If there’s one minority group that seems poised for success in Big Law, it’s Asian-Pacific Americans. Though they constitute only about 5 percent of the U.S. population, APAs are arguably punching above their weight in this sector. At virtually every rung of the career ladder, their numbers are rising.
Compared to African-Americans and Latinos, APAs have been amazingly successful: According to Vault and the Minority Corporate Counsel Association, APAs now make up 6.51 percent of lawyers in firms (compared with 3.21 percent for Latinos and 3.06 percent for blacks) and 2.63 percent of equity partners (compared with 2.07 percent for Latinos and 1.73 percent for blacks). The APA pipeline in the junior ranks is also robust: Of summer associates hired in 2013, 14.11 percent were of Asian descent, a stark contrast to the percentage of black summer associates hired (6.43 percent).
