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04 May 2018 / Joanne Losty
Issue: 7791 / Categories: Features , Profession
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Mind the gap

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The gender pay gap reporting highlights the need for industry wide culture change, says Joanne Losty

  • The gender pay gap at most UK law firms is much worse than the average UK business at every level.
  • Remedying the pay gap will take a major effort across multiple areas.
  • Genuine agile working practices could assist with the overall cultural change.
  • As more millennials enter the profession, law firms will need to adapt their culture to fit shifting expectations.

The gender pay gap reporting deadline has come and gone. The results are in and City law firms have filed their figures. So how did the legal sector perform and what can be done to address the issues of diversity and flexible working which underpin much of the gap that still exists?

Background

First, the legislation which required companies to report needs to be addressed. Despite the Equal Pay Act 1970, which makes it illegal to discriminate between men and women in terms of pay and conditions, a significant gap still exists between the genders. In an attempt to remedy this, the Equality Act

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Jurit LLP—Caroline Williams

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Flint Bishop—Deborah Niven

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Firm appoints head of intellectual property to drive northern growth

NEWS
Talk of a reserved ‘Welsh seat’ on the Supreme Court is misplaced. In NLJ this week, Professor Graham Zellick KC explains that the Constitutional Reform Act treats ‘England and Wales’ as one jurisdiction, with no statutory Welsh slot
The government’s plan to curb jury trials has sparked ‘jury furore’. Writing in NLJ this week, David Locke, partner at Hill Dickinson, says the rationale is ‘grossly inadequate’
A year after the $1.5bn Bybit heist, crypto fraud is booming—but so is recovery. Writing in NLJ this week, Neil Holloway, founder and CEO of M2 Recovery, warns that scams hit at least $14bn in 2025, fuelled by ‘pig butchering’ cons and AI deepfakes
After Woodcock confirmed no general duty to warn, debate turns to the criminal law. Writing in NLJ this week, Charles Davey of The Barrister Group urges revival of misprision or a modern equivalent
Family courts are tightening control of expert evidence. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Chris Pamplin says there is ‘no automatic right’ to call experts; attendance must be ‘necessary in the interests of justice’ under FPR Pt 25
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