Once again, McGuireWoods has achieved Mansfield Certification Plus status after completing a 12-month certification program, from July 2023 to July 2024, thereby fulfilling a commitment to increase firmwide inclusivity and diversity in leadership.
Now entering its eighth year, the Mansfield Rule has become the standard by which law firms track and measure whether they have affirmatively considered at least 30% women, lawyers from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, lawyers with disabilities and LGBTQ+ attorneys for top leadership roles, senior-level lateral hiring, promotions into the equity partnership and participation in client pitch meetings. To increase transparency and broaden the slate of talent considered for opportunities, firms that attained this designation have included written advancement processes and leadership role descriptions, which are clear and accessible to all lawyers who meet the leadership requirements for these roles.
According to an Oct. 2, 2024, announcement from Diversity Lab, more than 360 law firms in the United States and Canada became Mansfield certified for 2023-2024. More than half of those firms, including McGuireWoods, qualified for “Mansfield Certification Plus,” meaning they voluntarily measure the outcomes of their inclusive processes and have achieved positive results.
McGuireWoods already has committed to participating in the current version of the program, which runs from July 2024 to July 2025. Participating in the Mansfield program strongly aligns with McGuireWoods’ strategy regarding diversity and inclusion to focus on leadership. The firm’s Diverse Associates Leadership Program and Women’s Leadership Development Forum were designed to equip top-performing associates of color, women and LGBTQ+ associates with the leadership skills essential to their development and advancement into the partnership ranks of the firm.
Several years ago, the firm adopted the Rooney Rule when recruiting associates to ensure that women and attorneys of color were candidates for all open positions managed by the Attorney Recruitment. McGuireWoods’ implementation of the Rooney Rule pre-dated the announcement of the Mansfield Rule. The early adoption of the Rooney Rule helped the firm increase the diversity of its associate population, including increased numbers of women, lawyers of color, and lawyers from the LGBTQ+ community.