Clifford Chance (CC) senior associate Eraldo d'Atri is part of the firm's team acting pro bono for equality campaigner Christie Elan-Cane on efforts to convince the UK Government to issue gender-neutral passports.

Ahead of this weekend's Pride in London Parade, he spoke to Legal Week about his experiences as a gay man in City law, co-chairing his firm's LGBTI+ network, and the latest developments in the 'X' passports case.

What was your childhood like?

"Growing up in southern Italy, I had no role models. I lived in a small city – there weren't any 'out' gay people that I knew of. My family is very liberal and non-religious, so that was not an issue, but I wasn't really out even to myself. It took me a bit longer than it seems to do for most people nowadays. I came out to myself in university – that's when you start to get to know different types of people. But then it was still a slow process – it started out with telling a few friends, then family and then a wider and wider group of people."

What have your experiences been like with support networks for LGBTI+ people in the City?

"When I joined CC 10 years ago, the firm's LGBTI+ network, Arcus, had just been founded. Throughout my time at the firm I've found that that has been a really good platform for role models – suddenly I was introduced to associates who were gay, partners who were gay, allies, and an established support network. It is also a platform to develop your career – it gives you access to senior people and the opportunity to be in contact with people in other networks at client organisations."

Have you found that you have been more or less inclined to speak about your sexuality within a work context over the years?

"I really believe that you can only truly excel in a work context if you are true to yourself and you can bring your whole self to work. Of course, being gay is not the only part of me, it's one – albeit important – part of many. It is important to excel here, it's what our clients expect from us. Here you have the opportunity to be who you are, and people don't just tolerate it but they celebrate it.

"Ten years ago there was definitely tolerance, but what's happening now is that businesses are really realising there is a lot of potential in celebrating and embracing diversity. Clients take a direct interest in diversity and inclusion these days so there is a real understanding that the work of LGBTI+ networks like Arcus is not only the right thing to do – it's also good for business."

What has been your biggest challenge when dealing with being LGBTI+ and working in the City?

"As a business we are all exposed to people of different cultures and different sensitivities around diversity. I guess the challenge has always been, and remains, to navigate those sensitives in a way that is true to who I am. But it's something that is not specific to the LGBTI+ community. Everyone in a way has to deal with some sort of tuning process and navigating different sensitivities in a work context whilst remaining true to oneself.

"I would say that it's very important to be true to yourself – if you do that, people will just get behind you. You shouldn't wait for people to come and help you. Look out for those allies, mentors and sponsors. I'm fortunate that our management is very much attuned to and champions LGBTI+ issues."

Do you think there is any room for improvement, in terms of attitudes towards the LGBT community? Are there still barriers that need to be broken down?

"My experience has been very positive, but you have to be aware that gay men only represent one of the letters in LGBTI+. There is a lot more than can still be done within the LGBT community – each component has slightly different needs and challenges which should be considered. I'm now the co-chair of the firm's LGBTI+ network and something that is important to me is to get more gay women involved in our network and activities. There's also room for improvement on trans issues, particularly in terms of people's understanding of trans issues and the specific challenges that our trans colleagues face within the workplace.

"We also should appreciate that being LGBTI+ is not be the only aspect of someone's identity and we can and should find ways of supporting people who are both LGBTI+ and from minority ethnic groups or have a disability – this is what we refer to as intersectionality. There are things that we can do to improve people's attitudes in this context. For example, we run joint events with the BAME (black, Asian and minority ethnic) network, that centre on Carnival and that's again a great way of getting people to see two aspects of a similar issue of diversity. What better way to get people to work together than to celebrate together?"

What is your role on the gender-neutral passports case?

"I am leading the team at CC, working closely with the client to set the litigation strategy and working with the team here to ensure that we deliver against that strategy.

How long was the process leading up to the High Court's recent ruling against gender-neutral passports?

"Christie first applied for a non-gendered passport in 1995, with CC getting involved on a pro bono basis in 2013. Our first project was to review the legal frameworks on gender-neutral passports around the world, which we provided to HM Passport Office to encourage them to change their policy. Needless to say, they refused. Shortly after this, Parliament's Women and Equalities Select Committee also recommended that the Government introduce gender-neutral passports so we put our plans on hold to see what would happen, but once again the Government refused to make the change. It was after this that we resumed our litigation strategy in earnest, commencing the judicial review application in June 2017."

What prompted you to get involved in the case in the first place?

"I'm conscious that the experiences of the trans community are different to mine and therefore I was keen to learn more about something that I had not been exposed to. Meeting our client, Christie, has been an eye-opener. Gender identity is a fundamental part of an individual's intimate, personal identity, and gender-neutral passports are a crucial step in the protection of the human rights of this group of individuals, who otherwise face an unacceptable choice between forgoing a passport, and making a false declaration, and using a passport which misrepresents their essential and deeply held personal identity. Access to justice is central to CC's responsible business strategy, and the firm was very supporting of us taking the case on a pro bono basis."

How did you feel when you heard the High Court's response?

"We were disappointed with the outcome as it leaves the UK, unlike many other countries, still denying non-gendered citizens a passport that reflects their true identity. Despite this, for the first time in the UK, the courts have recognised that the European Convention on Human Rights guarantees a right to respect for non-gendered identity, a crucial first step in the legal recognition of non-gendered people. So I'm very proud to have been part of setting a new legal precedent on gender identity and LGBTI+ rights.

"As a result of the judgment, the Government can no longer ignore the rights of non-gendered persons in its policy decisions, including its passport policy. This may yet influence the Government's current review of gender markers in official documents and gender recognition."

What are the next steps for the case?

"We remain committed to Christie's cause. We have applied for leave to appeal the judgment. Regardless of the outcome, as the court expressly recognised, our client will be entitled to scrutinise the review that the Government is currently undertaking, and we will continue to assist Christie to hold the Government to account as part of this policy review."