Report Notes ‘Swelling of Unproductive Associates’
Productivity at the top 100 law firms was down 6.5 percent in the third quarter, indicating that there are too many associates with too little work to do, according to a new report.
Mark Medice, the national manager of the West Peer Monitor Index, told the National Law Journal that the index’s measure of legal market conditions found that a recent slowdown in legal hiring isn’t enough to make up for reduced demand.
The index found that associate hiring is down 6 percent over last year and equity partner growth is half of the level of last year.
“In spite of the various reports of layoffs and firm contractions, the factor that looms largest is the swelling of unproductive associates in firms,” said the report (PDF). “This is especially true with the large firm segment, which is experiencing the lowest productivity in the industry. Addressing this issue may be a key challenge in the months ahead.”
