Law, Society & Culture

Many attorneys believe that the quality of their law school, or law firm, will determine the course of their legal career. READ MORE >

• The 2018 legal market was even stronger than the 2017 market. We had more candidates interviewing and getting hired in 2018 than we did in 2017. 
• The market is so strong that a majority of the candidates we placed this year were entertaining multiple offers from top firms.
• In a market this strong, the supply of attorney candidates at smaller firms—especially those in niche practice areas and niche markets—dwindles. These firms, which have not typically used recruiters in the past, came to us for help in large numbers this year. 
• Following in Milbank’s footsteps, many top firms raised salaries for associates of all levels starting in the summer of 2018. The reaction from firms’ corporate clients was mixed, with many clients expressing unhappiness about the ever-increasing cost of legal expenses, and many companies indicating they would turn to alternative legal solutions to keep costs down. 
• The uncertainty regarding how the revenue-driving clients might react to these salary raises seemed to slow down interviews and hiring in big firms significantly. The already competitive landscape for attorneys looking to lateral within the large firm space became even more so.
• Many millennials recognized that these biglaw salary increases came at a steep cost of working even harder, leading to a trend of seeking refuge in boutique or “lifestyle” law firms or simply quitting the practice of law altogether.
• To address client cost-concerns, large firms are increasingly creating staff attorney positions rather than partner-track associate positions. This is true particularly in more commoditized areas of law, such as patent prosecution and trademark.
• Senior level litigators had a very, very difficult time getting positions in larger markets. Litigation is increasingly becoming a dangerous practice area for large law firm attorneys with few opportunities for advancement.

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Every attorney that works in a large law firm is expected to conform to their rules. Find out why law firms expect a high level of conformity in this article. READ MORE >

Being a law firm attorney means that you will face a lot more rejection, criticism, and other negative burdens than you would in almost any other career. READ MORE >

This State of the Market Report covers the major trends in legal placements for 2016 and 2017. As this Report explains, one of the most significant features of the new legal job landscape is the increasing demand for specialist attorneys and the decreasing demand for generalist attorneys. In fact, it appears that the new badge of marketability has become the quality of an attorney's "niche" practice area experience as opposed to the quality of the attorney's law school or law firm. This Report tells you what happened with the legal job market across the country in 2016 and what we can expect in 2017. READ MORE >

Find out why it is so hard to get a job in a law firm as an older attorney and how older attorneys can increase their chances. READ MORE >

Why do some attorneys succeed in large, prestigious law firms and others fail? The reason generally does not have to do with how smart a given attorney is or where the attorney went to law school. The real answer has to do with whether or not the attorney follows one simple rule having to do with how much of a positive influence the attorney is within the law firm environment. READ MORE >

Are you in the right kind of law firm? Learn how the type of law firm you are in can make or break your legal career. READ MORE >

This article explores the unique way Yale Law School graduates think about their legal careers. To the untrained eye, these graduates may seem aimless with their careers -- taking jobs in academia and government instead of prestigious law firms. But on closer examination it appears that these graduates might have discovered the secret to greater career and life happiness. This article explains how most attorneys are rent seekers and how to make this system of rent work for you like Yale Law grads do. READ MORE >

Learn how identifying your “tribe” will help you achieve greater career satisfaction and financial security in a law firm. READ MORE >

This article reveals the secrets of the Harvard-inspired ranking system used by high-end legal recruiters to appropriately match attorney candidates with law firms. BCG recruiters assign rankings of “5” (highest) to “1” (lowest) to every law firm seeking to hire attorneys and to every candidate seeking to find a law firm position. The rankings are based on a host of criteria including (for law firms) the stature of the firm’s client base and caliber of the firm’s partners and (for attorney candidates) the candidate’s law school grades and the candidate’s work ethic. READ MORE >

Attorneys are often seeking out lifestyle law firms. While these firms do exist, they are usually not around for long. READ MORE >

Learn why money should never be your first focus when you are trying to decide which law firm you should join. READ MORE >

Summary: Why is it that so many attorneys feel helpless and unfulfilled?

Lately I have heard many attorneys ask "What's the point?" This generally comes up in connection with depressing conversations and leads to uncomfortable silences and existential questions. I often feel forced to agree with such sentiments and find myself commiserating with responses like "That's awful!" and "That sucks" and "I know how you feel!"

• See Why You Should (and Should Not) Quit the Practice of Law for more information.

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Learn the four rules that make all law firms similar to blue collar unions and what you must do to stay employed by them. READ MORE >

If you are going to practice law, you need to be prepared for stress. Practicing law in a law firm requires a certain type of person to be successful. READ MORE >

Hot practice areas typically differ quite dramatically from state to state. However, there are consistencies which are generally always present in most geographical areas. These consistencies are generally applicable across most time periods in most geographic areas. While this is the sort of question I would love to ''write a book'' about, for purposes of brevity I will be brief and highlight only one or two areas that are very busy generally in major geographic areas. READ MORE >

One of the most persistent problems attorneys practicing law have is their failure to collaborate and learn from the other attorneys they are practicing law with. There are several factors that are essential for success in the practice of law and advancing in your career. Being well-liked and collaborating are two of the more important ones. READ MORE >

• One of the main issues people don’t understand about law is that law is a business.
• Furthermore, some lawyers tend to not understand that their legal careers are also businesses.
• Find out why you should treat your law career as a business in order to succeed.

At the outset, it is important to realize that much of what I am saying goes against the "traditional" view of the law as a profession. Obviously, the law is a profession. Notwithstanding the use of the word "profession," though, you can still get fired, not advance, or find yourself in a dead end job. Your skills or specialty can quickly become irrelevant in the marketplace. You can also find yourself in a geographic location where there is no work (i.e., "business"). READ MORE >