US judge tells firms to boost female partner numbers

The lack of prominent women leaders in the legal profession is 'probably the most serious problem of all' facing women lawyers, a US Supreme Court judge has said.Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said 'law firms lag far behind government' in putting women in leadership positions.

The comments came in a letter sent to the ABA's commission on women in the profession and distributed at a special meeting of women leaders in London last week.'Unless they make this issue a priority, significant change is not likely to occur,' she said.

Top US firm Sullivan & Cromwell had just made up 'only its third female litigation partner ever'.Judge Bader Ginsburg said that 'enabling women to balance work and family must remain at the top of the agenda'.

The opportunities for women to cut back on their hours without damaging their partnership prospects 'remain far too rare in the legal profession,' she went on.

Neil Rose