Bloomberg Law reported on July 31 that lawyer employment fell 15% in the first half of this challenging year. Lawyers lost more than 150,000 jobs in the first quarter of 2020 and the decline continued in the second quarter of the year. Jobs in the broader “legal industry” fell by close to 9%. Non-lawyers working in the legal industry saw an increase in employment.
We all know from gossip, press releases and anecdotal evidence that the current state of the legal profession is not exactly rosy. “Stealth layoffs” is now a commonly used term – large law firms in particular are not excited to have their layoffs in the news.
The most accurate data comes from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, which is what Bloomberg Law used to come up with the statistics above.
Bloomberg Law, based on historical data, believes that lawyer jobs will return, but that it may be a long recovery.
As technology begins to take some legal jobs and non-traditional legal organizations like the Big 4 and others begin to swallow legal jobs, I’m not as optimistic.
Sharon D. Nelson, Esq., President, Sensei Enterprises, Inc.
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