The Gender Gap in Law: Representation Doesn’t Equal Inclusion

The shortlisted nominees for the Women and Diversity Law Awards 2026 are out, and it’s the perfect opportunity to talk about gender equality and inclusivity in the legal field!

The gender gap in law: why representation doesn’t equal inclusion is a critical issue in today’s legal profession. While law classrooms are often filled with women, the numbers drop drastically when it comes to senior leadership positions. Indeed, since 2023, there have been twice as many female law students as male law students. Yet, law is far from being a female-inclusive field.

According to the Legal 500 Lawyers Trainee Solicitor 2025/26 Survey, 66% of trainee solicitors identify as female. However, the numbers change drastically when we look closer at the overall hierarchy within the legal field. Global 50|50 recently released a comprehensive report on gender equality in the legal field. Here is some key data to think about. Whilst law firms have different career pathways and positions available, Global 50|50 divided leadership roles into two categories: ‘power holders’ and ‘highest offices’. Power holder is described as anyone working as: Advocates general, arbitrators, board members, commissioners, deputy directors, justices, prosecutors, registrars, and vice-presidents. From the data compiled, 37% of power holders in law firms are women.

When we reach the top positions, only 20% of the highest offices in law firms are held by women. The roles included here are: Board chairs, CEOs, court presidents, head commissioners, and managing partners. Now, if one in two law student is a woman, yet 80% of law firms high office holders are men, the issue is not so much gender equality as it is gender inclusivity. There is more than enough women interested in joining the legal field or already working in the legal field to turn these statistics around. However, law firms need to change their current practices to become more inclusive of all genders in their promotion pathways.

As Senior Associate Helen Martin argues, it is crucial that law firms start by understanding their own practices: how and why are women being excluded from promotion pathways? Once the issues are spotted, changes can be made. These changes can take many forms, from releasing clearer inclusivity reports to sponsoring organisations focused on increasing gender inclusivity in the legal field, such as the Women and Diversity Law Awards.

On the same note, the International Bar Association has published various country-focused reports on identifying those statistical differences and working towards a 50-50 parity in the legal field by 2030. Unsurprisingly, gender disparity is also seen in the public legal sector.
In 2024, 749 women were called to the bar (as opposed to 824 men), yet that same year there were more male registered practicing barristers, 10’366 to 7’120 female. The good news is, the gender gap is closing noticeably faster than in the private field. The bad news is, high ranking roles in the public legal sector are still mostly filled by men.

A few examples include:

• Of the 12 Justices of the Supreme Court, only two are women.
• Of the 39 Lord Justices of Appeal, only ten are women.
• Of the 108 High Court Judges, only 32 are women.

In conclusion, whether it is in the public sector or private sector, inclusive practices need to be put in place to ensure that wall genders are equally considered for promotions and high positions. This is not only meaningful to those practicing law but also to the clients represented by lawyers, because a legal system built on equality brings different perspectives, progress and credibility in the field of justice. Addressing the gender gap in law: why representation doesn’t equal inclusion is essential for creating fair promotion pathways and inclusive workplaces.

Thank you for reading and congratulations again to all the shortlisted lawyers!!

Click here to see the shortlists.

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