Big Law Attorneys Are Hitting the Lateral Market. Should Midsize Firms Hire Them?

After years of getting poached by hungry Big Law firms looking to keep up with the high demand in capital markets and M&A practices, midsize firms are now in a position to settle the score.

It seems that some midsize firms are seeing more interest from Big Law attorneys than at any other point during the last several years.

Meanwhile, associates in slow practices are choosing to not hang around much longer just to get laid off or reap a bonus that isn’t coming this year, while rate pressures are hurting partners as clients bring more work in-house and seek value outside of Big Law. 

One in four Big Law associates plan to quit their firm in the next year, according to a recent Major, Lindsey & Africa report. Excess capacity and low billable hours have some associates seeing the writing on the wall, if their firms haven’t spelled out the situation for them.

For partners, aggressive rate hikes in recent years are straining client relationships at a time when corporate legal departments are looking for savings by bringing more work in-house and switching to smaller firms, per an October report from the Association of Corporate Counsel and Everlaw.

Are you interested in learning more about how Big Law attorneys are hitting the lateral market and if midsize firms should hire them? Read more in this law.com article.