Mark Robertson, Co-head of Litigation and Disputes in New York, talks about the DNA of the firm and the role that senior leaders can play in supporting the LGBTIQ+ community.

Mark was a fifth-year associate in the Houston office of Norton Rose Fulbright back in the early Nineties when he remembers being invited for lunch with a senior partner who Mark thinks of as his mentor. Over a barbecue lunch, Mark’s mentor mentioned that he had received a telephone call that morning from a partner at another firm commenting on an associate that Mark and his mentor knew who is gay.

“I remember Rick saying, ‘Goddamnit man, this ain’t the 1950s. What do I care as long as he can do the work’,” says Mark. “I tell this story because it sums up the way I view the DNA of our firm. I have no idea whether that partner knew I was gay or not, but I have always found that all that matters here is whether a lawyer can do the work and not whether the lawyer is gay or not.”

Fast forward to today and Mark is now based in New York, having left Texas 20 years ago to move to the Big Apple and going on to become co-head of litigation and disputes in the New York Office.

Mark says he never remembers coming out at work. “I never thought of myself as a gay lawyer and have never wanted to be viewed as a gay lawyer,” he says, “I just thought of myself as a lawyer and want to be viewed as a great lawyer who happens to be gay. When I started at the firm, we didn’t have any affinity groups like we do today. I was never traumatised by coming out at work, mainly because I just assumed everybody knew and there was never a discussion about it with anybody at the firm.”

As one of the founders of the firm’s Pride network, he reflects on the early challenges of working out exactly what the group should be doing. “We concluded it is really about visibility,” he says, “and showing people that they can and should feel comfortable being at the firm. One way we have tried to do that in the US is through a programs that are open to everyone focused on LGBTIQ+ issues that seek to encourage conversation.”

He recalls an event hosted by the Pride network that focused on trans inclusion: “We had about 400 people attend across the country. Later in the afternoon after the program, I received a call from a partner I have known for over 30 years,” says Mark. “He said, ‘I’m just an old white cis guy and I found that really interesting’. We went on to discuss the program. He was interested enough to show up and interested enough to continue the conversation after the program. It is so good to spur those conversations that we didn’t have 20 or 30 years ago.”

Mark says that if he has ever experienced any microaggressions as a result of his sexuality he hasn’t noticed them. His advice to younger colleagues is: “I tell people that they should be as out at the firm as they feel comfortable being. That is different for different people at different times. There are some people who are comfortable letting colleagues know immediately, and some who aren’t, and that’s okay, because everyone’s journey is different.”

Another key role of the Pride network is to raise visibility, says Mark. In June, the US practice will start a quarterly virtual lunch event inviting lawyers who identify as LGBTIQ+ across the U.S. business. “We have some offices where there is only one out person,” he says. “Since we learned how to Zoom, we have done cocktail parties and events online. That has been really valuable for everyone to get to know each other across offices and help our colleagues feel included.”

This year, Mark is playing a key role in organising the New York City Bar Association’s Annual Pride Reception. He says he recognises the responsibility as he becomes more senior to be something of a role model.

“As leaders, I think one of the most important things we can do is verbalise this,” says Mark. “We need to say that our LGBTIQ+ colleagues are valued and should be included. If we say it, and we say it enough, and we are doing events where people are having these conversations, then people start to see this as an okay place to be.”

After 33 years with the business, Mark has seen a lot of change, but he says the firm’s inclusive DNA remains just the same.