year since 2012, when it was 15%. Female lawyers are found in greater numbers at lower levels in the law firm hierarchy. Nearly half of all associates (47%) were women in 2020, as were nearly a third of all non-equity partners (32%).

Women also held only a small percentage of law firm leadership jobs in 2020. They were 12% of managing partners, 28% of governance committee members and 27% of practice group leaders, according to the NAWL.

Female Equity Partners: 2006 - 2020

Women in Law Firm Leadership Roles: 2020

Women in Law Firms: 2020

Law firm pay for women almost caught up to pay for men among associates and non-equity partners in 2020, but a sizable gap still existed at the highest levels. In 2020, female associates and female non-equity partners received, on average, 95% of the compensation of their male counterparts. But among equity partners, women received just 78% of the compensation of men, on average.

There were virtually no women among the very highest-compensated law firm attorneys in 2020. Only 2% of law firms said their highest-paid attorney is female – and that number actually dropped from 8% in 2005.

Source: National Association of Women Lawyers 2021 Survey Report

Compensation of Female Lawyers as a Percentage of Compensation of Male Lawyers: 2020

Gender of Highest-Paid Attorney In the Firm: 2005 - 2020

Women in Law Schools

Women make up a majority of law school students in the United States: 55.3% in 2021. That’s up from 48.4% in 2000.

Women achieved majority status in ABA-accredited law schools only recently. The first time first-year female students outnumbered first-year male students was in 2014. Two years later, in 2016, women made up a majority of all students in law schools for the first time.

Here’s another way of looking at the gender trend in law schools: In 2021, nearly five times as many law schools had female majorities (162 law schools) versus those with male majorities (33 law schools). And at five law schools in 2021 (Northeastern, Howard, North Carolina Central, Florida A&M and American), women outnumbered men by a 2-to-1 ratio.

The change came slowly over several decades. In 1963, only 4% of first-year law students were female, rising to 20% in 1973, 39% in 1983 and 44% by 1993.

Source: ABA Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar

Women as a Percentage of All Law Students: 2000 - 2021

More women than ever are also leading U.S. law schools. In 2000, only 10% of law school deans were women. By 2009, the percentage of female deans rose to 21%.
And as of July 1, 2022, 43% of all law school deans were women, according to Rosenblatt’s Deans Database at the Mississippi College School of Law.

Sources: Walking Out the Door, 2019, ABA and ALM Intelligence

Female Law School Deans: 2000 - 2022

Women in the Legal Profession by Decade: 1951 - 2022

Walking out the Door

Male and female lawyers strongly disagree on how well their law firms foster long-term careers for women. That is one conclusion from a study published in October 2019 by the ABA and ALM Intelligence, which explored why experienced female lawyers are leaving law firms. The report, “Walking Out the Door,” includes results from a survey of more than 1,200 senior lawyers at the nation’s biggest private law firms.

Generally, men thought their law firms treated women fairly, but women disagreed. For example, the vast majority of men (88%) said gender diversity is widely acknowledged as a firm priority. Barely half of women (54%) agreed. Also, nearly 3 out of 4 men (74%) said their law firms successfully retained experienced women. Less than half of women (47%) agreed.

How Men and Women View Law Firm Policies
(% who said yes)

The survey also revealed that half of all female lawyers (50%) said they experienced unwanted sexual conduct at work, and 1 in 4 women said they avoided reporting sexual harassment due to fear of retaliation. One in six female lawyers (16%) said they lost work opportunities as a result of rebuffing sexual advances.

Finally, the women surveyed said caretaking commitments are the No. 1 reason (58%) why experienced female lawyers leave their law firms, followed by stress at work (54%) and emphasis on marketing or originating business (51%).

Sources: Walking Out the Door, 2019, ABA and ALM Intelligence

Job Satisfaction (extremely or somewhat satisfied)