The Best Law Firms For Diversity (2015)

If you're looking for a firm that will treat you well no matter who you are, you can't go wrong with one of these.

You don’t often hear many good things about diversity in the legal profession. Women lawyers continue to be told how to dress themselves, and minorities have to grapple with racist typos.

Despite the negativity that exists in the law when it comes to issues of gender, race, and sexual orientation, there are some law firms that are doing their best to make sure their attorneys are as diverse as their practice areas.

Which law firms came out on top in terms of diversity? Check out Vault’s rankings to find out…

Before we get to the rankings, a brief interlude to discuss the methodology of Vault’s diversity rankings:

The rankings are based on the results of Vault’s annual survey, administered earlier this year to nearly 17,000 law firm associates. We asked participants to rate their employers on a variety diversity initiatives including recruitment, retention, promotion and mentoring efforts with respect to minority, women, LGBT individuals, individuals with disabilities and military veterans. We then averaged the scores in all five categories to determine the 25 Best Law Firms for Overall Diversity.

Now let’s cut to the chase. Here are the top 10 firms for diversity, according to Vault latest rankings:

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There was a lot of movement here compared to last year’s top 10 list. Congratulations to Ropes & Gray, which dethroned Carlton Fields from the top spot after its five-year reign as king of diverse law firms. If you were wondering what the impacts of the firm’s merger with Jorden Burt would be, you might be looking at one. Kudos to the rest of the firms that remained in the top 10, and a big round of applause for Finnegan Henderson for breaking into the top 10 from a spot near the bottom of the top 25. That’s a big move, so nice work.

Which firms fell out of the top ten? Those would be Jenner & Block and Cleary Gottlieb, and they fell off the list altogether this year. That’s not so good, considering the important factors being measured.

These are the law firms that managed to snag the number one spot in each of these individual categories:

Diversity for Women: Schiff Hardin
Diversity for Minorities: Littler Mendelson
LGBT Diversity: Foley Hoag
Diversity for Individuals with Disabilities: Ropes & Gray
Diversity for Military Veterans (new category this year): Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner

If you’re looking for a firm that will treat you well no matter who you are, you can’t go wrong with one of these. One again, congrats to all of the firms that made the top 25. Do you work at one of these firms and have a story to share about your experiences? Feel free to do so in the comments, or in our insider survey.

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Announcing the Best Law Firms for Diversity [Vault Blogs]
The Best Law Firms For Diversity [Vault]

Earlier: The Best Law Firms for Diversity (2014)
The Best Law Firms for Diversity (2013)
The Best Law Firms for Diversity (2012)