Women are used to being underrepresented in a host of common sectors. Normally, whenever there’s a “big” sector with important jobs, men make up the majority of employees. That’s not strictly the case in the legal sector, at least not anymore.

Research shows that 53% of lawyers are now women and only 45% are men. The figure for women has increased since 2021, while the one for men has gone down. It shows a rise in women entering the legal sector - but why is this the case?

What’s so special about legal jobs, and why does it look like this trend won’t be slowing down?

More Female Legal Representation & Role Models

You could look at the rise of female legal professionals and see that it coincides with a growing list of legal role models. The last decade or so has thrust people like Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Michelle Obama into the spotlight as amazing women with backgrounds in the legal sector. Young women see people like this in a world full of men and think, why can’t I do that too?

It all comes back to the idea of representation; if you see other famous women doing things in male-dominated industries, you gain more belief that you can follow. Even TV shows like Suits have contributed to this by showing badass female lawyers on the small screen. It might not seem like much, but stuff like that makes a huge difference.

An Increased Demand For Qualified Lawyers

There’s a higher demand for qualified lawyers than there ever has been. This is thanks to all kinds of new laws or regulations after things like Brexit and different political changes. You also have the rise of AI and what that means for copyright laws, etc.

Recruitment company Origin Legal constantly displays hundreds of legal jobs around the UK every day. Most are looking for newly qualified lawyers in certain industries or domains. It shows the growing demand for legal professionals, which many young women have become aware of. They’ve identified an industry that needs more experts, and so they’ve put the work in and gained the right qualifications.

Better Growth Opportunities

Women face all sorts of recruitment and career barriers, but one of the biggest is the lack of growth. It can be easy for a woman to find a basic job - the hard part is making your career go somewhere.

That’s what makes the legal field so attractive. Lawyer jobs or jobs in legal firms are very rarely static. There’s almost always a pathway to grow your career and climb the ladder. You won’t find many careers for women that are like this; there’s usually an invisible barrier stopping your ascent.

Add all three of these factors together, and you get the perfect career concoction. The legal field has become a place where women feel more welcome and see loads of fantastic opportunities. They’ve got people to look up to, and the growth of women in the legal field helps generate even more role models. This doesn’t look like a fleeting trend; it’s something that will continue with time - and hopefully lead to a greater proportion of female partners, too.

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