Tag Archives: legal recruiting

Legal Recruiter Q&A: Job Seeker Advice from Gay Rineberg Schreiber

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This is the second post in our recruiter series where we ask legal recruiters for their insider tips and job seeker advice.

This Q&A is with Gay Rineberg Schreiber of McCormack Schreiber.  McCormackSchreiber is a longtime leader in the Chicago legal market and is proud to have made nearly 1000 law firm and in-house placements.

What skills are most in demand in the legal industry right now?

The skills most in demand in the legal industry right now are demonstrated business acumen and the ability to develop clients/business.  As for substantive practice area skills, the transactional areas are most active and transactional skills are particularly in demand.

Where are the biggest growth areas?

As noted above, the biggest growth is in the transactional areas, including real estate, M&A and private equity, and other growth areas include privacy and information technology, as well as healthcare.  Litigation has remained fairly steady, though we have seen an increased demand recently.

What traits are your clients looking for in candidates?

Our clients are always seeking strong legal skills, a great attitude and motivation to succeed.  For our more junior candidates, our clients want to see excellent writing and strong communication skills.  For our more experienced candidates, our clients are looking for people with great client relations/people skills, the desire and ability to develop business, and the ability to work well with others and collaborate as a team.

What’s the biggest mistake candidates make in the recruitment process?

The biggest mistakes that lateral candidates make in the recruitment process are failing to tailor their message (including resumes and interviews) to a particular client’s needs; being indecisive or projecting a lack of interest to the client, which can be the case when a candidate drags his/her feet and waits too long to follow through with next steps in an interview process; and not being open and honest with the recruiter so as to better allow the recruiter to assist the candidate through the search and interview process.

What’s the coolest job you ever recruited for?

We have been in business for close to 20 years (in June!) so it is difficult to select just one “coolest” job!  That said, while people outside of law may not believe it, many of our jobs have a “cool” element to them.  Some of our law firm clients are boutiques/spin offs with particularly unique and cohesive cultures that have more of an entrepreneurial feel to them.  In the in-house arena, in addition to our more traditional large public company searches, our searches have included new and dynamic companies in the start-up process, and tech companies with pool tables in their offices – many of which offer “cool” options for our candidates.

Do you have any career advice for our readers? 

My career advice for attorneys – even at the junior-level – is to decide the area of practice you enjoy most and best utilizes your skills, and to focus your career accordingly, trying to make yourself a “go-to” for this area.  Further, as business development is becoming more and more important, attorneys should start networking early and often in their career, staying in touch with law school classmates, former colleagues, etc., all of which should pay off when it comes to developing your own business and clients, giving you more career options in the future.

Finally, keep a working document of your resume (and as you get more experienced, representative transactions and engagements lists).  If you learn of a new position that could be a great career move, you want to be prepared to move quickly with the best and most accurate presentation of your experience and skills.

 

Start your job search with Lawjobs.com today.

 

More about McCormack Schreiber

McCormack Schreiber Legal Search is Chicago’s premier attorney search firm, and with 8 attorney recruiters we are also one of Chicago’s largest search firms.  Since 1998, we have successfully placed experienced attorneys of all levels and practice areas at top large, midsize and boutique law firms, and at national and international corporations.  Our affiliate company, McCormack Schreiber Legal Solutions, assists our law firm and corporate clients with paralegal hiring as well as contract attorney and other legal staffing needs.   McCormack Schreiber is a longtime leader in the Chicago legal market, and we are proud to have made nearly 1000 law firm and in-house placements.

McCormack Schreiber Legal Search Logo

 

Legal Recruiter Q&A: Job Seeker Advice from Keith Fall, Walker Associates

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In our new series for Lawjobs.com, we’re asking legal recruiters for their insider tips about where the biggest job seeker opportunities are, and for advice on how candidates can best position themselves to get them.

This Q&A is with Keith Fall of Walker Associates, a legal recruitment firm based in New York city.  He specializes in working with Partners and groups as an expert matchmaker and trusted advisor.  He has been in the field since 2005.

What skills are most in demand in the legal industry right now?

Corporate and transactional attorneys continue to be the highest in demand, with virtually every law firm seeking to proactively grow with both revenue producing partners and very talented 3-5 year associates. Firms continue to hire litigators opportunistically, but there seems to be less of a strategic emphasis on lateral growth in that area with any kind of urgency.

Where are the biggest growth areas?

FinTech is a burgeoning area of growth that law firms are just beginning to wrap their heads around. The world of financial services is being upended by new technologies – from virtual currencies and blockchain to peer-to-peer lending and enhanced mobile banking – and it’s affecting an increasing amount of existing law firm clients, all while new potential clients open up every day. FinTech is an interesting industry in that it touches upon a large variety of more traditional practice areas within a law firm, including corporate, regulatory, tax, cybersecurity, securities litigation, banking/finance, amongst others, and the industry is asking new legal questions in a space that has yet to be fully defined. For those reasons, we’ll continue to see an increased focus on growth with legal expertise that touches on all areas of FinTech.

What traits are your clients looking for in candidates?

Clients want a clear understanding of why a candidate is considering a change, and what they’re hoping to accomplish with a move. If as a law firm they’re not going to be able to solve whatever platform deficiencies the attorney is presently experiencing, the likelihood of the match lasting is minimal. Naturally, the business case has to be there as well, so it’s critical to them that almost any Partner level candidate demonstrate a client following, and an ability to develop further client relationships with upside. Lastly, law firms are taking their cultures increasingly seriously, and tend to have less and less tolerance for someone they think will be a problem for them in the future. We’ve seen many situations where someone is viewed as ‘difficult’, and despite having a large book of business, they get passed on routinely.

What’s the biggest mistake candidates make in the recruitment process?

The worst thing a Partner-level candidate can do when interviewing with another firm is to inflate their portable business expectations. It paints a target on their back, and when the practice doesn’t materialize, there is a lot of tension between themselves and the leadership of the firm, in what otherwise should be a harmonious relationship.

What’s the coolest job you ever recruited for?

I love working with different kinds of individuals and groups, and getting to know their personalities and what makes them tick. The people I get to work with are always overwhelmingly more interesting than the job they’re interviewing for.

Do you have any career advice for our readers? 

You’ll never have more leverage in your career than when you have a client following. Whether you’re a big-time producer or are just starting to develop a book of business, you should be spending time every day thinking about how you’re going to market yourself and the firm, and pounding the pavement to get new client relationships in the door. Second, and this may sound counterintuitive coming from a recruiter, but the grass is not always greener on the other side of the fence. Before deciding to conduct what potentially could be a time-consuming search, talk to some resources you trust to get other input on whether a move could truly be worthwhile. Finally, when you’ve decided it’s time for a change, work with a recruiter that takes the time to get to know you and your practice, and is able to make good suggestions about what firms and opportunities you should be aware of. Making a career change is a big deal, and you want to work with someone who will take it as seriously as you will.

 

Start your job search with Lawjobs.com today.

Law School News: Columbia Law Boasts Highest Hiring Rates

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The results are in from the Law.com Go-To Law Schools list for 2018, and Columbia Law School ranked #1 for the 5th year running based on their strong performance of 2017 JD graduates who took associate jobs at the nations’ largest 100 firms. An impressive 68% of their 432 2017 graduates ended up at NLJ 100 law firms.

There are many factors that go into selecting a law school, but this research gets right to the point of what many prospective students really want to know – how will their degree ultimately lead to a job in the legal field.

So how do they do it?  Here are just a few factors that work in Columbia’s favor:

Location, location, location – Columbia happens to be in one of the biggest legal markets in the U.S., so students are better located to attend recruiting events, network, and join summer associate programs in their own backyard.  This correlation can also be seen in the 2nd and 3rd ranked law schools, University of Chicago and NYU.

Alumni – the Columbia alumni network is active and very involved in the recruiting process.  Having these connections in leadership positions at the largest law firms helps even more – last year 27 Columbia Law School alumni were promoted to law firm partnerships according to the report.

Reputation – quoted in an article on Law.com, Columbia Law School dean Gillian Lester said ‘the firms’ hiring teams know that our students will arrive with superb legal and leadership skills, ready to take on the most challenging assignments’.

Columbia is not alone in their success this year.  Here’s who else ranked highest in the 2018 Go-To Law Schools Report, and how these compare to the U.S. News & World Report:

1. Columbia Law School (ranked 5 by U.S. News)

2. University of Chicago Law School (ranked 4 by U.S. News)

3. NYU School of Law (ranked 6 by U.S. News)

4.University of Virginia, School of Law (ranked 8 by U.S. News)

5. University of Pennsylvania, School of Law (ranked 7 by U.S. News)

6. Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law (ranked 10 by U.S. News)

7. Duke Law School (ranked 10 by U.S. News)

8. Harvard Law School (ranked 3 by U.S. News)

9. Cornell Law School (ranked 13 by U.S. News)

10. University of California, Berkeley School of Law (ranked 12 by U.S. News)

 

 

 

Inclusion Riders and The Mansfield Rule: Women and Diversity in Law

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On International Women’s Day it seems fitting that we highlight some of the efforts to increase diversity in the legal industry.

As #inclusionrider reverberated around the world this weekend following Frances McDormand’s Oscar speech, diversity advocates delighted. Started by the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, the contractual provisions of an inclusion rider are not new.  However, they offer new hope that with widespread adoption we could see tangible changes. For those in a position to use them, it provides a way to take action and make an impact.

Writing in Corporate Counsel this week, Sue Reisinger speculates that “it’s possible some highly recruited executive—a CEO or general counsel perhaps—could likewise try to insert diversity hiring goals into an employment contract.”. Once in a position of authority though, executives have the power to increase diversity at the company, and also demand that their vendors and providers show a commitment to diversity in their own organizations. That of course extends to outside counsel too, and the list of corporations who are insisting on diversity among their preferred providers is growing.

Law firms are responding to this call for action at all levels. Cue the Mansfield Rule, born out of the 2016 Women in Law Hackathon hosted by Diversity Lab. According to their website “the Mansfield Rule – the next generation of the Rooney Rule – certifies that law firms consider at least 30% women and minority lawyers for significant leadership roles”.

The rule is so named after Arabella Mansfield, the first woman admitted to the practice of law in the U.S. in 1869. This is an apt reminder of how far we’ve come, but there is much more work ahead. These are all positive signs that the conversations are turning to action.  We’ll continue to follow these trends with interest.

Join the conversation and check out some of the great work being done by the following groups:

Minority Corporate Counsel Association

Women, Influence & Power in Law

Colorado Pledge to Diversity

Diversity Lab

Annenberg Inclusion Initiative

 

 

 

Leveraging Your Technical Skills for an In-house Role

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According to a recent survey by Thomson Reuters, 74% of corporate attorneys believe that Millennials will bring technology advancements into the legal department.

That’s a great responsibility, but why is it so important?  The benefit to legal departments is that a tech-savvy team will help them be more efficient and effective – a critical combination in times when there is increasing pressure to do things ‘faster-better-cheaper’.

Technology for in-house legal departments can include:

  • Tools and platforms to help corporate counsel do their jobs more effectively. Anything that could be automated, should be automated.  Millennials are likely to be the first to advocate for this over manual processes, focusing their time instead on analyzing the metrics and data.

 

  • Mobile access. By adopting mobile technology that allows lawyers to work remotely, corporate counsel will have more flexibility in their workday.

 

  • Artificial intelligence. The possibilities are endless, and still largely undefined.   It will take digital-native and enquiring minds to bring these applications to life.

 

Millennial lawyers looking for an in-house role can leverage these technical skills as strategic assets, and quickly gain more responsibility by leading initiatives to implement new technology.

Start your job search with Lawjobs.com today.

Big Law Insights: The Latest Law Student Recruiting Trends

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Our colleagues at The American Lawyer report that entry-level recruitment efforts across law firms remain steady and robust .  Big Law recruiting volume and practices are now on par with pre-recession levels, according to the data collected by the National Association for Law Placement.

What has changed though is the size of summer program classes, with the average falling from 22 in 2016 to 20 in 2017.  The good news for those who get through is that 95% of participants in summer programs go onto to receive offers for an associate position.

Read more about the NALP survey in the article here and let us know how this compares with your experience!

What To Look For During Legal Recruiting Interviews

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The legal recruiting process is very important when trying to make a hiring decision. If you are looking for a new attorney for your firm, getting the right person matters. Sometimes, it can be difficult to tell whether you have located the right attorney, or whether that particular lawyer simply interviews well. Making that determination before a hiring decision can save you a lot of trouble at a later date, when the person you have selected simply does not work out the way you intended. By learning what to look for throughout the recruiting and hiring process, you will be better prepared to get the best attorney for your firm.

What Interviewers Should Ask

Any interviewer who is focused on the legal recruiting process should be looking for the very best attorney for the job. Interviewers should look for attorneys who have a good work ethic, proper schooling, and a collaborative attitude that will help them at the firm if they are selected for the position. So, what can interviewers ask? Consider questions such as:

– What was the most important thing you learned in law school?
– What made you choose the legal profession?
– Where do you see the future of law in this country?
– Why did you choose your practice area? (personal injury, divorce law, etc)?
– What makes you most effective as an attorney?

Good Lawyer, or Good Interviewee?

Some people interview very well, but that doesn’t mean they are good attorneys. Deciding whether a person is truly competent, or whether they simply know what to say when they are being interviewed, can be difficult for an interviewer, but it is also a very important distinction to make. To make that determination, it is highly important to listen carefully to what a candidate says. Look for:

– Answers that are rehearsed or sound as though they are memorized
– Weaknesses that are actually strengths
– Smooth talk that avoids a direct answer
– Answers that are too fast, not well thought-out, or that delve into longer explanations than really necessary.


How Important is the Recruiting Process?

The legal recruiting process is extremely valuable. An attorney who is selected by any firm is one that has been chosen because it was believed that they would be a good fit for that firm. Not all attorneys are created equally, and many issues much be considered, including:

– Skills
– Abilities
– Where they went to school
– Quality of the work they do
– How well they fit into the firm where they have applied

In other words, personality matters in the recruiting process, as much as other aspects of hiring a new attorney to work at a particular firm. With the importance of various aspects, firms would be wise to take a careful look at their processes and make adjustments accordingly.

Influence of Technology on Today’s Legal Landscape

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It is no secret that technology has slowly infiltrated its way into the legal industry. From social media to online legal search engines, technology has helped to modernize the legal landscape, making it more accessible to all legal professionals. As technology continues to change the legal industry, many professionals are left wondering how they can benefit.

Social Media Improves Connectivity within the Legal Landscape
No matter the industry, social media seems to have a measurable impact. In fact, when it comes to the legal landscape, social media has been responsible for a number of new developments. First and foremost, social media makes it easier for people working in the legal sector to remain connected. Take for example, the ever-popular Facebook. 

Facebook is logged into by an unprecedented 1.09 Billion people per day. For legal professionals, this means that they can more easily stay connected to the latest news and legal stories that over 1 Billion people are posting, sharing, liking, and otherwise commenting about on a daily basis. Thanks to the popular social network, legal professionals now find it easier to stay up-to-date on the latest legal precedents. Not only can legal professionals stay up-to-date, but they can better understand the general population’s take on the passing of certain laws, regulations, and other legal events. In short, social media has made it easier for the legal landscape to be readily accessible to both legal professionals and the general population.

Technology Makes Online News Spreads Quickly
Online news can spread at the speed of a click or in many cases a “tweet.” For the legal landscape, this means that important news is more readily available. Thanks to online databases that are connected to verified news sources, legal professionals can now access important documents, facts, precedents, and other information needed in their day-to-day jobs.

No longer do legal professionals have to spend hours digging through the stacks of public, private, or legal libraries. Instead, members of the legal industry can link their research onto different devices. Whether it is scanning a page from a book with their cell phone or signing into an online legal database like VerdictSearch, legal industry professionals are able to expand their knowledge in a timely fashion. In the age of new legal precedents (for example the constant debates over same-sex marriage, healthcare laws and cybersecurity), easy access to online news and legal information is paramount to the success of a legal professional.

Finding a Job Has Been Influenced by the Online Marketplace
Applying for jobs in the legal industry has been greatly improved by the creation of legal-focused job search engines, such as Lawjobs.com. Lawjobs is the leading niche legal recruitment website. This easy-to-use site efficiently and effectively pairs active and passive job seekers within the legal industry with firms who are looking to fill targeted positions. Thanks to mobile and desktop accessibility, Lawjobs.com has successfully capitalized on the technology trend that is sweeping through the legal industry. Now, legal professionals can more easily find the jobs that best suit their needs, and law firms can simultaneously enjoy the benefits of highly qualified staff members. 

The Bottom Line
Whether it is through social media, online news outlets, or an online legal job search engine, technology has helped to reshape the legal landscape. Through technology, legal professionals can now enjoy streamlined access to the latest news, legal rulings, and general legal information that they need to successfully complete their jobs and advance their careers.

How to Get Back in the Legal Industry

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Career changes and job changes are a constant for the typical American worker, and the constant state of flux in the legal industry only reinforces this general principle. Turnover in the legal industry costs roughly $9.1 billion annually. Much of this turnover is due to lawyers who seek a legal career change or lawyers who left law and aim to re-enter the industry.

This extensive industry turnover provides an excellent opportunity to re-enter the legal industry for anyone looking to use their law degree to practice law once again. If you are a legal graduate looking to return to the industry, the following tips should prove helpful for your legal re-entry strategy.

Tap Into Your Legal Network

Given that you were once an active member of the legal community, you likely created ties and connections to important people in the industry before you left. In the years since your departure from the legal industry, those peers likely have grown to enjoy hiring influence in their respective law firm and/or company.

As the old adage goes, it is often who you know, not what you know that makes the difference in the hiring process. This is no less true in the legal industry. Whether you tap into your peers or a network of passionate law school alumni, connections reduce barriers to re-entry and make it far easier to get your foot in the door.

Staying on Top of Legal Changes

Staying current with the latest legal changes is a critical component of making a successful return to law. Many educational institutions offer programs designed to help lawyers shore up their knowledge before re-entering the competitive legal marketplace. Bar associations may also provide similar programs and opportunities, so it pays to do your research in the state where you will be practicing. Not only will these programs help you find job opportunities, they are also critically important for shoring up legal knowledge.

As you know from your days in law school, many areas of law change rapidly. No matter what practice area you plan on resuming, you will need to find out what’s changed in your field since you left the law. Whether you take continuing legal education (CLE) courses or you need to take the bar, you will find the resources you need through local law schools and bar associations.

Refine Your Résumé

Once you reconnect with peers and refine your legal knowledge, you will be ready to commence the job interview process. While you may have an “in” with some of your former colleagues, you still need to tweak your résumé so you showcase your experience in the best possible light.

Depending on your desired practice area, highlight the skills you learned outside of law in the best possible light. For example, if you left real estate law to become a real estate agent, leverage that experience to highlight your nuanced understanding of real estate transactions from every angle. In short, sell your prior experience as something to be coveted and valued by legal employers.

Once you reach out to your network, regain familiarity with your practice area and hone your résumé, you will be well on your way towards a fulfilling return to law.