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Although the article is about "the appointment of a man to lead an initiative aimed at boosting gender diversity among corporate executives", comments have been about the relative scarcity of women in senior positions in law.

I suspect the true cause of this phenomenon is that women still do most of the child rearing, which means their commitment to work - long hours - comes across as less, and so they are passed over or even decline advancement because of the additional responsibilities and time commitment. Some cope well with this, but not everyone has amazing and reliable child care help on tap, and for very many I suspect it is primarily DIY. If more men took on more of the child care role, more women may prosper. Anecdotally one hears this is happening, but it will take years to work its way through.

And yes, there probably are senior lawyers who view women as bad business risks because of the prospect of pregnancy and child care responsibilities limiting their commitment.

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