Up to PAR

PAR member Andrews Kurth LLP is making some great progress in promoting women. Forty percent of the firm’s 2011 partner class is women. In addition, two of the four women elected to partnership are on the firm’s Flex Path program.

Andrews Kurth’s success in promoting women, including women on reduced hours schedules, is consistent with PAR’s Part-Time Partner Study, which shows that part-time partners are having successful careers with their law firms. One benefit of supporting part-time partners, which came out in the study, is the retention value. In the study, more than three-fourths of the partners interviewed began working reduced hours at their current firms, and the average tenure of the those partners is 12 years (ranging from four to 37). Given that more than half of women lawyers leave their law firms by their seventh year, this longevity is noteworthy. Most of the respondents to the survey reported being satisfied or very satisfied with their part-time arrangements. Many expressed a desire to stay at their firm; 84% of respondents answering this question said they would stay with their firms for the next five years if it were up to them. By investing in their high-potential women, whether on a regular or reduced schedule, firms will reap the reward of long-term commitment from their partners. As one partner in the study stated, “I would never go to another law firm anywhere, ever, under any circumstances. I’m absolutely certain of that. “