Ex-Associate Who Sued WolfBlock Says Firm Had Revolving Door for Women
A former associate who made new legal ground when she sued WolfBlock for sex discrimination some 20 years ago says the culture at the firm’s Philadelphia office never changed.
The law firm, formerly known as Wolf, Block, Schorr and Solis-Cohen, voted to dissolve this week, prompting reporter calls to Nancy Ezold, whose bias suit because the first to go to trial for a law firm’s decision to deny partnership to a woman, the American Lawyer reports. Ezold lost the case on appeal.
Ezold told the publication about a revolving door for women lawyers at the firm’s Philadelphia office. “I can’t speak for the firm’s other offices because I don’t know those people, but I looked at the firm’s Philadelphia office and there is not a single woman who was a partner or associate at WolfBlock in Philadelphia when I was there who remains with the firm,” she said.
Am Law asked Ezold if the women were forced out. She replied: “Something happens to them. Attorney after attorney that were there when I was there and who are still there—they’re all men. Some firms certainly have understood and accepted the quality and intellect of female attorneys and other firms like WolfBlock have not. The culture that resulted in my case was never repudiated by the firm. And therein lies the problem.”
Ezold now practices employment discrimination law at her own five-lawyer firm. She said she is noticing that law firms have fewer equity partners and more nonequity partners—and she sees possible bias in the figures. “If you look at these nonequity partners, a whole lot more are women than men,” she said.
