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While the number of women with successful careers in the law is noticeably better than what it was a generation ago, female lawyers are still statistically more likely to be paid less than their male counterparts, miss out on promotions or lose out on new job opportunities altogether.

Gender equality in the workplace - and in the legal profession - is a massive topic, and while attempting to unpick the intricacies that underpin what's stopping so many women from being treated fairly throughout their legal careers is no easy feat, we thought some first-hand experience from a fast-rising female lawyer might add a fresh perspective to a heavily debated topic.

Change comes from the top down

We spoke with Antonia Croke, a senior associate at top tier law firm, Ashurst, to get her thoughts on diversity and how to get ahead.

We reached out to Croke because of her passion for ensuring the next generation of female lawyers have every chance to succeed.

"I had a mother who worked and a grandmother who firmly believed in educating women, and I believe that if you give women the opportunity, they will demonstrate how valuable they are."

There are a number of ways law firms can approach diversity, she says. "Firms combat diversity challenges in different ways – some with quotas or targets, others with mentoring or sponsorship to give women the tools they need."

But this change needs to come from the top, says Croke. "I think you have to manufacture change from the top down so it can slowly reach a critical mass. When you start getting a more equal split of men and women in meetings and in boardrooms, then all of a sudden you have a different dynamic."

Female mentoring schemes

At Ashurst, Croke has helped to set up mentoring schemes for women, mixing junior and senior associates from different departments – all of whom have chosen to be there.

"You need to engage with mentoring to reap the benefits, but those benefits are real: confidence, and a support network within the firm. It’s really hard to get it right and we need to review and revamp regularly."

Working women need to share more knowledge, ideas and our networks with each other so that we can all be pulling more women up the ladder together, believes Croke.

"With support I see my future in the next five years as a partner at Ashurst, likely in one of our many global offices, but still remaining closely connected with my London colleagues and therefore in a position to mentor, coach and ultimately sponsor other Ashurst women towards success in their careers."

What will the future of law look like for women?

I do think our industry is changing, says Croke. "At Ashurst, slightly more than a quarter of our executive committee are women and we now have four strong senior female partners on the board, including Angela Pearson who has supported and mentored me throughout my time at Ashurst. We’ve also been looking at the broader picture both within and outside the firm: actively promoting women, and putting on and attending events with clients.

But one of our big challenges is engaging men in gender diversity issues and trying to help them understand some of the hurdles we face, she says.

"While we as a firm and a profession are now hosting many gender diversity events, most of the time all the attendees are women and we are therefore just re-educating the educated. We need to cross the barrier and go further, and one idea we are working on is a “bring a date” initiative: if everyone is tasked with just getting one man to attend then that could really get bums on seats and perhaps break down the barriers some men have about being one of few male attendees present."

The recipe for career success for women is not very different to that for men, believes Croke. "It comes down to three things: sponsorship – someone to fight your corner and put you forward in meetings; mentoring – not one, but a broad board of supporters who can offer different things; and professional executive coaching – in the same way you’d have a tennis coach or a personal trainer."

But ultimately, Croke's key piece of advice is to follow what you like and what you’re good at – "the rest will come eventually".

Update: Croke has now moved into a partner role at Hogan Lovells' Hong Kong office where she specialises in dispute resolution.