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I recently read that for the first time in the United States, more women than men will be entering law school. What impact do you think this will have on the legal profession in coming years? Why do you think young women today are attracted to law as a career?

"In the early 1970s, women made up less than 10 percent of students enrolled in law schools accredited by the American Bar Association," says Dan Freehling, professor and associate dean of information services at the School of Law. "This percentage has increased every year since; by 1985, women represented 40 percent of law school enrollment. The percentage reached 49.4 last fall.

"Through March 31 this year, female applicants to law schools actually outnumber male applicants -- 35,249 to 34,667. A recent New York Times article states that 'women are expected to be the majority of students entering law school this fall . . . '

"This would not be a new situation for BU's School of Law. Women have outnumbered men at LAW in the last three entering classes, and preliminary data indicate that this trend will continue in 2001. As of April 1, of more than 5,000 applicants, women outnumber men by nearly 700.

"What is responsible for this extraordinary change in law school demographics? Could it be that law schools and perhaps even the legal profession generally are more receptive to women than other possible career alternatives? One of my colleagues opines that undergraduate math and science departments may not always be female-friendly, and this could skew choices in graduate education for women. Another colleague speculates that in law, unlike in business, one is not as dependent (or at least perceived to be as dependent) on contacts in order to be successful. I suppose this may be true on some levels, but certainly this is not a universally held belief among women in some law firms.

Recently we held an open house for admitted students, and I asked several women why they decided to attend law school. Their reasons were really no different from those of male applicants: law is a profession that permits one to have a societal impact; law is good training for politics and business; one can be financially independent as a lawyer; and despite the frequent jokes about lawyers and the ethical lapses by some members of the bar, law remains a highly regarded profession.

"But does this growth in the number of women graduating from law school portend a sea change for the profession? Certainly there have been enormous changes in the profession. There are currently two women on the U.S. Supreme Court, a woman has served as attorney general of the United States, and closer to home, Margaret Marshall is chief justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. These are only a few of the countless examples that could be cited.

"Yet in one significant segment of law practice -- large law firms -- one would be hard-pressed to say that a complete transformation has occurred. In a survey of the nation's 250 largest law firms conducted by the National Law Journal, it was found that the proportion of female associates grew from 39 percent in 1998 to 41.2 percent in 2000. Yet the total number of women in these firms (associates and partners) grew less than one percent (30.3 percent to 31 percent) during the same period. Perhaps even more telling is that the number of female partners in these firms actually decreased from 15.7 percent to 15.6 percent, and the number of female equity partners declined even more.

"What is going on here? Certainly life/work conflicts are part of the answer, at least to the extent that women bear a disproportionate share of child-rearing and other family responsibilities. More women than men ask for part-time employment and leaves of absence. Such things take women out of the traditional partnership track in large firms. Part-time employees may not receive the most important assignments; this, too, lessens chances for promotion.

"Curiously, two recent events -- substantial increases in new associates' salaries and the slowdown in the economy -- may drive even more women from large firm practice. For the LAW class of 2000, the median starting salary was over $120,000 for graduates taking a law firm job. These extraordinary starting salaries seem to have created a be-careful-what-you-ask-for situation. The big firms are expecting even more productivity from their associates, including in some cases an increase in the minimum billable hours per year. (To provide perspective, it is not unusual in large law firms for part-time to be defined as working 40 hours per week.)

"As far as the economy goes, there are some early indications that firms are cutting costs by terminating associates viewed as underperformers. Will women (or men, for that matter) be willing to ask for flexible schedules under these circumstances? If the expectations of firms are even greater than, say, two years ago, it certainly raises the possibility that work/life conflicts will also be greater. If so, will it mean that even more women will leave large firm practice, or will these firms provide more flexible alternatives, even if only to curtail the enormous costs associated with attrition?

"These are certainly issues worth keeping on the radar screen. Where will the profession be in five years?"

27 April 2001
Boston University
Office of University Relations