Liberalisation, diversification, and a drive to align with international standards are transforming the Middle East's legal market into a crucible of change.

There has been a continued rise in prominence of the role of chief diversity officers in law firms globally as the legal industry has gradually taken stock of the need to pursue DEI goals. Apart from creating a forward-looking workplace, cultural awareness also adds value to the firm’s calibre in the eyes of clients. ALB hears from diversity leaders on how empowering inclusion can make a law firm stronger.

"The Asian legal market has developed to become much more intra-regional, particularly with the expansion of PRC and Japanese law firms into the global financial centres of Hong Kong and Singapore. I think this is a positive trend reflective of the market's growing maturity, and also the opportunities it presents and will likely continue despite current global economic uncertainty."

Almost six decades since the passage of the Women’s Charter in parliament, like many other Asian countries, Singapore is still grappling with one of its most entrenched socioeconomic challenges – gender inequality.

The time has come when diversity and inclusion (D&I) are required for law firms. Now, it is increasingly common for client companies to want their advising team to be diverse. In addition to this, in terms of talent acquisition, recently firms that have not attained enough D&I tend to be avoided. Each office must continue to focus efforts on being a “chosen law firm” out of necessity.

A partner at Mayer Brown’s London office has rejected his inclusion in a Chambers and Partners 2020 ranking, calling on other male lawyers included in the list to follow suit until a greater number of female lawyers are recognized.

Over the past few years, corporate-backed initiatives that encourage diversity and inclusion have grown increasingly prominent in Europe and the U.S. In Asia, progress has been slower, but the positives extend beyond this simply being a social good. For those making progress in this area, there are commercial benefits to be enjoyed, lawyers say.

The number of in-house lawyers is on the rise in Japan, but more noteworthy, in a country with notoriously poor gender parity, is that the trend has been noticeably female.