The International Bar Association (IBA) - the global voice of the legal profession.
Free event:
Raising the Bar: Women in Law Phase 2 Report Launch
Click here to register
Date and time:
Thursday 12 March 2026 | 0900-1200
Venue:
The Northcliffe, 28 Tudor St, Temple, London EC4Y 0AY
Speakers include:
- Claudio Visco, IBA President;
- Almudena Arpón de Mendívil Aldama, former IBA President (2023-2024); and
- Deborah Enix-Ross, IBA Secretary-General and Senior Advisor, Global Engagement, to the International Dispute Resolution Group at Debevoise & Plimpton.
The IBA's Legal Policy & Research Unit (LPRU) will host this event to mark the launch of its latest report presenting findings from Phase 2 of the IBA's Raising the Bar: Women in Law project.
Phase 2 focuses on women's subjective experiences within the legal profession, offering a deeper insight into what is - and is not - working for women pursuing legal careers. A global survey was open to women working across all legal sectors, including private practice, in-house roles, the public sector, academia and non-governmental organisations, as well as women who had left the profession within the last five years.
The event will explore the report's key findings and recommendations, alongside a discussion of practical, evidence-based approaches to advancing gender equality in the legal profession.
The discussion will also spotlight the 'change makers'- law firm leaders and in-house legal teams that have implemented impactful policies to support gender equity. These include initiatives such as menopause awareness and support programmes, flexible working practices as well as shared maternity/paternity leave policies.
Background:
In March 2021, the IBA's LPRU launched the Raising the Bar: Women in Law initiative (formerly titled 50:50 by 2030: A longitudinal study into gender disparity in law), an ambitious multi-year global project, examining women's representation and progression in the legal profession.
The project has been carried out in two phases, spanning multiple legal sectors and jurisdictions. It gathers quantitative and qualitative data on women's representation at all levels of the profession, with a particular focus on senior roles. The initiative also assesses the prevalence and effectiveness of workplace policies aimed at supporting women's advancement and promoting gender equity.
Phase 1 of the project (2021 to date) has focused on country-specific research across key legal sectors, including law firms, in-house legal teams, public sector institutions, the judiciary and - where relevant - the Bar.
To date, 13 country reports have been published:
- 2022: England and Wales , Uganda and Spain
- 2023: Nigeria , the Netherlands and Chile
- 2024: The Republic of Korea , Brazil , Mexico , Ukraine and Türkiye
In December 2024 the IBA published a Progress Report synthesising findings from 11 countries across five continents. Further, a complementary case study on Nepal was also published in 2024, produced in collaboration with DLA Piper's nonprofit affiliate New Perimeter . The report on Taiwan , was published in 2025 and Australia in 2026.
IBA President Claudio Visco said, 'Phase 2 of the Raising the Bar project moves beyond representation to centre women's lived experiences within the legal profession. Its findings provide a critical evidence base for meaningful, lasting change.'
Country studies are currently underway in Canada, India and Singapore with publication expected throughout 2026.
