How to Transition from a Government Role to a Law Firm: Tips for Attorneys
Moving from a government job to a law firm can feel like a significant shift in your legal career. But with the right strategy and a thorough understanding of the landscape, attorneys can make this transition smoothly and successfully. If you’re considering making the jump from a government position to a law firm, understanding market trends, knowing which firms are hiring, and showcasing your unique experience are key to landing a role that matches your expertise.
Moving from a government job to a law firm can feel like a significant shift in your legal career. But with the right strategy and a thorough understanding of the landscape, attorneys can make this transition smoothly and successfully. If you’re considering making the jump from a government position to a law firm, understanding market trends, knowing which firms are hiring, and showcasing your unique experience are key to landing a role that matches your expertise.
Should You Make the Move from Government to Law Firm?
For attorneys in government positions, moving to a private law firm offers the opportunity for increased compensation, greater career mobility, and the chance to work on a more diverse range of cases. While government roles can provide stability and meaningful work, law firms often give attorneys more control over their career trajectory, from practice specialization to partnership opportunities.
However, making this move requires thoughtful planning. You’ll need to package your government experience in a way that demonstrates its value in a private practice setting, where billable hours and client-facing work may take precedence over public service.
Trends in Government-to-Law Firm Moves
The legal job market is highly competitive, but many law firms actively seek out attorneys with government backgrounds due to their specialized knowledge, insider perspective on regulatory environments, and high-level litigation experience. Firm Prospects offers valuable data insights that can help you understand which firms are hiring from government agencies and where those opportunities exist. We took a look at the following data, over the past 5 years, to understand how attorneys are successfully making the career transition from government agencies to law firms.
Top Hiring Law Firms from Government Positions
Based on recent data, here are the law firms leading the charge in hiring attorneys from government agencies:
- Lewis Brisbois: 82 hires
- Cole Scott Kissane: 82 hires
- Wilson Elser: 68 hires
- Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani, LLP: 66 hires
- Littler: 58 hires
These firms are not only looking for candidates with strong litigation experience but also those with specialized knowledge in areas such as government compliance, antitrust, or labor law, where government attorneys have a distinct advantage.
Key Government Agencies That Feed Into Law Firms
Several government agencies serve as a pipeline for law firm recruitment. Attorneys transitioning from these agencies bring a wealth of regulatory and policy expertise:
- U.S. Attorney’s Office: 338 hires
- U.S. Department of Justice: 251 hires
- U.S. SEC: 121 hires
- New York City Law Department: 73 hires
- U.S. FTC: 61 hires
These agencies are some of the largest sources of talent for law firms, particularly in areas like litigation, regulatory enforcement, and corporate law.
Top Locations for Law Firm Moves
Geography also plays a significant role in these transitions, with the majority of moves happening in key legal markets:
- Washington, D.C.: 961 hires
- New York, NY: 423 hires
- Chicago, IL: 106 hires
- Los Angeles, CA: 95 hires
- San Francisco, CA: 91 hires
Washington, D.C. remains a hotbed for transitions due to its proximity to government agencies and the concentration of firms focused on regulatory law, while New York dominates corporate and financial law.
Common Practice Areas for Government-to-Firm Moves
One of the key advantages of transitioning from a government role to a law firm is the expertise you bring in specialized areas. Here are some of the most common practice areas for attorneys making this move:
- Litigation: 1,279 hires
- Labor & Employment: 275 hires
- Government Law: 173 hires
- Corporate Law: 103 hires
- Antitrust: 87 hires
Litigation leads the way, as attorneys with experience in the U.S. Attorney’s Office or Department of Justice often have significant trial and appellate experience that is highly sought after by law firms. Similarly, attorneys from the SEC or FTC bring valuable regulatory and enforcement knowledge that firms can leverage for their corporate and antitrust practices.
