(July 31, 2018) – Littler, the world’s largest employment and labor law practice representing management, was named among the 2018 “Best Law Firms for Women” by Working Mother magazine. Littler joined 60 other firms cited for policies that promote and advance women and for the implementation of work-life balance initiatives. This is the ninth time the firm has been ranked by Working Mother.

“It is an honor to once again be recognized by Working Mother,” Tom Bender and Jeremy Roth, co-managing directors of Littler, said in a joint statement. “We take pride in cultivating a supportive working environment that not only attracts and retains talented female attorneys, but encourages their success.”

Participating firms completed an extensive application in the areas of workforce profile, flexibility and the development and retention of women. The best law firms were selected from a pool of firms with 50 more lawyers in the U.S. Statistics reported are aggregated from data provided by the firms collected from the full year of 2018.

“The law firms that make Working Mother’s list are remarkable for their long-term commitment to retaining and promoting women lawyers,” said Meredith Bodgas, editor-in-chief of Working Mother. “One hundred percent of these firms provide flexible work arrangements, and 57 percent of them offer sponsorship programs for high-potential women lawyers. This has resulted in a jump in the number of women equity partners to 21 percent.”

Littler has a number of programs and initiatives in place to support the advancement of women and diverse attorneys. Through its award-winning Career Advocacy Program (CAP) and Women's Leadership Initiative (WLI), the firm focuses on developing and retaining women leaders at every level. Additionally, Littler’s female attorneys participate in their legal, business and civic communities, championing causes important to the firm, such as women’s advancement, diversity and inclusion and innovation in the delivery of legal services.

Littler also offers a number of benefits that support working mothers, including:

• A policy intended to facilitate re-entry into the firm after a hiatus. Attorneys are permitted to work a reduced workload for up to six months following his/her re-entry.
• A reduced-hours track for associates, after two years of consecutive employment.
• A custom-track program for associates/of counsel who want relief from the demands of the shareholder track. Each arrangement is customized to meet the needs of the attorney and the firm, and eligibility is determined by tenure, level and rating.
• A paid parental leave policy.
• A phase-back policy intended to facilitate a successful return to work from primary caregiver leave. Attorneys may reduce their hours by up to 50 percent and modify their schedules for up to six months following their return from leave.
• A breast milk delivery service for business-traveling mothers who are nursing. Milk Stork provides refrigerated, express shipping or easy toting of breast milk home.

As a result of its efforts, Littler continues to be recognized by organizations such as Law360, American Lawyer and Vault, which have ranked Littler a top firm in Diversity for Women, and by the Women in Law Empowerment Forum, which has given Littler the gold standard certification every year since it began the award in 2011.

About Working Mother Media

Working Mother Media (WMM), a division of Bonnier Corporation, publishes Working Mother magazine and its companion website, workingmother.com. The Working Mother Research Institute, the National Association for Female Executives, and Diversity Best Practices are also units within WMM. WMM’s mission is to serve as a champion of culture change and Working Mother magazine is the only national magazine for career-committed mothers.

About Littler

Littler is the largest global employment and labor law practice, with more than 1,500 attorneys in 80 offices worldwide. Littler represents management in all aspects of employment and labor law and serves as a single-source solution provider to the global employer community. Consistently recognized in the industry as a leading and innovative law practice, Littler has been litigating, mediating and negotiating some of the most influential employment law cases and labor contracts on record for over 75 years. Littler Global is the collective trade name for an international legal practice, the practicing member entities of which are separate and distinct professional firms.