Dissatisfied, but not discouraged: the effects of French female lawyers perceiving gender discrimination

Previous research has suggested not only that gender discrimination is widespread in law firms, conditioning women’s career paths and full integration into the legal profession, but also that female lawyers are more likely than their male counterparts to perceive unfair treatment. However, little research exists on how female lawyers’ perceptions of gender discrimination may affect their individual work experiences, in particular their attitudes toward their job and their career. This article aims to fill this gap by examining how perceived gender discrimination affects female lawyers’ job satisfaction with their career prospects and work–life balance, as well as their intentions to leave the legal profession. With a focus on the under-researched French case, it draws on the quantitative analysis of the data collected from an online survey administered to 663 female Parisian lawyers. Results show that perceptions of discrimination negatively affect women’s satisfaction with regard to their career prospects and work–life balance, but do not have any influence on their quitting intentions. By adopting a ‘view from below’ on the individual work experiences of female lawyers, the article sheds new light on the dynamics of women’s disadvantage in legal careers.