2021 saw a deluge of lawyers leaving Big Law for in-house roles.

While law firms often boast richer compensation packages, in-house counsel say legal department roles offer greater work-life balance and tend to have greater visibility about deadlines and project timelines, thus allowing for better workflow and time management. In addition, in-house counsel have access to outside counsel for support with large transactions.

Lawyers who traded law firm positions for in-house roles say they've welcomed leaving behind billable hours and have embraced the opportunity to tackle problems from more of a business perspective, as well as only having to deal with one client.