As development spruces up St. Louis and economic conditions brighten, several stalwart industries are directing a steady stream of legal work to area law firms.

Clients are doing well and “we're delighted to be participating in it,” said Tom Minogue, chairman of St. Louis-based Thompson Coburn.

The St. Louis metropolitan area's unemployment rate, which includes parts of Illinois, was 5.6 percent in June, compared with 5.3 percent nationwide.