Carmarthen firm Ungoed-Thomas & King has become the 200th firm to sign up to the Law Society’s Diversity and Inclusion Charter.

One third of private practice solicitors now work in firms that have signed up to the flagship diversity initiative that was launched last year.

The charter is a public commitment by providers of legal services to develop and implement best practice in equality, diversity and inclusion - as employers, as providers of legal services, as purchasers of goods and services, and in their wider roles in society.

A central plank of the charter is the protocol on the procurement of legal services, where purchasers of legal services commit to collecting and considering standard diversity information from any law firms tendering for legal work.

Firms signed up to the charter follow a monitoring and reporting protocol which provides best practice guidance in the collection and monitoring of workforce diversity information.

Law Society President John Wotton (pictured) said: ‘The Charter movement is gaining pace rapidly, confirming the profession's commitment to achieving greater inclusion in its ranks.’

‘It is essential that legal services reflect the society we serve today. It makes business sense because it helps to attract and retain the best talent, understand and meet clients' needs more effectively and it is also, quite simply, the right thing to do,’ he said.

Sue Nelson, chair of the Law Society's equality and diversity committee, said: ‘The Law Society is committed to providing a growing range of practical tools for legal practices to use to overcome the undoubted challenges of achieving inclusion.’

She added: ‘Outcome focused regulation starts in just 10 weeks’ time, and charter signatories can have greater confidence that they will meet the Solicitors Regulation Authority’s requirements.’

This year the Law Society has revised the charter’s reporting standards to make them easier to use and to improve the effectiveness of tracking diversity and inclusion progress.

The Law Society has also made it easier for small firms (25 employees or less) to participate in the charter by developing a set of standards specifically for small firms.

Wotton said: ‘The Charter is for the whole of the profession. It is still a relatively new initiative and we are constantly listening to our members’ feedback on how effective and user friendly the charter is.’