Equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) are the lifeblood of any truly healthy profession. They ensure it reflects the many communities it serves, attracts the very best talent from every community and benefits from a rich diversity of thinking. And yet, despite a raft of initiatives over decades, many professions - including our own - are beset by depressing differences in representation and outcomes for those from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, women and the disabled.
The figures do not lie. We know that the journey into and through the profession for some groups can be hobbled by a mix of complex factors. That just can’t be right. That’s why we are committed to cutting edge research that shines a light on the structural and societal issues which could be influencing the stubbornly worrying discrepancies.
One of the most concerning areas is the overrepresentation of Black, Asian and minority ethnic solicitors in complaints to the SRA, and in the resulting investigations. We have established an independent consortium bringing together teams from the universities of York, Cardiff and Lancaster to examine this.
The first step, published today, is a ‘literature review’ which draws together findings and commentary from a comprehensive range of sources. It found little existing research looking specifically at the legal sector, but there were common themes from other sectors which may mean those from certain ethnic backgrounds are more likely to be reported to their regulator for professional misconduct. These included conscious and unconscious perceptions, or expectations among those making the reports. That suggests a greater likelihood that Black, Asian and minority ethnic solicitors will have concerns raised about them with us due to potential ‘socio-cognitive biases’ that influence decision-making by a potential complainant.
The review also suggested that being more exposed to working environments, specific areas of work, or other case-related circumstances that by their very nature generate more reports, could also lead to increased complaints.
However, the findings of this research confirm what we suspected. There is no simple explanation as to why Black, Asian and minority ethnic solicitors are overrepresented in reports made to us. That means that we, working with our researchers, now need to look into the factors identified in greater detail in order to understand how specifically they may manifest in our profession, and try and understand how these issues can be addressed.
To help with this the universities are undertaking an objective and in-depth analysis of our datasets. They will also be conducting primary research, through interviews, to explore the experiences of solicitors and behaviors among legal service users. A final report on the research is expected to published in Spring 2024.
Our second major piece of research focusses on our annual education and training monitoring which shows a widely-acknowledged and persistent difference in legal qualification outcomes by ethnicity in the UK. Similar patterns are seen in school, further and higher education, as well as in other professional assessments and other countries. We asked the University of Exeter’s Schools of Law and Business to look at what causes differences in outcomes for ethnic groups in professional assessments.
It produced a ‘systematic literature review’ which scrutinised over 250 UK and international academic, government and professional reports and articles. What did the review find? Unsurprisingly, nothing pointing to any kind of silver bullet. The reasons are wide and varied, with the key factors being beyond the direct control of candidates themselves. However, it did identify factors that can influence exam performance. These included positive and negative experiences at school, college and university, and the availability of support in education and work for different minority groups. Things like socio-economic status were a factor, together with perceived barriers and/or opportunities to enter and progress in a given profession, based on characteristics such as social background and ethnicity.
The vital thing about the Exeter research is what it allows us to do next. We can now identify a set of potential relationships between ethnicity and performance in legal professional assessments that we will go on to test. The ‘testing’ phase of research will examine the lived experiences of individuals. It will also focus on the views and experiences of senior legal educationalists involved with helping candidates prepare for legal qualifications, and senior individuals in law firms responsible for increasing diversity in their firms. The team will also test specific predictions about causes of differential outcomes in assessments by examining survey-based data that they have gathered from current students hoping to qualify as solicitors. A final report will be published in 2024 and its findings and insight will be taken on board as part of our wider SQE evaluation work.
These two key pieces of research should help us and others – including the profession – to understand how best to tackle the issues and to make sure the legal sector is truly a diverse and inclusive workplace, where people from every background can realise their aspirations.
Paul Philip is chief executive of the Solicitors Regulation Authority
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