I was recently fortunate enough to present to the BC Legal Management Association in Vancouver, BC. Having never worked in the area of law before, this was a great opportunity to learn much more about the legal field and in particular about the work-life challenges faced by women (and men) in law.

In 2001 the Research think tank Catalyst published a study titled Women in Law, Making the Case. In this study they learned much about women and law. For the first time in American history, the number of women in law schools is outpacing that of men. This poses a new era of emerging corporate culture in the field of law. The goal of this study was to learn why there were few women in leadership positions in law and how legal employers can attract talented women.

Some of the major findings in this study were:

• Women in law firms plan to leave their employer on average three years earlier than men.
• Roughly ½ as many women as men are partners in law firms.
• 51% of female associates are satisfied with their current employer compared to 68% of men.
• 75% of law firm women say that commitment to family and personal life is a barrier to women's advancement, this compared to 58% of their male counterparts.

From the perspective of work-life balance both women and men reported similar levels and sources of work-life conflict and the percentages that experienced this were large. Of note was that 75% of both men and women graduates reported work-life conflict. However, this number was also high for those without children. Additionally, it was found that both men and women agreed that flexible work arrangements adversely affect advancement. Often women law graduates have to make the choice for flexibility if they can out of necessity.

Respondents in this study were able to choose certain options that they felt would help with work-life balance. The two top priorities for women and men were: controlling work hours and telecommuting.

The legal industry is no stranger to the talent crunch and is facing competition for employees from all types of other industries outside of law. With the influx of a new generation of legal professionals to the job market comes a new set of standards and expectations set by these potential employees. Like other industries attracting talent is not only a challenge but retaining talent is at the forefront with the attrition rate for women in law being much higher. This for many of the reasons highlighted here and in the Catalyst study.

A shift in the legal corporate culture taking into consideration the new demographic of the workplace is essential. The way we have always done things is no longer sufficient for an increasingly female and diverse, global workforce.

*Catalyst (2001). Women in Law: Making the Case.

Maureen Clarke is a facilitator, trainer, coach and balance seeker. She is the Principal of The Blueprint Group - taking a strategic leadership approach to creating healthy, high performing organizations through innovative talent retention initiatives.