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The State of the New York Attorney Job Market
All areas of the country are feeling the pinch of the current economic situation, and New York is no exception. This means that the legal
job market is reduced, though good opportunities still exist for the right candidates. Any professional who has experience in certain
fields, including tax law, bankruptcy, litigation, and intellectual property (particularly those with computer science or engineering
backgrounds), can expect to find possibilities for employment.
Experienced a ttorneys with good
qua lifica tions a re expected to fa re
b e t t e r t h a n yo u n g e r l a w ye r s wh o a r e
still bu ilding their experience, a nd those
firms tha t are hiring remain cau tiou s.
Despite this, positions obta ined in this
k i n d o fh ir i n g cl i ma t ea r e g e n e ra l l y
good long-term ma tches, ma k ing it
rea so na bletocau tiou slyinvestiga te
attorney jobs in New York.
Overvie w of the M ar ket for Attor ne y
Jobs in Ne w Yor k
In today's legal market, it's important to be aware of two
importa nt d yna mi cs. T he fir st, a nd mo st im porta nt, is t he
uncerta in economy. While there's debate a bout the exa ct
definition of a recession, a nd the current sta te of the economy,
t h e e f f e c t so fa l e s s -t h a n -h e a l t hy o n e a r e st i l l b e i n g fe l t . I n
New York specifically, la w firms tend to heavily rely on ba nk s.
When ba nk s experience signi fica nt write-offs, la w offices feel
t h e p i n c h . W h i l e w e m ay n o t t e c h n i c a l l y b e i n a r e c e s si o n ,
attorney jobs in New York a re certainly feeling the effects of
the credit crisis.
Fewer firms in the Ne w York ma rk et a re hiring tha n in the
recent pa st, with some firm s choo sing to ta k e a break while
they try to find ou t how the economy will rea ct, a nd gau ge
ho w lon g thi s mi ght -b e re ce ssi on will la st. Oth ers a re hiri ng,
b u t d o i n g s o l e s sa g g r e s s i ve l y t h a n t h e y w e r e a ye a r a g o. S t i l l
other la w firms are quite bu sy, a nd don't have the time to stop
a n d t h i n k a b o u t w h e t h e r o r n o t t h e e c o n o my i s i n r o u g h s h a p e
— fo rt h e m , e ve r y t hi n g i sbu si n e ssa su su a l , in c lu d i n g hi ri n g .
On ba la nce, the economic do wntu rn mea ns tha t fewer a ttorney
jobs in New York a re a va ila ble a s firms tighten requ irements
for p ote ntia l ca ndida te s. T hose firm s tha t a re hiring a re a bl e
t o b e m u c h m o r e se l e c t i ve a b o u t t h e c a n d i d a t e st h a t t h e y
choose. That doesn' t mean that attorneys shouldn' t look for
PAGE 5
BUSINESSD ENGLOPMEN TCROSSING
jobs i n th e Ne w York a rea , however. Sea rchi ng c on ser va tively
could allow you to find a n excellent job that you 'll retain in the
long t erm. Bot h a pplica nt s a nd hiring firm s a re thi nk ing a lot
ha rder a bou t the hirin g pro ce ss. T ha t mea ns t ha t firm s a re
hiring only when they're sure that the incoming attorney will
h ave wo r k , a n d a t t o r n e y sa r e m o st l y l o o k i n g a t p l a c e s wh e r e
they'll settle for some time.
Spe cialties Nee de d fo r Atto r ne y Jo bs in Ne w Yo r k
Senior-level attorneys with experience in structured finance
are in dema nd, as some firms build up a strong foundation in
expecta tion of a stru ctured mark et rebou nd. There is currently
heavy speculation regarding which new financial products will
emerge, but activity in this area is still scattered. Hiring is
mostly focu sed on partners, rather than with a ssociate attorneys.
La w firms continu e to gea r
uptheirlitiga tionpra cti ces,
particula rly in white-collar area s
a nd fina ncia l litiga tion. Litiga tion
c yc l e sa r e o ft e n c o u n t e r t o t h e
general economy's, but firms
tend to rema in cau tiou s du ring
e co n om ictr ou bl e s, e veni nt his
a rea of pra ctic e. T ha t mea ns t ha t the a va ila ble a ttorne y
jobs in New York 's litigation field are still demanding in terms
of r equ ired cr ed entia ls a nd ex perie nc e. Still, litiga tor s who
a r e n 't b u sy m a y st i l l wa n t t o t a k e t i m e t o c h e c k o u t p ra c t i c e s
t h a t m ay b e g r o wi n g so o n .
Ba nk ru ptcy grou ps rema in bu sy, a nd provide excellent
opportu nitie s for a ttorn ey jo bs i n Ne w York . T hese a re i n
bothlitigation-orientedareasandtra nsa ctionalbankruptcy
situ a tions. S enior a sso cia te a nd pa rtner op portu nitie s a re
a va ila ble in both fiel ds. Dema n d for e mpl oy ment la wy ers,
a nti-tru st la wyers, a nd pa tent la wyers ha s increa sed modestly.
As with other a rea s, the openings a re fewer, bu t those tha t a re
ava ila ble are often excellent.
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The intellectua l property a rea continu es to grow, offering
opportu nitie sforla wyerswhospecia lizeinpharma ceutical
licen sin g a nd tra de ma rk la w. T here rema in s a stea d y
strea m of a ttorney jobs in New York for a ssocia tes in hard
a nd so ft int elle ctu a l property. La wy ers with ba ck grou nds i n
compu ter science a nd electrica l engineering rema in in dema nd
everywhere.
At all levels, ta x la w remains a n area that's hiring. T hose with
back gr ou nd si n mer g ersa n da c qu i si tio nsa n din ter na ti onal law
h ave e xc e l l e n t c h a n c e s. At b o t h t h e a s s o c i a t e a n d p a r t n e r
level, a ttorney jobs in New York a re a va ila ble for execu tive
c o m p e n sa t i o n l a w ye r sa n d E R I SAl a wye r s. W h i l e t h e m a r ke t
feels flat, it isn't, necessarily.
Co mpe nsatio n for Attor ne y Jo bs in Ne w Yor k
Sa la ries a nd benefits for New York a ttorney positions a re
va ria ble, depending on wheth er the job is loca ted in New
York City itself, or elsewhere in the sta te. NYC jobs offer
c on si d era bl y hig h erle v el sofc om p e nsa ti o n,du et oth e grea t er
co st o f livin g in a nd a rou nd t he city. Co mp en sa tion for
su mm er a ssocia te s va rie s b et we en a rou nd $ 2 ,50 0 per week
EmploymentCrossing is the largest collection of active jobs in the world.
We continuously monitor the hiring needs of more than 250,000 employers, including virtually every corporation and organization in
the United States. We do not charge employers to post their jobs and we aggressively contact and investigate thousands of employers
each day to learn of new positions. No one works harder than EmploymentCrossing.
Let EmploymentCrossing go to work for you.
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LAWCROSSI VE
a nd more tha n $3 ,00 0 per week , with sa la ries for first yea r
a ssocia tes tending to be a bou t $160 ,0 00 per yea r, in a ddition
to benefits.
Recent la w school gra dua tes ma y also be eligible to
receive a stipend from the la w firm whic h hires them,
orr eim bu r se m e ntsfor ba r-exa m-re la te d ex pe n sesa nd
cou rse s. Co m mon be ne fits inclu d e in su ra nce a nd retir em ent
pla ns, work -related technology, inclu ding PDAs a nd la ptop
co mpu ters, a n d pa id va ca tion. T he exa ct circu m sta nc es will
vary by the position a nd the applicant's experience.
Conclusion
While the job ma rk et for attorneys in New York is depressed
du e to economic circu msta nces, there a re positions a va ila ble,
especia llyfore xperi enc edpr ofe ssio na lsintereste di nlat era l
mov e ment. Liti ga tion - a nd ba nk ru ptcy -rela ted fi eld s a re still
g ro wi n g ,a sa r e ta x lawa n d t h e i nt e l le c tu a l p ro p e r tya r e n a s.
O t h e r a r e a sm ay b e m o r e c a u t i o u st o h i r e , a n d r e q u i r e m e n t s
for qu a lifica tions are increa sing in a ll firms. Jobs obtained in
this ma rk et are more lik ely to be a good long-term fit, thou gh
t h e y m ay b e h a r d e r t o o b t a i n .
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