As we previously discussed, The National Law Journal last month reported a 1.5 percent drop in the total number of associates at the country's 250 larges law firms.
Last week, the AmLaw Daily reported on the latest Robert Half Legal Hiring Index, in which seven percent more respondents said their firms intend to add jobs in the first quarter of 2011 over the the fourth quarter of 2010.
That would appear to be good news, except for this caveat:
"Fifty-two percent of respondents reported difficulty in finding skilled legal professionals. According to Volkert at Robert Half, this suggests that while law firms and legal corporate departments may have openings, they are mostly interested in candidates who are currently employed."To dampen the outlook even further, simply being an employed associate doesn't seem to mean what it used to. The ABA Journal recently wrote:
"Some associates who managed to avoid layoffs now lack the exposure and experience of their peers from three to five years ago."According to that article, the unexpected consequence of the recession is that many associates who retained their jobs spent the last two years doing "pro bono work and marketing", resulting in an unprecedented lack of real experience.
"Across the board at leading law firms in Chicago, Los Angeles and New York City, there are associates who haven’t gained the experience compared to years past, says Sheri Michaels, a partner at legal recruiter Major, Lindsey & Africa in New York City."Which leads legal recruiter Amy McCormack to observe yet another potential change to the business of law:
"The dearth of experienced associates is even more reason for firms to abandon traditional class distinctions and evaluate junior lawyers on actual experience and legal skills."
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