Power structures in the workplace can create challenging circumstances for female professionals, particularly in male-dominated industries, like law.

Knowing how to navigate office politics helps you to be assertive, demonstrate your capabilities, and maintain power in your career.

Power Structures in the Legal Industry

Law has historically and contemporarily been dominated by white wealthy men. Although women, minorities, and people from a wider range of socioeconomic backgrounds have made their way into the industry, it remains an old boys’ club, persistently driven by who you know, rather than what you know.

As such, female legal professionals continue to face power structures that shut them out. There is an old adage that women must work twice as hard to be considered half as good. And for early female entrants into law in particular, this was the case.

The good news is that women are asserting themselves in the legal workplace and steadily redressing gender inequality. In the UK, 48% of lawyers are women; in the United States, it’s 34%.

Still, there is work to be done in changing the structure of the legal industry to better support womens’ careers – such as network-building opportunities, flexible working, pay equality, mentoring, overcoming the motherhood penalty, access to continuing education, and autonomy in terms of clients and cases.

Addressing all of these issues is a collective effort, but for individual women in law, it’s possible to confront prevailing power and politics in a positive and constructive way.

Office Politics and the Professional Woman

It’s not only the legal industry where women face professional challenges. Office politics permeates most workplaces, and females can be particularly susceptible to the negative consequences.

What do we mean by office politics? Although the term has broadly negative connotations, its definition is relatively innocuous. Essentially, office politics covers interactions and networking within a workplace setting. Challenges arise from the use of power in these interactions. Workers without influence are at a disadvantage, while those at the top are predisposed to advantage the most.

Office politics can bring about difficult working conditions, categorised by nepotism, favouritism, gossip, back-stabbing, and unnecessary stress. It can also create circumstances that workers – no matter their relative power – may leverage to their advantage.

For example, identifying positive, prominent female figures within an organisation, and aligning with them through work or networking, can be advantageous for women in the legal industry – particularly at the start of a career. Mentoring provides an excellent opportunity to nurture these relationships.

In fact, networking in general is the best way to flip office politics from a challenge to an advantage. Checking your company’s organogram is a good way to start. Seek influential people – or those with a reputation for being well-connected – and find opportunities to speak with them. Attend networking events and get your name out there.

In short – use power structures to your benefit!

Appreciating Your Value as a Legal Professional

A lack of confidence is a common issue for women in the workplace. This is amplified in sectors that are dominated by men, such as law.

To navigate and combat existing power structures, you must be confident in your own abilities. Remind yourself, as often as is necessary, that you are a knowledgeable, capable, and valuable legal professional. Review your cases, look at what you’ve done and learned. You might not always receive validation externally, so it’s important to be self-assured.

Establishing Your Power at Work

The legal profession is famously competitive, so you may find yourself in power struggles more often than you would in other careers.

The confidence gap experienced by women in work can prompt female professionals to feel crushing self-doubt, to the point of developing imposter syndrome.

Know that you are not an imposter in your workplace. You’ve worked hard on your education, training, and career; nobody has handed it to you on a platter. A position of power is not something to fear; neither is it grandiose or above your capabilities. Wherever you are in your career, you can assert your power.

Understand where your authority lies, share your opinions, make decisions – and stick to them, speak up when something isn’t right, take your time if you need more information, and don’t focus your worth on being liked by everyone. Respect is far more valuable to your career.

Be assertive, honest, and confident; that’s where your power lies.

Keeping a Distance from Unnecessary Politics

Office politics can be curated to your advantage, but that doesn’t mean you should involve yourself in everything. If you know a situation is negative, keep away from it. Don’t engage in gossip or sharing of confidential information.

If you’re a manager, never demonstrate favouritism. Be a mediator in conflict resolution, rather than an instigator or perpetuator. And if you need support, seeking it is not a sign of weakness. In fact, it’s the action of a powerful, responsible professional.

Mentoring helps female legal professionals to establish, develop, and maintain their power in the workplace. Interested in becoming a mentor or mentee? Click here to find out more.