Steptoe & Johnson LLP on Tuesday became the latest major law firm to face accusations that it discriminates against woman lawyers.


Ji-In Lee Houck.


courtesy photo

A former Steptoe contract lawyer and associate, Ji-In Houck, filed a proposed class action against the firm in Los Angeles federal court, alleging that she did effectively the same work as male and other associates at the firm, but that her salary was only a fraction of what her peers made.

“Despite paying lip-service to diversity in its workforce, and even counseling the firm's own clients on policies to avoid pay discrimination, defendant Steptoe & Johnson LLP … subjects its female attorneys to unequal pay,” Houck's lawyer, Lori Andrus of Andrus Anderson, wrote in the complaint.