‘Route to success in law’ at BLP

Berwin Leighton Paisner, the international law firm, are running an inaugural ‘Route to success in law’ event on the 11th April, an event aimed at addressing the issue of underrepresentation of black people in the legal profession.

As such, they have invited African-Caribbean students to their offices in London Bridge for the event, which is fully entitled “Underrepresentation of black people in Law: Your route to success”. The event will attempt to encourage greater diversity across legal services, as the industry remains one of the least diverse across the UK.

Last year, the Diversity League Tables Report highlighted that the proportion of black solicitors in the UK stood at just 1.4%, which is almost 50% lower than it should be in accordance with the diversity of the UK population. It was also highlighted that this disproportionality is even more prominent in commercial law firms in London.

The day will include a variety of different sessions, such as debates on the drawbacks of entering the legal sector as a minority, as well as application advice from the BLP recruitment team and talks from some of the UK’s leading black legal professionals, including Tunde Okewale, Segun Osuntokun and Natalie Carter.

Claire England, who is the Inclusivity Manager at BLP, stated: “The proportion of solicitors from minority backgrounds in the industry is not remotely close to where it should be in the UK and this is something the whole industry must stand up and address.

“At BLP, we truly recognise the importance of diversity and want to take a leading role in championing the changing makeup of the legal profession to better reflect the society we live in.

“This event is a first from a law firm and we believe it will help to inspire those from African and Caribbean backgrounds to consider a career in the world of law. We encourage students from a wide range of ethnic backgrounds to attend our event and apply for our many graduate roles.”

BLP are offering free tickets to the event to all black students and graduates interested in a legal career, and have also stated that travel expenses of up to £100 will be covered by the firm. The event will take place at BLP’s London Bridge offices on 11th April between 11am and 6pm. 

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