Women lawyers have an additional glass ceiling in law firms: sexual advances

Success in business development is essential to becoming an equity partner. To meet these rainmaking expectations, lawyers are often advised to participate in social activities that enable them to build relationships with potential clients. For women lawyers, navigating misunderstood signals and occasional inappropriate behaviours from male clients can pose a particular challenge.

I frequently hear from women who have experienced uncomfortable business development moments. One described her pleasant interactions at a dinner with a potential client that she met at a conference. Her hope that their informal conversation could eventually lead to a specific discussion about work opportunities was thwarted, however, by his repeated requests to show her his suite at the conference hotel.

Another lawyer described interactions where her friendly demeanour was misconstrued, resulting in an awkward conversation that dampened the possibility of a future work relationship. Others have reported feeling diminished as lawyers by comments focusing on their appearance and, worse, their anatomy.

When asked how they handled such experiences, most shrugged it off as part of the experiences women face in the workplace. They worry that a sharp rebuke only exacerbates the stereotypes that already may exist. Moreover, some women lawyers worry that their own workplace would not be supportive of a negative interaction with an existing or potential client. As a result, they feel they have little choice but to ignore the behaviours.

There may, indeed, be situations where quietly getting through the awkwardness is the better alternative. But there ought to be - and are - other strategies that can ensure equitable opportunities for successful business development for women in the 21st century workplace.

New strategies

By viewing these challenges through the lens of social science, we are able to validate the experiences of women lawyers and design better strategies to move forward.

Numerous studies have demonstrated that mundane behaviours can yield greater gender differences. Research on perceptions of sexual intent has found that, even as both men and women can misunderstand or misperceive the sexual intentions of others, men will perceive a greater degree of sexual intent in the behaviour of both other men and other women.¹

The data showed that men are more likely to view behaviours that can also be identified as platonic - maintaining eye contact, having dinner, making compliments - as conveying sexual intent. Moreover, these perceptions may also be more pronounced where there appears to be a possibility of a sexual outcome (for example, as found in a study of people in a dating context).

By anticipating the challenges that can arise from these missed cues and misperceptions, it is possible to develop strategies to address at least some aspect of the issues that arise. Such strategies can include the following.

1. Alternative timing - if client meetings over meals work best in business development schedules, consider alternatives to dinner, such as breakfast or lunch meetings.

2. Group outings - several successful women have said that, when inviting an existing or potential client for a drink or dinner, they will include others who it would be helpful for the client to meet. This creates a more comfortable social atmosphere and lessens opportunities for missed cues.

3. Enlist men - in several reported examples, an unwelcome advance veered directly into harassment territory. Swift rebukes from male partners focused on their colleague's professional status have proved helpful. The female lawyers felt that the validating response from men in their firms was not diminishing because they handled the situation not by protecting their gender but by focusing on their skills as lawyers.

In addition to working successfully with men, there is an additional strategy women can employ: develop business from other women. As women become leaders in organisations and have greater roles in hiring outside counsel, opportunities for women increase. This dynamic was discussed in depth at the recent Women's Power Summit for Law and Leadership, which was sponsored by the Center for Women in Law at the University of Texas School of Law.

Equal opportunities

There are workplace boundaries that, when crossed, warrant immediate and firm responses. There are, however, a range of other behaviours that are more complex and require a battery of strategies that will vary with the circumstances.

Human nature will always remain complicated, but ensuring equal opportunities for success should be a collective, gender-neutral goal for our profession.

Lauren Stiller Rikleen is also the executive-in-residence at Boston College Center for Work & Family and author of Success Strategies for Women Lawyers (www.rikleeninstitute.com)

Reference

1. See 'Gender Differences in Perceptions of Sexual Intent: A Qualitative Review and Integration', K.P. Lindgren et al, Psychology of Women Quarterly, Vol. 32, Issue 4, December 2008