Uptick in Law Jobs Offers Ray of Hope
Here’s some good news: law-related jobs saw a modest increase as 2015 wound to a close.
The U.S. legal sector – which includes lawyers, paralegals and legal secretaries – added 1,200 new jobs in December. That was twice the 600 new jobs reported in November, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. And it was consistent with a rise in overall employment.
Twelve hundred jobs spread out across the nation might not sound like a big deal. But after an up-and-down year, the promising news was greeted with cheers.
“We have seen a really strong year on the lateral associate side, at least in New York, for corporate and transactional especially,” says this placement director, who describes the legal market as “very robust.”
September 2015 Was Strongest Month
For the year, the law sector grew by 10,000 jobs. That’s a healthy turnaround from 2014, which saw a net loss of 2,700 jobs.
Here’s how the numbers break down, courtesy of Bloomberg News:
- The year started with 1,118,000 law jobs.
- It ended with 1,128,000.
- The numbers began dipping in April. The decrease continued through the summer.
- Beginning in the fall, jobs started picking up. The biggest gain occurred in September, when 4,400 jobs were created.
What’s the situation in your area? Are things looking up or down? Send us a comment.
Sources:
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics http://www.bls.gov/
- American Lawyer http://www.americanlawyer.com/id=1202744009685/Jobs-Report-Shows-Continued-Growth-in-US-Legal-Sector#ixzz3yTVPSJKF
- Bloomberg – Big Law Business https://bol.bna.com/u-s-legal-sector-gains-1200-jobs-in-december/
