LawCrossing, the website with the largest collection of legal jobs in the world, has released a month-end statistical report on the changes in the number of legal jobs by practice areas and job types.
This past month's data show previous patterns for growth in attorney jobs have improved drastically with a strong increase in almost every area of legal staff positions. The report reflects changes in the demand for attorneys and legal staff in various practice areas and regions throughout the U.S. for the period between June 15, 2006 and July 14, 2006.
With the exception of two regions, attorney jobs in law firms have seen a strong growth in almost all geographical areas. The Southwest district had a small decrease in demand, dropping eight jobs. The South, on the other hand, experienced the greatest drop in job demand, losing 182 jobs in one month and undergoing a seven-percent drop.
The Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, and Midwest showed steady growth in jobs, but none topped the Western region's six-percent increase.
In-house attorney job market displayed steady expansion in all geographical areas. However, following the trend that occurred in law firms, the Western in-house legal market had the most marked growth at four percent.
The government has also been creating a huge pool of jobs this past month, which is a stark difference from last month's dearth of government jobs.
The continued growth in demand for law firm and in-house legal jobs reflects J.D.s' ongoing search for summer internships and attorney positions.
"June is the month when a flood of law school students and recent grads go out in search of jobs—whether it is a summer internship that will give them legal cred on their resume or an entry-level attorney position that will provide them with a good start in the industry," said LawCrossing CEO A. Harrison Barnes.
"Some regions, such as the South and Southwest, which have experienced significant growth in May and June, are beginning to level out and decrease their job demand. Their legal markets are capping off. Other regions, most notably the West and Northeast which have huge and ever-growing legal markets, continue to supply more jobs to meet the ever-increasing demand."
Barnes continued, "In direct correlation to increased attorney positions, legal staff positions have also been experiencing a positive hike this past month. Law firms across the nation realize that they need more paralegals, legal secretaries, accountants, IT staff, and so on in order to ensure the firm's running smoothly and efficiently. A good legal staff acts as the lubricant that keeps the firm's wheels spinning."
Indeed, the market for legal staff is continuing its growth pattern for the second month running. Information technology, human resources, and accounting all have heightened demands, increasing by 37 percent, 30 percent, and 33 percent, respectively.
Legal staff positions that work most closely with attorneys have been slowing in demand. Paralegal positions posted have increased by two percent, while legal secretary positions posted have decreased by one percent. Nonetheless, both remain steady in their demand.
LawCrossing's team of 200 researchers and editors monitors the hiring needs of more than 1.2 million legal employers. With more than 75,000 legal jobs in the U.S currently in the database, the website counts tens of thousands of law students, attorneys, and legal staff professionals as members.
- Law Crossing
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