Each of the new partners together with her respective mentor-partner will participate in a series of head to head interviews, addressing questions related to their job, its challenges and the evolution of gender balance in the legal industry.

Laurent Lazard is an Avocat à la Cour, Partner at BSP advising clients for over 25 years on banking and finance matters and capital markets, especially in structured finance and securitisation. Laurent is Luxembourgish.

Nuala Doyle is an Avocat à la Cour and Solicitor, Partner since January 2019, working with Laurent on the firm’s Banking & Finance, Capital Markets team for almost 12 years. Nuala is Irish.

1. What were the main challenges that you faced at the beginning of your career?

Laurent: It is hard to believe how dramatically things have changed. Imagine, there were a couple hundred lawyers admitted to the Luxembourg bar when I started my career compared to a few thousand now. The largest law firms had about twenty lawyers as opposed to several hundred these days. In many ways, things were easier. It was before the foreign firms discovered Luxembourg. Competition was not nearly as stiff and there was plenty of work for everyone. Thinking back to these days, I would say that the challenges were mostly… technical. It may sound medieval, but there were no computers, no emails, no internet... Everything took so much time. Faxing a five-page contract was an almost insurmountable task which required the patience of a saint.

Nuala: My move to Luxembourg really marked the start of my career in financial law. I think most of the challenges I faced in those first few days, weeks and months were the same as for most people in their first “real” job – with lots to learn and trying to strike the balance between asking the important questions and not asking too many questions. What sticks out in my memory most from that period was all the change that came with moving abroad. In fact, as I had my interview in Dublin, I only came to Luxembourg for the first time the day before I started working at the firm. I arrived into Luxembourg on the train from Brussels on a Sunday afternoon, as there were no direct flights from Dublin at that time I was very confused to find all the shops closed and only a few restaurants open. Coming from Dublin, this was quite a change (but something I’ve since grown to love; like an obligatory downtime). It was challenging living in hotel, working every day and trying to find a place to live with agents often only agreeing to fix appointments during business hours - I had a busy time in those first days and weeks finding my feet – quite literally.

2. Was the legal sector and specifically the banking & finance field a man-centric market?

Laurent: It was definitely “men-centric”. But it was clear to me that it was only a question of time until this would change because at the different law schools I attended women outnumbered men. Sooner or later they would knock on the door and I could not think of any good reason not to open wide the door.

Nuala: When I first joined BSP, I was the only woman on the banking & finance team whereas, right now, we have equal men and women on our team and, taking the firm as a whole, women outnumber men. This is a very positive progression in equality terms. All that being said, I would not like to see firms going down the route of hiring women in order to respect certain ratios for reputational reasons– that’s not good for anyone. The best candidate should get the job or the promotion, regardless of gender.

3. Do you think having a mixed team improves working life and especially the service offered to the client? If so, how?

Laurent: We strongly belief in what Americans call “equal opportunity”, which includes, but goes beyond, gender equality. Promotion is merit-based, without regard to gender, nationality, race, social background, sexual orientation or whatever other distinguishing factors one can think of. Not surprisingly, the result is diversity at every echelon of the firm. At partners’ level, when Nuala and two other female colleagues were made partner earlier this year, we achieved gender parity. We are proud of it but did not aim for it. It simply happens when you give everyone a fighting chance.
A “mixed” team does indeed improve the quality of the service offered to the clients but only if diversity is the result of a focus on what really counts, namely talent and motivation. Apart from that, some clients might appreciate diversity also because they want their lawyers, or more generally the people they do business with, to abide by certain principles, to be good corporate citizens. For us it is a moral imperative which happens to make us also a better firm.

Nuala: I would just add that there are so many factors which contribute to good working relationships and the provision of a quality service to clients, to focus only on gender would do a disservice to all the other important elements that make a strong and successful team/business.

4. What advice would you give to a young person working in your field on matters of gender equality?

Laurent: There is no denying that discrimination at the workplace based on gender, and other factors, remains a reality in many quarters and pushing back hard against it is of utmost importance. There are still glass ceilings that must be shattered and playing fields that must be levelled. As long as these difficulties exist, people who are affected by them will have to work even harder to prove themselves and when they succeed, and they will, they will not only level the playing fields but also the people who raised the obstacles.

Nuala: A lot of people take the view that change comes from above – that it’s up to a company’s management to take the necessary steps to advance gender equality. While of course this is partially true, I would say each of us has our part to play to promote equality, of all kinds, in the workplace, no matter our level. Lead by example – by encouraging and supporting your colleagues and remember to check yourself now and again, for your own unconscious bias.

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