Women and minorities continued to make small, slow gains in their numbers at major American law firms last year, according to the National Association for Law Placement, a legal employment tracker. Women made up 22.13%of  partners (v. 21.46% in ’15), while minorities accounted for 8.05% of partners (v. 7.52% in ’15).

In terms of associate level positions:

• women held 45% of the positions last year, up from 44.68% in 2015, but less than the 45.66% in 2009.
• minorities held 22.72% of associates last year, up from 22% in 2015 and 19.67% in 2009.

James Leipold, executive director of the association, said the national figures “mask many significant differences by law firm size and geography,” with larger firms having achieved more diversity than smaller firms. “While it is encouraging to see small gains in most areas this year,” he said, “the incredibly slow pace of change continues to be discouraging.”

The increase in minority lawyers of all types is linked to the greater number of Asian lawyers in the associate ranks, the report found.