‘Thatcher inspired me to become top solicitor’
Solicitor I. Stephanie Boyce will make history later this year, by becoming the first ethnic minority President of the Law Society for England and Wales, after standing four times before being elected.
Speaking to 5 Live’s Naga Munchetty, Stephanie said she’s determined to promote diversity in the legal profession by “being visible”.
Stephanie is first generation British, born to a mother from St Vincent and a father from Barbados, she says growing up she could “see the injustices unfurling around the world.”
“My father left education at the age of 12 because my grandmother couldn’t afford to send him on to further education, at that time you had to pay for that in Barbados, so they came to this country in search of faith, hope and further opportunities."
Speaking about the role her parents played in her life, she said her family “gave me the wings to fly.”
“At the age of 12 I went to America with my mother, America had an overwhelming impression on me, I was overwhelmed by the poverty, the injustice and the inability of people to access justice because of the colour of their skin.”
“By the time I was growing up, I was in a single parent household, living on a council estate from a low socio-economic background, I didn’t have anybody in my network who was in the law, other than what I saw on television.
“The role model for me at that time was Margaret Thatcher, although I didn’t and do not agree with later policies and what she went on to do, as a young black child growing up in rural Buckinghamshire, as it was then, she was a female education minister, a barrister and she became the first female prime minister, and all those were things I wanted to aspire to.
“If you cannot see it, you cannot be it and so for me, that’s why telling my story is important, so people know you can reach the top of your profession regardless of your background.
“It should be determination, skill and ability that dictate success – nothing else.”
Stephanie’s determination, skill and ability led her to become the first person in her family to go to University, then on to pursue a career as a solicitor with her sights set on becoming President of the Law Society for England and Wales.
She ultimately ran for the post each year starting 2015, until being elected in 2019 – with her year tenure beginning in October 2021.
“I had individuals that told me; 'We need somebody who can converse with Government. Go home and rest Stephanie, you’re embarrassing yourself. Never in our lifetime will we see an ethnic minority person become President.’
“If I had taken on board what they had said, you allow that to seep into your very soul. For me, I don’t take on board what people tell me, I take it with a pinch of salt.
“It was important for me to continue to stand because I felt that I was just as qualified, able and capable as anybody else who had held the post, that I had something different to offer, and if truth be told, I would have kept going if it meant a 5th, 6th or 7th time, I would have kept going, such was the burning desire for me to occupy and become an office holder and make a difference.”
Stephanie's goal is to “leave the legal profession, not just the solicitor profession – barristers, judges, legal executives, paralegals and so forth, to leave this profession more diverse and inclusive than the one I entered.”
“Legal rights mean nothing if you don’t know when those rights are being taken away, or if you don’t know how to exercise those rights, or you don’t know where to go to find out about those rights.
“So having people who look like you, sound like you… when individuals can see the profession represents the society they are seeking to serve, then that enables individuals to go to a legal profession and exercise their rights.
“When I was campaigning… we were asked the question ‘if you are successful, how will you promote equality, diversity and inclusion?’ the night before, council members had been given a report which gave me every statistic why, as a black female, I’m least likely to succeed in my profession.
“In my notes I had written the word ‘smile’, I looked out at my cohort of colleagues and my answer was simple – with a big smile on my face, I said ‘How am I going to promote diversity, equality and inclusion? I’m going to be visible, I’m going to role model it.’”
