[Updated, September 2024] Needing a legal recruitment agency in the UK to help find the right lawyer(s) for your law firm? Or are you a top lawyer looking for your next move? And see also our new guide to NQ lawyer salaries.
Why Lawyers Should Choose a Legal Recruitment Company
When wanting to shift to a new legal position while already working full-time, legal recruitment agencies can assist ease the stress of job-hunting and save you time. Candidates are matched with open opportunities at law firms and other organisations that require legal talent by a legal recruiter. Working with a law firm recruiter can open doors to opportunities in the legal sector that you weren’t aware of before and provide you with insider knowledge of the market.
Why Law Firms Should Hire a Legal Recruitment Company
There are various reasons why a law firm might choose to work with a legal recruitment company for the hire of its next star lawyer or ongoing recruitment of lawyers and other legal professionals:
- Expertise: Legal recruiting businesses are experts at assisting law firms in finding the best applicants for their open positions. They are knowledgeable about the legal sector and the particular qualifications and background that law firms prioritise when hiring for legal roles.
- Time and resources: The hiring process can be time- and resource-intensive. Working with a legal recruitment business can help a law firm free up time and resources so they can concentrate on other responsibilities.
- Access to a larger pool of lawyer candidates: Compared to a law firm acting alone, legal recruitment firms frequently have access to a greater pool of potential lawyers including great potential lateral hires. Finding someone who is a good fit for the open position may be easier as a result.
- Professional assessment of lawyer candidates: Legal recruitment companies can provide a professional assessment of candidates, including their skills and fit for the role. This can help a law firm make informed hiring decisions.
- Confidentiality: Legal recruitment companies can help maintain confidentiality during the hiring process, which can be important for law firms.
Top Legal Recruiters UK
With that in mind, here are some of the top legal recruitment agencies that can help law firms in England & Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland:-
Frasia Wright Associates – “Frasia Wright Associates remains the only specialist legal recruitment consultancy based in Scotland, and operating in the Scottish, English and international legal markets. With 65 years combined experience in the legal recruitment sector, our team of 5 recruitment specialists have the skills and knowledge to assist you, whether you are a client looking to recruit additional lawyers to your team or are a candidate looking for a change or a new challenge. It is this experience and the depth of our constantly evolving market knowledge which set us apart from the competition and differentiate us in the legal recruitment sector.”; “Behind the scenes, administration, marketing and recruitment support function is managed by an experienced team of professionals, who provide a crucial element of support to our consultants and ensure that our service remains professional and relevant.”
Legal Recruitment Agency UK – “A specialist in recruiting Legal Professionals for the legal industry, with specialist recruiters focused on bringing quality to your business every time.”; “Our specialties – High Value Claim handlers – Top Solicitors in their fields – EL/PL, Data Breach, RTA, Clinical Negligence Plus other Legal Staff…”
JMC Legal Recruitment – “As a dedicated national legal recruitment company, we’re experts in our field – as attested by our growing roster of top-flight firms and exclusive roles.” Legal Jobs – Private Practice – In-House Legal Counsel Recruitment – London Legal Jobs – Partner moves
Robert Walters International Legal Recruitment – “Robert Walters’ Legal operates across 20 countries globally, offering unrivalled local market knowledge and global reach. Our local teams are committed to recruiting top quality legal talent for permanent, temporary, contract and interim opportunities across the world.”
Michael Page Legal – “As a flagship PageGroup business, Michael Page Legal has been at the forefront of legal recruitment for more than 32 years. Our size and capability means we are unique in our ability to specialise in every market we serve.”
Thomson Legal – “With 20+ years’ experience and knowledge of the legal sector behind us, we advise and place lawyers into new legal positions in private practice, in-house and the public sector. At Thomson Legal, we operate locally out of Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen, London and Dublin.”
The People Pod – “Source of legal career advice and roles”; “The People Pod offer specialist job advice, CV/cover letter advice and publish outstanding roles for the legal sector and other sectors all over the UK and overseas.”
Legal Recruitment Stats
The following are 4 key legal recruitment stats:-
- There are 210,152 solicitors in the UK (as at August 2021) (compared with 1.3 million lawyers in the US) and is rising consistently year on year as per this graph from the SRA’s website
2. Yet the number of law firms in the UK appears to be decreasing, with 9,950 law firms (as at August 2021) compared with a recent peak number of 11,369 law firms in May 2012 (source: SRA official statistics on number and types of law firms)
3. The average salary for a solicitor in the UK in 2021 is £48,219 according to Reed and £49,378 according to Indeed.
4. London solicitor salaries are the highest in the UK, averaging £70,375 as at 2021 according to Glassdoor
Legal Recruitment Trends
Technology lawyer jobs are some of the fastest rising while corporate and M&A lawyer job opportunities and demand appear to be shrinking according to this graph from Chambers Associate (albeit a snapshot from the US legal market rather than UK).
For Scottish legal aid solicitor recruitment see our article Mark Thorley on “The Future Of Legal Aid In Scotland”
More legal recruitment trends to follow.
Other Great Legal Recruitment Agencies?
If you are part of a leading provider of legal recruitment solutions for law firms and you would like to be considered to be listed above please contact us here.
