SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Diversity Lab is proud to announce that more law firms have committed to the Mansfield Certification process than at any point in its history. Nearly all of the firms seeking Mansfield Certification in 2023–24 have renewed their commitment and 19 new firms have joined for the next 2024–25 period, which runs from July 2024 to July 2025. Mansfield is now 365+ firms strong, an indication that the legal profession remains dedicated to its values and commitment to fair and inclusive talent practices.
“We are experiencing firsthand that law firm leaders don’t just say they value DEI, they are taking measurable actions to ensure leadership opportunities are more inclusive. They are opening the door wider”Post this
Mansfield is a year-long structured certification process designed to ensure all qualified talent at participating law firms has a transparent, fair, and equal opportunity to be considered for advancement into leadership. The focus is on opening the door wider and ensuring that opportunities for advancement are inclusive for everyone. Mansfield broadens and expands opportunities; it doesn’t limit or decrease them.
Mansfield launched in 2017 with nearly 35 firms. Today, almost all of these inaugural firms are continuing to pursue certification, even as the parameters and requirements grow increasingly more challenging to implement. Data shows that firms that stay committed and accountable to the Mansfield Certification process year-over-year are making substantial progress in diversifying their leadership.
“White & Case was one of the first firms to adopt Mansfield’s principles in 2017. We remain committed to the principles because a transparent and equitable approach to creating leadership opportunities for everyone benefits our talent and our clients and is an important contributor to our success,” said Heather McDevitt, Chair at White & Case.
Each year, firms are asked to recommit to the principles of transparency, accountability, and knowledge sharing that are required through the certification process. Mansfield supports participating firms by providing the structure and guidance needed to build and maintain transparent processes, open the door wider for all talent, and connect and collaborate with each other to exchange best practices.
This year-over-year commitment to Mansfield is evident in the 2024–25 Certification cohort:
- 99% of large US and Canadian firms renewed from the prior Certification period, and three new firms joined;
- 93% of midsize US and Canadian firms renewed, and 14 new firms joined; and
- 100% of UK firms renewed, and two new firms joined.
Many of the industry’s most prominent law firms are represented in the 365+ firms participating in the 2024–25 Mansfield Certification period, including 83% of the Am Law 100.
To maintain its effectiveness at diversifying leadership over time, the standards for Certification continue to evolve based on data-backed insights. This year, 110 of the 365+ participating firms have expressed interest in piloting potential future additions to Mansfield’s parameters. The Next Gen Pilot asks firms to implement additional tracking and leadership pathway elements — including client credit recognition and relationship partner succession planning — designed to ensure all lawyers have fair and equal opportunities. The goal is to apply lessons learned from the pilot to future iterations of Mansfield.
“We are experiencing firsthand that law firm leaders don’t just say they value DEI, they are taking measurable actions to ensure leadership opportunities are more inclusive. They are opening the door wider,” said Alyssa Jarvis, Director of Mansfield & Strategic Innovations at Diversity Lab.
“We are proud to be part of the growing list of law firms demonstrating their commitment to inclusivity and talent retention through actions that have a proven track record. Adopting Mansfield reflects Sidley’s confidence in our Built to Win programs developed to ensure our attorneys have the opportunity for success and advancement that our clients expect from us,” said Yvette Ostolaza, Sidley’s Management Committee Chair.
Mike Schmidtberger, Sidley’s Executive Committee Chair, added, “We share the Mansfield Certification goal of ensuring fair and equal opportunity for all lawyers. It aligns with Sidley’s mission to attract outstanding lawyers who reflect the global marketplace and the communities that we serve, and to help them reach their full potential.”
The US, Canada, and UK large and midsize law firms seeking Mansfield Certification in 2024–25 are listed below. Firms from this group that achieve Certification after the rigorous year-long process will be announced in Fall 2025. (Please note: Firms participating in the 2023-24 cohort that recently achieved Certification will be announced in September/October 2024.)
True Trailblazers – Firms That Have Achieved Certification & Remained Committed for 7-8 Years
(Adopted Mansfield in 2017–2018 and 2018–2019; Initial Launch with Large Firms in 2017):
| ArentFox Schiff | Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath | Morris, Manning & Martin |
| Arnold & Porter | Fasken | Morrison Foerster |
| Baker Botts | Fenwick & West | Munger, Tolles & Olson |
| Baker McKenzie | Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner | Neal Gerber Eisenberg |
| BCLP (US) | Fish & Richardson | Nixon Peabody |
| Beveridge & Diamond | Goodwin Procter | Norton Rose Fulbright |
| Blank Rome | Goulston & Storrs | Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe |
| Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck | Hogan Lovells | Reed Smith |
| Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney | Holland & Hart | Saul Ewing |
| Clifford Chance (US) | Holland & Knight | Seyfarth Shaw |
| Cooley | Husch Blackwell | Sheppard Mullin |
| Covington & Burling | Jenner & Block | Stoel Rives |
| Crowell & Moring | Katten Muchin Rosenman | Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders |
| Day Pitney | Kaufman Dolowich | White & Case |
| Dechert | Latham & Watkins | WilmerHale |
| Dentons US | Littler | Wilson Sonsini |
| DLA Piper | McDermott Will & Emery | Winston & Strawn |
| Dorsey & Whitney | Miller, Canfield, Paddock and Stone | Womble Bond Dickinson US |
| Eversheds Sutherland | Morgan, Lewis & Bockius |
Early Adopters – Firms That Have Achieved Certification & Remained Committed for 5-6 Years
(Adopted Mansfield in 2019–2020 and 2020–2021; Initial Launch with Midsize Firms in 2020):
| A&O Shearman | Haynes Boone | Pillsbury |
| Akin | Hunton Andrews Kurth | Polsinelli |
| Archer & Greiner | Ice Miller | Porter Wright Morris & Arthur |
| Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz | Ivins, Phillips & Barker | Procopio, Cory Hargreaves & Savitch |
| Ballard Spahr | Jackson Lewis | Robins Kaplan |
| Boies Schiller Flexner | K&L Gates | Robinson+Cole |
| Bricker Graydon | Kean Miller | Severson & Werson |
| Brown Rudnick | Koley Jessen | Shipman & Goodwin |
| Chapman and Cutler | Lane Powell | Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom |
| Clyde & Co | Locke Lord | Stinson |
| Cozen O’Connor | Marshall, Gerstein & Borun | Stoll Keenon Ogden |
| Davis Wright Tremaine | Mayer Brown | Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young |
| Dentons Canada | McAndrews, Held, & Malloy | Summit Law Group |
| Dinsmore & Shohl | McDowell Hetherington | Taft |
| Drew Eckl & Farnham | McGuireWoods | The Cook Group |
| Duane Morris | Merchant & Gould | Thompson Coburn |
| Fisher Phillips | Meunier Carlin & Curfman | Thompson Hine |
| Foley Hoag | MG+M The Law Firm | Tucker Ellis |
| Fredrikson & Byron | Miller Nash | Vinson & Elkins |
| Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer US | Much Shelist | Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease |
| Frost Brown Todd | Nutter McClennen and Fish | Wilkinson Barker Knauer |
| Goldberg Kohn | Patterson + Sheridan | Williams & Connolly |
| Greenberg Traurig | Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler | ZwillGen |
| Hanson Bridgett | Paul Hastings | |
| Hausfeld | Perkins Coie |
Trendsetters – Firms That Have Achieved Certification & Remained Committed for 2-4 Years
(Adopted Mansfield in 2021–2022 and 2022–2023; Initial Launch with UK Firms in 2021):
| A&O Shearman (UK) | Gould & Ratner | Miller & Chevalier |
| Adams and Reese | Gowling WLG (UK) | Mintz |
| Alston & Bird | Grant & Eisenhofer | Morrison Cohen |
| Armstrong Teasdale | Greenspoon Marder | Nelson Mullins Riley and Scarborough |
| Aronberg Goldgehn | Hahn Loeser & Parks | Ogletree Deakins |
| Baird Holm | Hall Render | O’Hagan Meyer |
| BakerHostetler | Hancock Daniel and Johnson | Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein |
| Barack Ferrazzano Kirschbaum & Nagelberg | Harness IP | Parker, Hudson, Rainer & Dobbs |
| Barnes & Thornburg | Harter Secrest & Emery | Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison |
| Bass, Berry & Sims | Hartline Barger | Phelps Dunbar |
| BCLP (UK) | Haug Partners | Phillips Murrah |
| Benesch | Hawkins Parnell & Young | Phillips Nizer |
| Bird & Bird (UK) | Higgs, Fletcher & Mack | Plunkett Cooney |
| Bodman | Hillis Clark Martin & Peterson | Porter Hedges |
| Bradley Arant Boult Cummings | Hinckley Allen | Porzio Bromberg & Newman |
| Bressler Amery & Ross | Hinshaw & Culbertson | Prince Lobel |
| Brown & James | Hirschler | Pryor Cashman |
| Buchalter | Hoagland, Longo, Moran, Dunst & Doukas | Quarles & Brady |
| Burke, Williams & Sorensen | Hogan Lovells (UK) | Reed Smith (UK) |
| Burr & Forman | Honigman | Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren |
| Butler Snow | Hooper, Lundy & Bookman | Robbins Schwartz |
| Calfee, Halter & Griswold | HWG | Robinson Bradshaw |
| Cassels Brock & Blackwell | Jackson Walker | Roetzel & Andress |
| CDF Labor Law | Jones Walker | Roig Lawyers |
| Chamberlain Hrdlicka | Keating Muething & Klekamp | Rutan & Tucker |
| Clark Hill | Kegler Brown Hill & Ritter | Sandberg Phoenix & von Gontard |
| Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton | Keker, Van Nest & Peters | Sands Anderson |
| Clifford Chance (UK) | Keller and Heckman | Saxe, Doernberger & Vita |
| Clyde & Co (UK) | Kennedys (US and UK) | Schwabe, Williamson and Wyatt |
| Coblentz Patch Duffy & Bass | Kitch Attorneys & Counselors | Sherman & Howard |
| Collins + Collins | Klarquist Sparkman | Shook, Hardy & Bacon |
| Connell Foley | Klinedinst | Skarzynski Marick & Black |
| Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete | Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel | Smith Anderson |
| Cooley (UK) | Lathrop GPM | Squire Patton Boggs |
| Cowan, Liebowitz & Latman | Levenfeld Pearlstein | Stark & Stark |
| Cox, Castle & Nicholson | Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith | Steptoe LLP |
| Davis Polk & Wardwell | Lewis Roca | Steptoe & Johnson PLLC |
| Davis+Gilbert | Lightfoot, Franklin & White | Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox |
| Debevoise & Plimpton | Linklaters (US) | Sullivan & Cromwell |
| Dechert (UK) | Liskow | Sullivan & Worcester |
| Degan, Blanchard & Nash | Loeb & Loeb | Swift, Currie, McGhee & Hiers |
| DLA Piper (UK) | Loopstra Nixon | Taylor Wessing (UK) |
| Dority & Manning | Manatt, Phelps & Phillips | Thompsons Solicitors (UK) |
| Dykema Gossett | Martin Clearwater & Bell | Tiber Hudson |
| Epstein Becker & Green | Maslon | UB Greensfelder |
| Erise IP | Mayer Brown (UK) | Varnum |
| Farella Braun + Martel | Maynard Nexsen | Vedder Price |
| Finn Dixon & Herling | McDermott Will & Emery (UK) | Venable |
| Fitch, Even, Tabin & Flannery | McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff | Waldon Adelman Castilla McNamara & Prout |
| Foley Mansfield | McGinnis Lochridge | Walsworth |
| Foster Swift Collins & Smith | McGivney, Kluger, Clark & Intoccia | Weil, Gotshal & Manges |
| Fox Rothschild | McGlinchey Stafford | Wiggin and Dana |
| Frantz Ward | McGrath North Mullin and Kratz | Willkie Farr & Gallagher |
| Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (UK) | McKool Smith | Wilson Elser |
| Fried Frank | McLane Middleton | Winget, Spadafora & Schwartzberg |
| Friedman Kaplan Seiler Adelman & Robbins | Meagher + Geer | Wolf, Greenfield and Sacks |
| Gibbons | Messner Reeves | Womble Bond Dickinson (UK) |
| Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher | Milbank | Wyrick Robbins |
Recent Adopters – Firms That Joined Mansfield Most Recently
(Adopted Mansfield in 2023–2024 and 2024–2025; New Firms Marked With an Asterisk):
| Atheria Law | Franklin & Prokopik | Nossaman |
| Axinn, Veltrop & Harkrider | Galloway, Johnson, Tompkins, Burr & Smith* | Redgrave* |
| Bilzin Sumberg* | Gilbert | Reilly McDevitt and Henrich |
| Blue Williams | Glenn Agre Bergman & Fuentes | Rogers Joseph O’Donnell* |
| Bose McKinney & Evans* | Goodwin Procter (UK) | Segal McCambridge Singer and Mahoney |
| Burns White* | Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani | Sheridan Ross* |
| Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft | Gowling WLG (Canada) | Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick |
| Caplin & Drysdale | Groombridge, Wu, Baughman & Stone | Sidley Austin* |
| Carter Ledyard & Milburn | Hall & Evans* | Smith Gambrell Russell* |
| Chartwell Law | Hecker Fink* | Spencer Fane* |
| Chiesa Shahinian & Giantomasi | Heidell, Pittoni, Murphy & Bach* | Spilman Thomas & Battle |
| Christian & Small | Hill Wallack | Stites & Harbison |
| Cohen & Gresser | Kaufman Borgeest & Ryan* | Stradling Yocca Carlson & Rauth |
| Cole Schotz | Lee & Hayes | Swanson, Martin & Bell |
| Dawda Mann* | Linklaters (UK) | Tyson & Mendes |
| F3 Law | Lynn Pinker Hurst & Schwegmann* | Warner Norcross + Judd |
| Fahey Schultz Burzych Rhodes | Maron Marvel | Willkie Farr & Gallagher (UK)* |
| Fennemore | McCalla Raymer Leibert Pierce | Winthrop & Weinstine |
| Fletcher Yoder | McCarter & English | Wise Carter Child & Caraway |
| Foster Garvey* | Moore & Van Allen | Withersworldwide (US & UK) |
| Fox Swibel Levin & Carroll | Munsch Hardt Kopf & Harr |
About Diversity Lab: We envision a world where the leaders are as diverse as the workforces and communities they represent. For more details, visit www.diversitylab.com.
Our Work: Diversity Lab designs, tests, and measures the outcomes of science-based and data-driven talent practices that allow for fair and equal access to advancement opportunities.
Our Focus: Our primary focus is on leaders in law, since they often rise to positions of influence in government, boardrooms, courtrooms, and beyond. The more diverse our leadership, the more inclusive and equitable the decisions for the benefit of everyone.
Our Impact: Inclusion is the goal, greater diversity — in leadership and beyond — is the outcome.
© 2024 Diversity Lab
Contacts
Caren Ulrich Stacy
caren@diversitylab.com
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