Frost Brown Todd (FBT) is among 42 law firms in the United States that have earned the 2018 Gold Standard Certification by the Women in Law Empowerment Forum (WILEF). In a report issued by WILEF today, firms are recognized for the leadership roles achieved by their equity women partners.
“The progress of women in the professional world is at a tipping point,” says Kim Mauer, Chair of FBT’s Women’s Initiative. “As a six-time recipient of the WILEF award, we think that Frost Brown Todd is in the right place at the right time to take advantage of this building energy. The work that we have done as a firm permits Frost Brown Todd to fully realize on its efforts to become a place where everyone is acknowledged for the talents they bring. And this will result in our being able to work even more effectively for our clients.
The Women in Law Empowerment Forum (WILEF) is the premier organization for women in law, dedicated to educating women on how to become leaders in their workplace and in the community. Founded in 2007 as a forum to educate and provide networking opportunities, WILEF has become a recognized educational venue for women at the largest law firms and corporate law departments. The Gold Standard Certification initiative is the centerpiece of WILEF’s continued commitment as the change agent for women in law.
Law firms with 300 or more practicing lawyers in the United States are eligible for the certification if they can demonstrate that women represent a meaningful percentage of their equity partners and highest leadership positions. Specifically, to be considered for the Gold Standard Certification in 2018, WILEF used the new, mandatory criterion that at least 20% of all equity partners at the firm are women or, alternatively, 33 percent or more of the attorneys who became equity partners during the past 12 months were women. In addition, WILEF only considered firms that also met at least three of the following five criteria:
- 15% of firm and U.S. branch office heads are women.
- 20% of the firm’s governance committee are women.
- 20% of the firm’s compensation committee or its equivalent are women.
- 15% of the top half of the firm’s equity partners in terms of compensation are women.
- 7% of women equity partners are women of color or 3.5 percent of women equity partners are LGBT.
Frost Brown Todd is a full-service law firm serving some of America’s top corporations and emerging companies. More than 500 attorneys in 12 offices in Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia provide services to meet clients’ needs; deliver the insights and solutions available only from a diverse group of professionals; and support the communities in which they operate.
To learn more, visit www.frostbrowntodd.com.
To view all the firms awarded the Gold Standard Certification in 2018, click here.
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