The most innovative and successful examples of best practice in the promotion of equality and diversity were sought for this award. We were looking for examples of clear benefits to organisations, employees and clients, from embracing equality and diversity policies and practices in the widest sense, to recruiting and retaining the most talented and motivated lawyers.
This award was open to all in the legal sector.
The firm's annual diversity week has had a demonstrable effect in raising awareness of all areas of diversity, but it was the focus on individual strands of diversity which really impressed the judges, and on religion in particular.
The RCN team has incorporated equality and diversity into their core business, delivering on all fronts and in all activities.
Addleshaw Goddard's Diversity Access Scheme (DAS), run in collaboration with BPP Law School , offers BPP students from less conventional academic backgrounds the opportunity to take part in summer placement schemes. DAS students do not meet usual A level criteria, but will have demonstrated excellent academic ability at university. To date eight training contacts have been offered to DAS students.
Allen & Overy's innovative Smart Start Experience gives 16-17 year olds from deprived boroughs in London the chance to see how the business world works. Students take part in practical workshops that could involve preparing a legal defence in a real life cannibal case or negotiating the sale of a football club. So far over 100 students have participated.
Herbert Smith recognises that equality and diversity is key to their current and prospective clients, and to being a firm of choice when it comes to recruiting and retaining excellent staff. They continually review their policies and consult staff through opinion surveys and staff networks.
Interlaw held a ground-breaking event in 2009 to examine the issues and challenges involved in applying equality and diversity programmes across international networks. The event, aimed at senior management, employee network groups and diversity professionals, brought together panellists from Stonewall, BT, IBM and the Royal Navy. Interlaw's membership now encompasses over 60 law firms and 40 corporate and financial institutions.
Lovells has a long standing commitment to diversity and inclusion, actively promoting a culture of mutual respect and inclusion for all members of the firm regardless of their beliefs or preferences, and working to attract a more diverse range of people to join the firm at all levels. They held a series of 18 events during their Diversity Awareness Week in January 2009.
To better understand clients' needs, both in terms of speaking their language and understanding expectations, Miller Rosenfalck implemented a strategy of actively recruiting lawyers and trainees from different nationalities and ethnic minorities and female lawyers and trainees, including mature students with family commitments. As a result the firm provides extraordinary cultural and linguistic diversity.
In April 2009 Muckle was one of the first three organisations, and the only law firm, to be awarded the Equality Standard, a benchmark developed by Equality North East, and recognised by the Human Rights Commission and the Government Equalities Office, for organisations that embrace good equality and diversity practices in the workplace.
In 2008/09 Pinsent Masons built on its strong diversity programme by developing its network groups, launching a maternity integration programme and rolling out recession-busting flexible working initiatives. The firm has demonstrated that its strong commitment to diversity can bring demonstrable business benefits during a recession as well as in an upturn.