Extense Thursday organised The 1% Study Report Launch, a virtual panel event discussing The 1% Study and its findings that brought to light the under-representation of minorities within the UK legal profession.

The total population of the UK, according to the 2011 Census, comprises of only 3.3% Black ethnic groups out of 56.1 million people where “86.0% of the population was White[.]” The 1% Study highlights under-representation in the legal profession by reporting that “[j]ust 90 of more than 13,000 partners at major law firms in England and Wales are Black[.]” This equates to only 1% of Black partners at major law firms, which highlights the need for the legal profession to address “barriers to progression” with “importance and urgency[.]” The 1% Study was sponsored by the following five law firms: Linklaters, Herbert Smith Freehills UK, Latham & Watkins, Hogan Lovells, and DLA Piper. 

The 1% Study began “21-months ago to distil the factors that Black Partners attribute to helping them reach the top of the profession and discover evidence-based solutions to encourage greater representation” throughout law firms. Overall, The 1% Study “outlines five key actions law firms can take to retain and progress Black talent to senior levels.”

The official Patron of The 1% Study is David Lammy, Shadow Foreign Secretary. In 2017, David Lammy published The Lammy Review, which discussed the criminal justice system’s “treatment of, and outcomes for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic individuals” that conveyed necessary changes Lammy hopes will be addressed and resolved.