Hogan Lovells participates in Mansfield Rule 5.0 certification and joins pilot UK program

Established by Diversity Lab, the goal of the Mansfield Rule is to boost the representation of historically underrepresented lawyers in law firm leadership.

New requirements for Mansfield 5.0, firms include:

• Tracking their candidate pools in a disaggregated manner, prompting them to measure the impact of the Mansfield Rule by each underrepresented group. Firms must also include an option for Middle Eastern/North African identity, a demographic often overlooked by current self-identification options;
• Consider at least 30% underrepresented lawyers for nominations to Chambers USA to increase the external visibility of underrepresented lawyers with clients and in the marketplace more broadly;
• Consider 30% underrepresented individuals when hiring and promoting C-level or other senior-level professional staff roles.

Now entering its fifth year, the Mansfield Rule has become the standard by which law firms track and measure that they have affirmatively considered at least thirty percent women, lawyers from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, lawyers with disabilities, and LGBTQ+ lawyers for top leadership roles, senior-level lateral hiring, promotions into the equity partnership, and participation in client pitch meetings.

Diversity Lab is also embarking on its first expansion outside of North America with the launch of the Mansfield Rule UK with more than 10 leading UK law firms including Hogan Lovells. With the addition of the Mansfield Rule UK, Diversity Lab now facilitates four versions of the Mansfield Rule Certification, including one for legal departments and another for midsize law firms, both of which will launch new cohorts in Fall 2021.

Global Managing Partner for Diversity & Inclusion and Responsible Business, Susan Bright, commented: “We are delighted to participate in this certification process as a marker which builds on our work, and are particularly pleased that Diversity Lab is expanding into the UK which is a key engine of our firm. We are committed to providing diverse and inclusive client teams, and to cultivating an inclusive environment where people of all identities and backgrounds have access to meaningful work that will progress their careers.”

Rosevelie Márquez Morales, Americas Diversity & Inclusion Director, added: “Having been one of five pilot firms which volunteered to take on a more intensive tracking process over the last year for Mansfield 4.0, Mansfield Certification ensures we prioritize our commitments to having a diverse talent pool across the firm, including at the highest ranks.”

“Mansfield is a standard which we have extended into our new pitch process requiring diversity in pitch teams. By having metrics in place we can hold ourselves accountable and ensure our people have the support to succeed, including providing firm-wide unconscious bias training, access to mentoring and sponsorship and increasing the robustness of our talent processes.”