With around 80 per cent of UK partner positions currently held by men, the official gender pay gap in the legal sector is about to get a whole lot wider. From April 2018, law firms with over 250 staff will be forced to include partner compensation in the data they provide to the Government Equalities Office. ‘Given the historic inequality at the highest levels of the profession, this is likely to have a significant negative impact on the gender pay gap figures that these firms will have to supply,’ commented Lewis Silkin partner Karen Baxter.
The GEO opened its consultation on Mandatory Gender Pay Gap Reporting on 12 February and will continue to receive responses until 11 March. Its latest clarification on the status of law firm partners under the proposed reporting requirements comes in response to a request from legal information hub Practical Law. It had previously been assumed that partners (‘members’) in limited liability partnerships would fall outside the scope of the reporting requirements.
According to Practical Law, the GEO clarification significantly expands the scope of the draft regulations as had been widely understood. ‘For example, LLP members and some self-employed contractors are likely to be treated as ‘relevant employees’ for [reporting] purposes,’ it argues, meaning that an even greater number of firms are likely to find themselves above the 250-head threshold and as such subject to the new rules. Sources: Law Society Gazette; Gov.uk
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