Legal specialties currently in demand include artificial intelligence, labor, healthcare and intellectual property law. Data and predictions from staffing specialists can provide valuable insight for law school students planning their careers.
Law students looking for future career opportunities will have ample choices, as several practice areas are booming, including artificial intelligence, labor, elder law, energy, health care, and intellectual property.
A report on legal trends by Clio, a maker of legal software, listed those areas, as well as others such as cannabis law, as having the highest growth potential for 2023 and beyond.
Valerie Fontaine of the legal recruiting firm SelzterFontaine said newly minted law grads often have an advantage over more established lawyers when it comes to finding work in these practice areas because they’re more likely to be on the cutting edge of technological advances.
“And when those technological advancements occur, there’s always law and legal work that goes along with it,” she said.
Fontaine said there are currently many opportunities in legal areas that are technology-centric, such as artificial intelligence and cybersecurity, because the legal landscape surrounding these topics is still fresh.
“AI, that’s obviously new and hot, and it’s developing by the minute, and there are no AI experts,” she said. “Now, that’s a perfect place for people to get in on artificial intelligence.”
She noted that intellectual property law is a common thread in all technology-focused fields.
“There is a lot of IP protection that has to happen,” she said. “There’s going to be IP litigation that goes on.”
As the speed of technological advancements increases, hiring trends in the legal industry can be expected to follow suit.
Jamy Sullivan, executive director of Robert Half Legal, said technology-driven law is moving at a faster pace than in previous years with a particular focus on data privacy, cybersecurity and the liability issues associated with smart technology and AI applications.
Sullivan expects this trend to continue well into the future.
“Legal hiring managers will also look for particular skills from legal candidates, including industry or sector knowledge — financial services, health care/pharma and technology,” she said.
Legal employers are also placing more emphasis on soft skills.
“What we’ve seen following the pandemic is that legal employers are placing a premium on interpersonal or soft skills to ensure that the legal candidate is the right fit for not only the role but also the workplace company culture,” Sullivan said.
She noted that the low current unemployment rate for college-degreed workers aligns with a high demand for law school graduates.
“The unemployment rate for college-degreed workers is at 2%,” she said. “This is a clear sign of just how high the demand is for law school graduates who bring new ideas and passion to an organization. Attorneys’ unemployment rate is sub 1% currently.”
A recent report from Robert Half Legal on hiring trends in the legal profession covers the first six months of 2023. It shows that while law firms and legal departments are hiring but facing challenges.
According to the report, 44% were hiring for new roles, while 54% were hiring for vacated roles. However, 97% were having trouble finding adequately skilled talent.
Sullivan said that since legal hiring tends to reflect the market and economic conditions, law students would be wise to focus on areas of law that are actively growing.
[sub] Evergreen practice areas
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, legal employment is expected to increase by 10% between 2021 and 2031.
Fontaine said evergreen practices, such as litigation and labor law, can be stable areas for prospective lawyers, particularly for those specializing in California labor law.
“Right now, in California especially, labor and employment is huge,” she said. “There’s two reasons for that. One is that California is sort of its own country when it comes to labor and employment laws. So often corporations look to California because they figure if they can abide by the laws, you know, make everything OK California-wise, they’re covered for the rest of the country.”
Therefore, corporations like to hire lawyers who know California employment law, she said.
She noted that litigation is also a reliable practice area, as it continues steadily despite economic ups and downs.
“What’s interesting about the labor and employment practice is it can include both litigation and sort of transactional advisory work,” she said. “So, if a person doesn’t necessarily want to be a litigator 100% of the time, they can find more of a variety within the labor and employment world.”
Elder law is another evergreen area to consider, particularly as the American population continues to age, Fontaine said.
“I just want to remind people that there’s more to law than Big Law,” she said. “Everyday people need legal representation. And I really think that the graying of America is going to be a big area going forward in terms of things like elder law. And it really touches on all kinds of different areas.”
While the process of looking for a job is not easy, internships and building relationships in your preferred field are crucial, said Princess Renessa Diaz-Birca, a recent Northeastern University School of Law graduate now working with Berney & Sang, a civil rights law firm. Diaz-Birca specializes in representing incarcerated children.
“My internship was at the ACLU, and my externship was with the Innocence Project,” she said. “Just having those connections with people, and then getting into the work and actually seeing what it looks like, and having mentors . . .
“I don’t think people really seek out mentors. At least for me, they showed up just through the nature of my work.”
Diaz-Birca added that hands-on experience is essential, particularly for those interested in pursuing public interest law.
“One of the things I love most about my work is client interaction and meeting people who I get to help and who are directly affected by some of these cases,” she said. “And you really can’t get that from just a class, either. You get that from working with them directly, or working on their cases directly, or having those mentors who will introduce you to them.”
Diaz-Birca noted that the job application process is tough, as is the waiting that comes with it, but she encourages students to stick with it.
“Don’t let it get to you,” she said. “Keep applying; don’t get discouraged; and it does somehow end up working out.”
