At Dentons, Latin America and the Caribbean Region, Inclusion and Diversity is not just a core value, it is an integral part of our strategy.

As a Region, we are proud of having participated in the “Year of the Ally” 2020 campaign, including trainings, communications and initiatives aimed at promoting inclusion through allyship.

We are also proud of having joined the Big Inclusion Project in 2019, a global initiative designed to accelerate the inclusion agenda at Dentons and leverage the power of our people to build ready-to-implement relevant Inclusion and Diversity solutions aligned with our business objectives.

At the Regional level, in 2020 we established the Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) Inclusion and Diversity Committee, the largest law firm based committee of its kind, made up of representatives from our different countries who aim to drive inclusion and diversity within the Firm throughout the LAC Region as well as locally.

For specific Inclusion and Diversity initiatives by jurisdiction, see below:

Argentina Brazil Central America Chile Colombia Mexico Peru The Caribbean Uruguay Venezuela

Argentina, as part of its inclusion initiatives, collaborates with two foundations: Fundación Germinare and Fundación Espartanos, providing job opportunities to underrepresented groups.

Brazil counts with its own D&I Committee called VPBG+ to coordinate local efforts to promote an open debate within the firm through Affinity Groups, considering four main pillars: Gender, LGBT+, Racial and PWD. VPBG counts with a solid partnership with Fundação Estudar (a foundation that provides high level education also for young students with low socio-economic background) not only by promoting and providing our pro-bono services, but also through recruiting high potential young members for entry level positions in VPBG, as trainees or junior associates, targeting growth opportunities to become the next generation of VPBG’s leaders. Moreover, VPBG has invested in developing and promoting its long term female staff as much as adopting an inclusive recruitment approach for women when seeking new talent in the market. The firm has not only consistently held a significant portion of our staff with female collaborators (representing 60% of your team), but it has also provided opportunities for them to occupy several leadership positions as partners or head of legal departments, also leading as managers and directors in our back-office team.

Central America has a longstanding culture of women leaders in the Firm promoting and supporting other female lawyers. One such example is Gisela Porras, Managing Partner in the Panama office, who alongside being an active role model for more junior women professionals, is also the President of Voces Vitales de Panamá, an NGO that works to empower women, particularly young mothers. Additionally 100% of practice Directors are women.

Chile is proud to have a contributor of the Inclusion Law Act in its Labor group, to count with five women partners, and to continue increasing the number of women in our staff reaching a 46% at a firm level, including lawyers, other fee earners, and administrative professionals.

Colombia has pioneered "flex time" programs to support women in the Firm in their pathways to partnership without having to make the choice between "work life" or "family life." The result of these programs is that 50% of all of our promoted partners in the past five years have been women.

Mexico has more than 20 years of promoting and developing opportunities for women in the Firm, encouraging diverse teams and empowering women partners and senior associates to support and mentor more junior lawyers.

Peru is proud to have reached gender parity amongst its lawyers. Also, Dentons is appreciative of the contributions that, Peruvian partner, Lorena Galvez has given to our global Inclusion and Diversity initiatives.

The Caribbean is ‘in and of the community,’ reflected in our pledge to support the UN’s SDG 5, gender equality by 2030 and advanced through firm-wide allyship, gender parity, and women leadership. This commitment extends to supporting nonprofits through the provision of pro bono legal advice and partnering on or leading related corporate social responsibility projects that support the disenfranchised within our local communities.

Uruguay has worked during this last year leading the I&D initiative in LAC, developing its strategic plan, networking and promoting I&D best practices internally and externally. The firm has a longstanding partnership with the Vance Center of New York (Women in the Profession Program Chapter - WIP), a network with professional women throughout most of the region, a fruitful platform where to share experiences and best practices in I&D matters.

Venezuela is proud of Yanet Aguiar’s leadership promoting and incorporating the Venezuelan Business Alliance for Women Leadership (AVEM) in Venezuela on behalf of Dentons Caracas, providing mentoring for future female leaders and meetings where successful business women share experiences and best practices regarding female empowerment, work flexibility, and career success.