“Lawyers plan increased hiring in next 12 months, survey shows”

Good news for those interested in making a change:

"The hiring outlook for law firms and corporate legal departments remains positive, a new survey shows. Fifty-five per cent of lawyers surveyed plan to add personnel in the coming year. Only 1 per cent of respondents anticipate reductions in personnel. These results reflect little change from a similar poll conducted in 2005, in which 55 per cent of lawyers projected an increase in hiring and 3 per cent indicated a decrease in staffing. Corporate governance, litigation and intellectual property were identified as the areas of law expected to experience the most growth in the next 12 months.

"The survey was developed by Robert Half Legal, a leading staffing service specializing in lawyers, paralegals, law clerks and other highly skilled legal professionals. It was conducted by an independent research firm and includes responses from 300 lawyers among the 1,000 largest law firms and corporations in the United States and Canada; 200 lawyers were polled for the 2005 survey. All respondents have at least three years of experience in the legal field."