Layoffs
Legal Industry Lost 22,300 Jobs in Last Year
Posted Apr 3, 2009, 07:23 am CST
By Debra Cassens Weiss
The legal industry lost 2,700 jobs in March, according to seasonally adjusted numbers released today by the U.S. Labor Department.
Legal employment, which includes nonlawyers who work in the legal services industry, declined from 1,149,200 in February to 1,146,500 in March.
Legal services jobs nationwide have contracted by 22,300 jobs in the last 12 months, according to the numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The loss comes as the national unemployment rate reached 8.5 percent, the New York Times reports. The story says the Federal Reserve expects unemployment to peak at about 8.8 percent, but many economists predict it will hit 10 percent.
Prior coverage at ABAJournal.com:
21,000 Legal Jobs Lost in Past Year
Legal Jobs Now Stand at Same Level as March 2004
Legal Services Industry Lost 7,000 Jobs Last Year
Legal Employment Down 12,000 Jobs in Last Year
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