Summary: The end of the year is a great time for lawyers to get out there and find a new job at law firms.
There are certain times of the year when an attorney will have a better chance of finding a new job. Most often it is believed that the beginning of the year is the best time but the end of the year is a great time to start looking. Read Harrison Barnes’ article Top 10 Reasons Why November and December Are the Best Times of the Year for Attorneys to Look for New Law Firm Positions to learn more.
Looking for a job in November or December is a good move to make because no one else is looking. Most attorneys wait until January to start looking for a job, crowding the job market. During the last two months of the year, there is less competition for the jobs that are available.
At the end of the year, some law firms will find themselves with extra money in their budget that they lose if they don’t use. These law firms find themselves in November and even December with money still in the budget to hire someone. Law firms that don’t use the whole budget will not receive the same amount the next year. Since there is no harm in using the money that has already been budgeted for a new attorney, law firms jump at the opportunity. This also means the firms are in a rush to hire someone instead of sitting around for the best candidate to come around.
Law firms may have positions open for quite a while for various reasons that they need to fill before the end of the year. Perhaps they extended offers that were turned down or were picky about finding a right candidate. Either way, they will be turning to their recruiting connections to find someone, making it easier for those recruiters to sell their candidates to the firm.
With the need to hire an attorney quickly, law firms are less critical of who they hire. People tend to be in a better mood by the end of the year with the holidays coming up. They are in a hurry to wrap things up and hire someone now so they can enjoy their upcoming vacation.
The hiring process is not an enjoyable process for anyone. Holding interviews takes valuable time out of an attorney’s day so they want to get back to their job so they can bill more hours. The first few months of the year is filled with countless interviews that associate and partners have to sit through when they would rather be back at their desk working. They know that the more they hire in November and December means the less they will hire in January and February.
By the end of the year, things can be a little disorganized within a law firm. The weather gets unpredictable, affecting who makes it into the office, and the holidays cause a lot of people to miss work too. The lack of people at the office and the miscommunication from that can be in your favor. This may mean they don’t check your qualifications as carefully or experience.
Since November and December are the time that attorneys take time off to spend with family, not as much work is getting done. Law firms need this work to get done so they become desperate to hire someone.
Why else are November and December good months to get a new job? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.
To learn more about how to get a job at a law firm, read these articles:
- How to Get to a Better Law Firm Job
- Top Mistakes Holding Attorneys Back from Jobs at Top Law Firms
- Top Ten Ways Attorneys Can Move to a Better Law Firm and Get a Better Attorney Job
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