Nearly 75 percent of the largest law firms in the country report they have too many attorneys, but Pennsylvania's largest firms have grown head count faster than almost any other market last quarter, data from two recent surveys show.

Those two things aren't necessarily a contradiction, but consultants say area firms still need to take a more proactive role in “thinning” the ranks—the right ranks.

Altman Weil's Law Firms in Transition Survey, released Tuesday, shows 61 percent of all firms report an overcapacity problem, while 74 percent of firms with 250 or more lawyers say the same.