Law firm profits in Australia have grown by over 12% in the past year, but firms expect profit growth to slow as they pay more for lawyers and reconnect in person with clients, according to the CommBank Legal Market Pulse.

The annual survey reveals firms bounced back more quickly from the COVID-19 shut downs than they expected. Profits grew by an average of 12.1% over the past 12 months, more than double the 5.5% they were predicting a year ago.