Identifying the Gap

Ayala Deutsch, executive vice president & deputy general counsel, NBA Properties, Inc. (US), said of the legal field: “It’s not unlike a lot of other professions. It has made progress, but it hasn’t attained nirvana.”

Ms. Deutsch, who spearheaded The Women’s LeadershIP Initiative during her INTA presidency in 2020, recalled that when she was a freshman at New York University School of Law in 1986, the dean announced that this was the first incoming class composed of more than 50 percent women.

“I remember congratulating myself for joining the profession just when there would be gender parity—but it hasn’t happened,” said Ms. Deutsch.

Hoda Barakat, founder of Hoda Barakat Legal Consultancy (United Arab Emirates), reflected on a similar experience. When she started in the legal profession in the early 1990s, first in the United Kingdom and then in the United Arab Emirates, there were few, if any, women leaders in the profession.

“But that has changed,” she said. “Today, the overall gender balance in the legal profession and even at the leadership level has improved greatly.”

Still, Ms. Barakat noted, “Unfortunately, women are playing catch-up in leadership in the legal profession as in many other professions which are traditionally male-dominated. But I truly believe that women have come a long way, through a lot of hard work and perseverance.”

However, while more women may be entering the legal profession than ever before, the gender diversity generally thins out further up the ladder. Gender inequality is a systemic problem, with barriers at all stages—from hiring through employee retention. Entire reports have been written solely on the reasons for this gap in the legal profession: a small selection, legacy issues, a leaking talent pipeline, and work and home life integration.

Judy Chebet, partner, Chebet & Co. Advocates (Kenya), said: “The leadership gaps we see in the legal profession are reflected across a number of professions, and I believe they are largely the result of legacy and continuing failures to level the field in these professions, and in training leading up to these professions.”

According to Ms. Deutsch, some working women (who also tend to be primary caregivers) take themselves out of the profession, or they are driven out by their inability to balance work and life.

In the Philippines, said Brigitte da Costa-Villaluz, partner, Poblador Bautista & Reyes Law Offices (Philippines), many women excel in law school and in their chosen legal field. However, she said, “some women find it hard to sustain a legal practice because they are still viewed in our society as the primary homemakers.

“When we interview women applicants for a position in the law firm, a common question addressed to me as a female partner is how do I balance being a wife and mother in litigation practice. I always reply that it is not a matter of balance, but acceptance that a woman lawyer needs to spend extra hours each day to fulfil her roles. This is also true for women in other professions and jobs.”

For Sharon Sorkin, chief trademark counsel, Ford Motor Company (US), identifying precisely why there is a leadership gap for women is a difficult task.

While the general counsel and most of the legal leadership team at her previous job were women, she said, “Overall, there are systemic reasons why the legal profession makes it harder for women to get ahead.”

Some of this relates to the fact that success at a law firm is measured in time spent rather than productivity, and requires a lot of non-collaborative work, according to Ms. Sorkin.

“Speaking for myself, that never quite matched my working style, and I think that may be true for other women. I tend to do things quite quickly, which never served me well when I was held to a billable hour expectation in a law firm.”

When Ms. Sorkin moved in-house, she realized that the fast-paced, high-volume workload allowed her to flex her strengths in “finding efficiencies, working quickly, and prioritizing the most important or business-critical matters, and to lean into collaboration and team-building skills.”

She added: “The more we can flip the narrative of what it means to excel in the practice of law, the more we can help fill this gap. We should measure success based on value provided and results achieved, not how many hours are spent, or face time in the office or on virtual platforms.”

Engagement and Opportunities

Organizations of all kinds must commit to fostering an environment of diversity, equality, and inclusion, and there are many options and initiatives for law firms and brands looking to bridge the gap.

“The Women’s LeadershIP Initiative and Best Practices Toolkit” is a great place to start. Noted Ms. Deutsch: “Consciousness is always an important first step for diversity. It’s not sufficient by itself, but it is necessary.”

Sacha Tarrant, vice president, Digital Rights Strategy & Enforcement, NBA Properties, Inc. (US), said: “It is helpful when organizations recognize the importance of women and the impact they can make. It serves to demonstrate how necessary it is that women are given that opportunity.”

He added that finding people who are committed to the concept of improving the representation of women and ensuring that they are given a platform is vitally important to educate others and spread the message.

Rafa Gutiérrez, senior director, head of Global Brand Protection, Uber Technologies, Inc. (US), believes that listening is key to closing the gap. He advised that listening to others’ experiences or starting conversations about the gender gap, whether in your workspace or at conferences, is greatly beneficial for all genders.

Uber has made significant inroads in its diversity efforts, including partnering with the Law in Technology Diversity Collaborative (US), a cross-company legal internship program which provides a ten-week summer experience for first-year law students.

In early 2020, driven partly by the protests following the killing of George Floyd in the United States, Uber began to look at the diversity makeup of law firms.

“Uber set standards of diversity in general and diversity in leadership. We wanted to work primarily with law firms that met this standard,” said Mr. Gutiérrez. “But Uber also offered to work with law firms that didn’t meet that standard, helping them with their diversity initiatives.”

While company initiatives are vital to progress, on an individual level, a lot can be done, particularly by leadership to champion and sponsor women.

Ryan Mellon, vice president, intellectual property counsel, WarnerMedia, LLC (US), said: “I try to be empathetic regarding people’s lives outside the office, and ensuring that they feel supported and heard. In my various roles, I have always tried to look for opportunities for my team to advance and to be sure they have the tools they need, so I can be an advocate in that regard.”

Individuals and organizations can make inroads but it may require a cultural shift to achieve true gender parity and move the needle on women in leadership.

“A cultural revolution of sorts is required for this!” declared Ms. Chebet.

She pointed out that African societies, like others around the world, “have been patriarchal since time immemorial. Leadership positions have largely been a preserve of men, so creating a culture where women are progressively seen as leaders requires men to be actively involved in awareness programs and gender initiatives, including policy and law making, that give women a chance at leadership positions.”

Ms. Barakat is confident that a generational shift will be a driving force behind the closure of the leadership gap.

She said: “Millennials and Gen Zers have a genuine belief in equality—and that can only be a good thing. They see several women leaders, who work hard to achieve in their careers, as role models and strive to emulate them.”

The Mentor’s Role

It is widely held that bridging leadership gaps for women in IP can be accomplished only if men and women work together toward change. One aspect of this collaboration is mentoring.

Mentorship, whether formal or informal, can have a lasting and profound impact on both parties and help mentees progress in their careers. Men have a role to play here too; mentoring should not be split by gender.

“There’s no perfect instruction book or recipe to make mentoring successful,” said Mr. Tarrant, who is mentored by Ms. Deutsch. For Mr. Tarrant, it is vital that the mentor is willing “to give the mentee the opportunity to fail and to take chances in order to demonstrate what the mentee is capable of.”

He added: “I cannot think of a situation when I’ve gone to Ms. Deutsch and had her be a roadblock to trying something new. I feel that she’s entrusting me with the responsibility to take chances and start on new projects, and this has given me the opportunity to succeed.”

Mr. Tarrant admitted that if he had been asked a few years ago about who he would envision as a mentor, he would have said “a man.” Now, he has realized mentoring doesn’t have to be limited by gender.

In agreement, Ms. Chebet, who was a mentee in a mentorship program, said that an essential part of success as a mentee is “openness and courage to be challenged to do more, and confidence in a growth journey because very few circumstances in a leadership journey are truly unique.”

On the flip side, as a mentor, Mr. Gutiérrez believes that men can champion and sponsor women by being mentors to men as well as women. When a man mentors another man, they still need to engage and talk about gender issues and “encourage male mentees to participate in these conversations,” he said.

As someone who has been both a mentor and a mentee, Ms. Deutsch provided two pieces of advice. First, she said, there must be an organic component to mentoring. “If you are not genuinely connecting, the value of mentorship is never fully realized,” she suggested.

Second, people might consider having more than one mentor, who can advise on a range of matters.

“It takes some of the enormous pressure off younger people who are trying to find their professional soulmate,” Ms. Deutsch said. “Instead of looking for a single mentor, looking for a ‘board of directors’ who can give advice and support is a little less intimidating. From a mentor’s perspective, it’s less demanding on people who may be very senior and busy.”

Ms. Barakat, who has mentored several female professionals over the years, added: “My approach was always to keep open communication and to try to understand the mentee’s whole picture and not just the work element. When there are challenges—and there will be—it is good to discuss them and try to find solutions. I like to lead by example, be as fair and just as possible, and be accessible.”

Normalizing Work-Life Balance

Ms. Sorkin, who regularly mentors other women lawyers and legal professionals, is seeking to normalize her work-life integration by letting others know when she must turn away from work for personal obligations.

“It is important for leaders to show by example that everyone can be vulnerable, and everyone has personal needs, and that, even then, they are able to be successful, productive, and well-respected,” she observed.

On this front, something worthwhile may have emerged from the darkness of the global COVID-19 pandemic. It has highlighted some of the difficulties women have faced long before the current health crisis.

According to Mr. Mellon, “One of the positive changes that has come about from the pandemic is an appreciation of how difficult balancing work and home life can be.

“I believe changes wrought by the pandemic, such as increased flexibility and a focus on results rather than time in the office, will benefit everyone, but especially women at the leadership level. This is an opportunity to rethink the nature of work.”

Ms. Deutsch agreed that, fast-tracked by the pandemic, we are rethinking the way we work.

“I hope part of that is to understand that there’s not just one way to be a valuable contributor and leader. Everybody shows up differently. As an organization and an industry, I am hopeful this will drive diversity,” she said.

There are myriad ways to reach gender parity in the future. For Ms. Sorkin, “Meet people of all genders where they are. Provide working arrangements that work for them at that time in their lives—whether it be remote work, flexible hours, or other adaptations. Know that good talent will endure if you allow the person to shine.”

Taking a different approach, Ms. Costa-Villaluz is an advocate for incentives, noting: “Male leadership in law firms and businesses can recognize extra contributions from women through additional incentives, such as paid leave when someone attends to their children who are sick or for important school activities. This may help women lawyers stay in the practice longer.”

Mr. Mellon added: “Men can play a role in improving representation of women by not isolating certain topics into ‘women’s’ issues—for example, paid family leave. This affects everyone, but we tend to think of it as ‘maternity’ leave or an issue only for one parent.

“Men can help by advocating and taking their leave time and being supportive of the women on their team either as a peer or a team leader as they navigate their return-to-work process.”

In agreement, Mr. Gutiérrez said: “Don’t say silly things such as ‘paternity leave is for losers.’ Men taking paternity leave can help women in a number of ways.”

For example, when Mr. Gutiérrez took paternity leave, a woman on his team stepped up to the role of running the team. This allowed other managers to see her leadership qualities.

Mr. Tarrant also took advantage of paternity leave, at a time when the NBA had only recently extended the amount of time fathers could take off and there was not a long track record for employees taking this time. He approached Ms. Deutsch to discuss taking the time off. For Ms. Deutsch, the answer was simple.

“I said to him the same thing I would say to any woman: ‘It’s a benefit the company is giving you. You wouldn’t leave part of your paycheck on the table, so don’t leave this either,’” she recalled.

Mr. Tarrant responded: “Having the ability to have that conversation and get feedback helped make the decision easy. Knowing you have support gives you the confidence that whatever decision you make will be the right one for you. I can’t put into words how important this has been to me.”

Ms. Deutsch concluded: “The more these become human issues and not women’s issues, the better it will be for women and for everyone. I’ve seen this industry recognize and applaud the progress, but there is still a way to go.”

Video courtesy of Envato Elements / Songkhla Studio