At the halfway mark of 2023, the largest law firms in the US appear to be shifting towards a more bullish view of the legal market for the remainder of this year and into 2024, according to ALM's Q2 2023 Economic Flash Survey data. Whether it's the easing of inflation, subsiding fears over a recession, or signs of life in the M&A market, many firms seem to have a more positive view of the path ahead than they did just three months ago.

Despite optimism for the future, responses point to ongoing challenges for some of the largest firms, including declines in productivity which may be hindering profit growth. Comparatively, smaller firms (unranked in the Am Law 200) have continued to report more positive performance in terms of demand and profitability growth in H1 2023.

When taking stock of overall performance thus far in 2023, 44% of responding law firms have exceeded expectations set entering the year, including 13% indicating much better than expected performance. Another 36% of firms have performed in line with expectations. Among Am Law 200 respondents specifically, 41% have exceeded expectations thus far in 2023, down from 52% when asked the same question after Q1.