The report, Stop the Talent Leak, was produced by City law firm BCLP in collaboration with diversity specialists Diverse Talent Networks. It is based on responses from 48 South Asian partners at large London-based law firms and 15 follow-up interviews.
South Asian lawyers represent roughly 3.3% of partners at these firms, indicating a 50% underrepresentation.
An equal proportion of the partners noted cliquey and exclusive behaviour in their workplace, and many highlighted an “ethnic dimension” in legal networking.
Additionally, 30% of these partners reported being unfairly denied promotions or opportunities due to discrimination. Workplace discrimination included "microaggressions" experienced by 63% of respondents and the use of racial slurs reported by 31%.
Despite these challenges, only 6% of South Asian partners left their job or firm due to discrimination, and just one respondent reported the incident to someone who could address it.
Researchers found that nearly two-thirds of partners chose not to seek redress, opted to ignore the incidents and continued their work in order to avoid stress.
One lawyer recounted, “You’d get those random comments: ‘Oh, I’ve never met anyone Asian before,’ or, ‘It’s funny, you don’t smell of curry.’ When I joined, no one bothered to learn my name because it was difficult. I shortened my name to something easier to pronounce to fit in. Some even anglicized their names.”
Gaining support from supervisors and other partners was seen as a crucial part of career success by 80% of responders, however two thirds believe that their own hard work was the main factor over personal sponsorships.
The report recommends supporting junior and mid-level South Asian lawyers through unbiased work allocation, transparent promotion criteria, and purposeful networking, mentoring, and sponsorship from senior figures within the majority group. It also suggests challenging alcohol-based networking and socialising, which can create exclusionary informal networks.
Sunita Chawla, partner and co-chair of BCLP’s global inclusion and diversity action board, stated, “The report’s findings starkly highlight that exclusion and discrimination still exist in the profession. Positive change is essential to ensure law firm leadership reflects our diverse society.”
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