Lawyer recruitment figures “encouraging” as they reach highest level since pre-pandemic

The recruitment of lawyers has reached its highest level since before the covid-19 pandemic forced the country into lockdown, according to new labour market data for England and Wales.

Recruitment levels in 2020’s quarter two fell by 74.3% quarter-on-quarter following a hit from the UK’s initial national lockdown in March last year, with year-on-year vacancies falling by one-third compared to 2019’s figures.

Despite the pandemic’s initial impact, the number of vacancies rose by 19% in February 2021, with 729 professional vacancies posted by top firms across England and Wales. This figure does not include apprentices, interns and trainees.

Although magic circle firms reported a collective year-on-year fall in vacancies of 40.5% in 2020, Allen & Overy’s recruitment figures were 13% higher than those in 2019 and Linklaters’ new roles were double its 2020 postings.

“These encouraging figures show that the recovery within the legal sector is properly back on track,” according to Vacancysoft CEO James Chaplin.

He added: “After a year like no other for the industry, legal firms are rediscovering their rhythm — and recruiters in this space are feeling the positive knock-on effects.”

Meanwhile, mergers between law firms plummeted by 25% to a nine-year low, as only 107 law firm mergers were completed in 2020, compared with 143 in 2019, according to data from Hazelwoods. Consolidator firms were fearful of going through with acquisitions due to the economic downturn following the covid-19 pandemic.