Are Law Firms Hiring for a Potential Recession by Adding Bankruptcy Attorneys?
Many economists are still predicting a soft landing for the U.S. economy, but recent indicators such as a sluggish labor market and consumer spending have some investors fearing a recession. The possibility of an economic downturn does not appear to be lost on law firms, as recent data from Firm Prospects indicates a notable rise in both the recruitment of, and job postings for, bankruptcy attorneys.
Lateral Law Firm Hiring Dips in February
Similarly to the decline observed in new attorney job listings last month, and considering more news about law firm layoffs, it’s no surprise that lateral law firm hiring also experienced a dip in February, compared to both the previous month and year-over-year. As illustrated in the chart below, law firm hiring has steadily declined since October 2023, dropping from a peak of 1,957 new hires that month to just 1,314 hires in February.
Associate Hiring and Attrition at “Top 25” Law Firms
There was a time when lateral moves by law firm partners got most of the attention from the legal media. As record numbers of associates switch law firms, however, legal publications have started to focus their attention on associate hiring. By way of example, in recent months Firm Prospects has worked with various reporters on stories covering law firm associate hiring from Law360, Business Insider, Bloomberg Law and more. Accordingly, we thought it would be interesting to take a broad look at the associate hiring and attrition rates at the twenty-five largest firms based on gross revenue (the “Top 25”).
