Law firm recruiting took off this fall, after being depressed for much of the pandemic, according to a new report by NALP.
The study found that 53% of law schools reported an increase of more than 10% in the number of employers on their campus looking to recruit second-year students for summer associate positions. In fall 2021, 58% of callback interviews ended up in job offers for the summer. 71% of law offices reported that they made more summer position offers for 2022 compared to summer 2021.
“Law firms have been scrambling for talent at both the lateral and entry levels,” said NALP Executive Director James Leipold. “As a result, recruiting activity in 2021 was robust, with offer rates for summer spots reaching their highest mark since 2007. The pandemic has changed some of the methodologies of the law firm recruitment process, but it has not dampened any of the competition.”
The average size of summer program classes rose to 12, up from 11. Second-year summer associates received job offers 97% of the time, which is close to a historic high for such offers, and the acceptance rate of 89% reached an all-time high. Similarly, the offer rate for first-year summer associates to return for a second summer hit 93%, the highest ever, and 73% of associates accepted the offer.
Leipold noted that as “rosy” as the picture currently is, things will eventually settle back down, owing to the constant boom-and-bust cycle of recruitment.
Perspectives on 2021 Law Student Recruiting is an annual report that NALP releases.
