Layoffs
Legal Sector Lost 5,800 Jobs Last Month, Labor Bureau Says
Posted Nov 6, 2009, 03:05 pm CST
By Martha Neil
As the nation's unemployment rate topped 10 percent last month, lawyers were not spared.
The legal sector lost 5,800 jobs, according to seasonally adjusted statistics in a just-released report (PDF) from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. When not seasonally adjusted, the figures show a gain of 1,500 jobs, but that is probably attributable to the elimination of summer associates from law firm payrolls, reports the Am Law Daily.
After slowing down for a few months over the summer, it appears that the pace of law firm layoffs is now picking up a bit, the legal blog notes.
Among the firms that have recently trimmed their rosters are Drinker Biddle & Reath; Foley & Lardner; and Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr.
Earlier coverage:
ABAJournal.com: "Legal Sector Lost 2,000 Jobs Last Month, 58 Jobs Last Week"
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