Who can be a protocol partner?
All purchasers of legal services regardless of practice size are invited to become protocol partners by committing to the protocol principles.
Why was the procurement protocol established?
The initiative was originally conceived by the Society of Asian Lawyers and BT who recognised the opportunity for purchasers of legal services to drive continuous improvement on diversity and inclusion of the profession through the procurement process.
The Law Society was approached to lead the project and saw the benefit of bringing together purchasers and providers through a joint commitment which would also provide a platform for ongoing dialogue and collaborative action.
How much work is involved in meeting the protocol commitments?
Implementing the protocol is straightforward: there is very little time and work involved on the part of the purchaser. Information and support tools provided by the Law Society will enable protocol partners to assess performance of suppliers on diversity and inclusion by providing them with context. Standardised diversity questions makes the protocol efficient for all parties.
What does the model questionnaire do?
To support protocol partners with assessing their suppliers equality and diversity credentials, the Law Society has produced a model questionnaire to help capture key information.
The questionnaire covers everything from the firm’s own diversity statistics to the steps they are taking to recruit, develop and support minority and under-represented groups and the policies they have to promote and maintain good diversity practices including flexible working.
The questionnaire gives suppliers the opportunity to show how they are contributing to a more diverse and inclusive legal profession.
Other support tools available include a supplier scorecard which helps to evaluate the questionnaire response, best practice guidance, checklists and case study examples.
Signatories can access the support tools through the reporting tool once they have signed up to the Charter.
How can we sign up to the procurement protocol?
Signing up to the procurement protocol is easy. A general counsel or director equivalent just needs to send an email to the Law Society at inclusioncharter@lawsociety.org.uk stating their commitment.