Goodwin achieved Diversity Lab’s Mansfield Rule 5.0 certification after completing a twelve-month certifications program aimed at diversifying leadership.
The certification attests that Goodwin affirmatively considered at least 30 percent women, lawyers from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, LGBTQ+ lawyers, and lawyers with disabilities for leadership and governance roles, equity partner promotions, formal client pitch opportunities, and senior lateral positions.
“We believe organizations can’t move the needle on diversity, equity and inclusion when they assign the job solely to the DEI team,” said Yakiry Adal, Goodwin’s Managing Director of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion. “Success requires systemic and cultural change at all levels within an organization. It needs to be led from the top and practiced by every leader in the organization, intentionally and consistently, which is the approach we have adopted at Goodwin. As an inaugural Mansfield participant, we’ve appreciated the rigor applied to certification year after year. For several years now, the majority of our promoted partner classes have been comprised of individuals from historically excluded communities, and representation in our leadership positions exceeds 40%.”
This marks Goodwin’s fifth consecutive year of Mansfield Rule certification, which was first issued to the firm in 2018.
Goodwin also signed on to the next iteration of the Mansfield Rule, 6.0 certification. New for this version, Diversity Lab expands the criteria to ensure that firms:
- Consider at least 30% lawyers from all four historically underrepresented groups when appointing to leadership roles and promoting into the equity partnership, among a dozen other activities that focus on the path to leadership; and
- Consider 30% underrepresented talent for C-suite roles.
Diversity Lab is an incubator for innovative ideas and solutions that boost diversity and inclusion in law. Experimental ideas like the Mansfield Rule are created through hackathons and piloted in collaboration with more than 250 top law firms and legal departments across the country.
Goodwin partners with Diversity Lab on several diversity and inclusion initiatives. The firm participates in Diversity Lab’s OnRamp Fellowship program, which provides a platform for women lawyers to re-enter the legal profession after stepping away from the practice of law for a period of time. Goodwin also placed among the top ten highest scoring firms in Diversity Lab’s Inclusion Blueprint Survey, which measures gender diversity in law firm leadership as well as the work experiences of women at the practice group level, with a particular focus on intellectual property.
Learn more about Goodwin’s Diversity, Equity + Inclusion efforts.
For more information, read Diversity Lab’s open letter.