Courtesy photo How Uncertainty in the Lateral Market Is Putting Some Firms on Offense, Some on Defense
The partner lateral market is still chugging along, but some firms are using the pandemic as an opportunity to snag desirable laterals while others are in a defensive crouch.
December 10, 2020 at 12:08 PM
5 minute read
Change facilitates change. New working conditions, more time at home alone and varying degrees of success in certain practice areas have allowed law firm partners, and their firms, the think-time to assess how they want things to play out moving forward. For some firms, that has manifested in a bevy of opportunistic hires. For others, it has meant trying to get their attorneys to stick around. Offense and defense.
Deborah Farone "When I think about how firms hire laterals, there are the ones that are opportunistic, such as when a great person becomes available or someone with government experience comes into the private sector," said Deborah Farone, veteran legal consultant and founder of Farone Advisors. "Others are strategically trying to fill a gap, like they want to build out a new practice. The third are those that are in survival mode, which I am not sure it is a good idea to bring people on for that reason. Sort of like two rocks holding onto each other so they don't sink."
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