Women now outnumber men as law firm associates nationwide, here’s how Pittsburgh stacks up

PITTSBURGH — Women account for more than half of the associates at U.S. law firms, or 50.1%, but just 27.76% of partners, according to NALP’s recently released annual report on diversity.

The report is based on information from the 2023 NALP Directory of Legal Employers. NALP, short for the 3,000-plus member National Association for Law Placement, began tracking law firm diversity data in 1991. At that time, slightly more than 38% of law firm associates were women.

“It took another 32 years for women to achieve equal and just slightly greater representation among associates,” Nikia L. Gray, NALP executive director, said in a prepared statement. “Real change is slow, hard and imperceptible, but it does happen.”