The heightened attention on women's rights on March 8 as we celebrate International Women's Day (IWD), serves as an ideal moment to examine how each of us can #BreaktheBias, this year's IWD theme, that contributes to the gender gap. Calls for greater diversity in Big Law have been prevalent for decades, yet women make up little more than a quarter of partners at 10 of the most prestigious firms on both sides of the Atlantic, according to research by diversity-analytics company Pirical. In the United States, the number of "minority partners" is just 10.9%. In my years as a litigator and now as Co-Chief Operating Officer of the world's largest legal finance company, I have always been keenly aware of the importance of a diversity of perspectives on business outcomes. This is particularly true in litigation where complex challenges require creative solutions to achieve the best possible outcomes.

GCs and in-house legal departments, as the purchasers of legal services, are ideally placed to help #BreakTheBias and increase diversity in Big Law. There are a number of ways they can do this.

Challenge the instinct to use litigators you already know.

For most companies, litigation is both an unwanted cost and a major distraction. Thus, when faced with the prospect of high-stakes commercial litigation or arbitration, in-house lawyers naturally turn to counsel they already know, even if that choice isn't optimal for the particular case at hand. As one GC stated in the 2020 Equity Project study: "Hiring is about who you know … No one wants to take a risk in high-stakes commercial litigation."