The Lain American Lawyer: March 2018 Latam_March 2018 | Page 22
Global Roundup
Time to evolve
At a time when the promotion
of women lawyers in the legal
sector is becoming key to the
future commercial success of
law firms, the Iberian Lawyer
InspiraLAw Top 50 Women
List recognises those that are
inspiring the next generation
of female lawyers
In-house lawyers from companies
including Coca-Cola and Telefónica,
as well as several managing partners
from law firms in Iberia, feature
in the inaugural Iberian Lawyer
InspiraLAw Top 50 Women List, as
selected by 500 lawyers in Spain and
Portugal. The InspiraLAw initiative
has been launched at a time when
the need to ensure the advancement
of women in the legal profession is
becoming critical. Despite the fact
that most law graduates are women,
Isabela Pérez, Coca-Cola
the vast majority of partners in law
firms are men – it is clear that the
legal sector is losing many talented
women before they get the chance to
fulfil their potential.
The loss of high-performing
female lawyers is not only
impacting on law firms’ ability
to provide a first-rate service
to clients, it is also increasingly
impacting on their ability to win
new business. Managing partners
are now beginning to understand
that it is imperative that law firms
better reflect their clients in the
sense that they need to mirror the
demographics of their customers
– that is, the clients that instruct
them. For many firms, in practical
terms this means ensuring more
women occupy senior roles within
20 • THE LATIN AMERICAN LAWYER • March 2018
their organisation. Simply put, if
firms fail to do this, they will lose
business. As highlighted elsewhere
in this issue, clients are increasingly
demanding that their legal advisers
have policies in place that seek to
ensure the promotion of women in
the workplace. If law firms don’t
have these policies, the clients
making these demands will not give
them their business.
Research conducted by Iberian
Lawyer earlier this year showed
that only 16 per cent of partners at
Spain’s leading firms are women,
while 26 per cent of partners at
Portugal’s major firms are female.
So clearly, when it comes to
facilitating the advancement of
women lawyers, law firms in Iberia
are, on the whole, failing miserably.
Consequently, the Iberian
Lawyer InspiraLAw Top 50
Women List aims to recognise
women working in the Spanish
and Portuguese legal sectors
who have been identified by
their peers as excelling in their
careers and therefore serving as
an inspiration to the younger
generation of female lawyers. The
women featured in the list were
chosen for a range of reasons.
What unites many of them is the
fact that they occupy senior roles
in their organisations, or their role
involves overseeing operations on
an international, or even global,
scale. Many of those listed are also
lawyers that are highly specialised
in a particular area.
Outstanding leaders
However, there were other
qualities for which many of the
women featured on the list were
commended. These included
outstanding leadership and
mentoring skills, as well as first-
rate technical legal expertise. Many
were also seen as having excellent
business development and
networking skills.
Included in the Top 50 are
Coca-Cola Iberian Partners general
counsel Isabella Pérez Nivela,
who was praised for, among
other qualities, her “outstanding
business development and
networking skills”, and Telefónica
secretary of the board Mari
Luz Medrano. Also featuring is
Campofrío Food Group global
legal director Marta García Alba,
CapGemini group global counsel
María Pernas, and Mahou San
Miguel general counsel and
secretary of the board Beatriz
Martínez-Falero. Meanwhile,
private practice lawyers to make
the list include: Baker McKenzie’s
Barcelona managing partner
Montserrat Llopart; DLA Piper
Madrid managing partner Pilar
Menor, who is seen as an excellent
leader and mentor; Jones Day’s
Madrid managing partner
Mercedes Fernández; and Núria
Martín, managing partner of
Osborne Clarke Spain, who was
commended for her technical
ability and excellent leadership
skills. Portuguese lawyers on the
list include Abreu Advogados
partner (and former managing
Almudena Arpón de Mendívil y
Aldama, Gómez-Acebo & Pombo
www.thelatinamericanlawyer.com