Biglaw

Vault Ranks The Best Law Firms For Diversity (2020)

Did your law firm make the cut this time around?

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Over the past few weeks, Vault has rolled out a variety of law firm rankings — from the firms that are the most prestigious to the firms that offer the best quality of life to the firms with the top-ranked practice areas in their region to the firms with the highest-rated summer associate programs — and there’s yet another important one that we’ll dive into today.

Money can buy prestige and can certainly improve your quality of life, but the diversity of your colleagues is worth more than what any salary scale can possibly pay.

In a companion ranking to the Vault 100, associates were asked to rank their own law firms based on categories most relevant to how the firm does at creating, maintaining, and fostering a diverse workforce, including diversity relating to racial minorities, women, LGBTQ individuals, and individuals with disabilities. To create the overall Best 30 Firms for Diversity ranking, Vault averages the scores from all four ratings.

There was a huge amount of movement in the Top 10 this year. Which firms made the cut? Without any further ado, here are the Top 10 Best Law Firms for Diversity based on Vault’s Annual Associate Survey for 2020:

  1. O’Melveny & Myers (+1)
  2. Carlton Fields (+12)
  3. Constangy Brooks Smith & Prophete (-2)
  4. Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe (+1)
  5. Ropes & Gray (+3)
  6. White & Case (+1)
  7. Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton (+16)
  8. Littler Mendelson (-2)
  9. Schiff Hardin (+1)
  10. Finnegan Henderson Farabow Garrett & Dunner (+7)

It’s worth noting that O’Melveny swept almost the entirety of Vault’s 2020 diversity rankings, while Constangy Brooks remained on top for Best Law Firm for Diversity for Minorities. Here’s some additional commentary on that:

The firm not only claimed the No. 1 spot for Overall Diversity—moving up from its spot at No. 2 in the 2019 rankings—but it also ranked No. 1 as the Best Law Firm for Diversity for Individuals with Disabilities, Diversity for LGBTQ Individuals, and Diversity for Women. As one O’Melveny associate indicated, “There are few firms who take diversity as seriously as OMM.” …

In addition to O’Melveny—which also ranked No. 3 for Diversity for Racial Minorities—three law firms ranked in the top 10 of all five of Vault’s diversity rankings: Carlton Fields; Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP; and Ropes & Gray LLP.

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Congratulations to each of the Biglaw firms that made the latest edition of the Vault Best Firms for Diversity rankings, and a huge congratulations to O’Melveny for yet another rankings sweep. How did your firm do? Email us, text us at (646) 820-8477, or tweet us @atlblog to let us know how you feel.

Best Law Firms for Diversity (2020) [Vault]

Staci ZaretskyStaci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

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