Hughes Hubbard Earns Gold Standard Certification from WILEF

Hughes Hubbard & Reed earned the WILEF (Women in Law Empowerment Forum) Gold Standard Certification for the sixth consecutive year, one of only 12 firms nationally to have consistently achieved this recognition since the program's inception in 2011.

Hughes Hubbard received the award this year despite WILEF setting the bar for several criteria even higher in 2016. Under the new criteria, Hughes Hubbard was among 32 firms to receive certification, 12 fewer than last year.

The award certifies and recognizes law firms that have integrated women into their highest leadership positions. The certification emphasizes leadership roles achieved by women equity partners, rather than the policies or practices of the firm or the number or percentage of women in partnership.

To receive gold status, firms with at least 300 lawyers in the U.S. had to meet at least four of six criteria involving women in key positions. Hughes Hubbard qualified in the following four categories, with women constituting a minimum of:

•  20 percent of equity partners
• 15 percent of firm chairs and managing partners (up from 10 percent)
• 20 percent of the firm's compensation committee
• 15 percent of the top half of the most highly compensated partners (up from 10 percent)