There’s a growing talent gap in the legal industry. Gene Commander points to talent development and career advancement strategies that can propel midsize and smaller firms into the next decade.
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Revitalizing talent development and career advancement strategies can propel midsize and smaller firms into the next decade.

law firm talent development — Law Firm Talent Development: Rebooting Career Advancement Strategies 3

After more than a century of growth, the tally of active lawyers in the U.S. is now shrinking. From 1950 to 2019, the number of lawyers nationwide ballooned from just over 200,000 to 1.352 million, with rapid year-on-year increases from the 1970s. Since 2019, however, the count has dropped to 1.322 million active lawyers in 2024 — even as the U.S. population has continued to grow by more than a million people each year.

What accounts for this shift? Should this be concerning to law firms? And how can reimagined talent development and career advancement strategies help firms ride out the changing tides?

Shifting Legal Talent Trends

Several noteworthy trends are contributing to a growing talent gap in the legal industry. Almost 14% of U.S. lawyers are now 65 or older, compared to a roughly 7% share of workers across industries. Law firms should anticipate an exodus of baby boomers in the coming years, resulting in troublesome gaps in ownership, leadership and client service roles.

Meanwhile, the influx of new talent into the profession is stalling. Law school enrollment has dropped substantially since its peak a decade ago. There were 116,851 students seeking J.D.s in 2023, compared to 147,525 law students in 2010.

Several talent trends affect law firms in particular, especially when it comes to associate retention. Survey data suggests declining interest in long-term law firm careers among younger generations. And the NALP Foundation for Law Career Research and Education found that 82% of associates leaving their firm in 2023 had worked there for five years or less — a record level. The costs of attrition for firms can be crippling when considering lost revenue plus replacement costs, low morale, disruption of the leadership pipeline and more. Attrition rates tend to be highest for women and people of color, and because these groups make up a growing share of the law firm hiring pool, talent strategies tailored to women and people from other diverse backgrounds are a matter of business necessity.

Moving forward, it remains to be seen how the advent of AI will affect demand for lawyers. Some observers predict a shrinking need for associate-level talent as AI gains further proficiency in performing routine tasks. But a steady supply of experienced attorneys will remain necessary to apply human skills involving professional judgment, ethical decision-making, emotional intelligence and more, in tandem with the use of AI.

As talent shortages persist and AI’s capabilities grow, catch-and-release talent strategies and sink-or-swim professional development programs will fail to serve firms’ long-term needs. While other deficiencies (including lack of a magnetic workplace culture and short-sighted compensation models) also exacerbate these challenges, this article focuses on how revitalized talent development and career advancement strategies can propel midsize and smaller firms into the next decade.

Strengthened Talent Development Strategies

Historically, law firm professional development programs have been hands-off and half-hearted in nature, failing to provide the sustained, personal investments needed to cultivate top-notch lawyers and retain productive talent.

Lack of development opportunities is a key factor driving attrition. Across industries, a McKinsey & Company survey found that lack of career development and advancement was the top reason employees left their jobs. Law firm leaders may be surprised to learn that this principle holds true not only for junior talent but also for partners — in a 2024 survey, 23% of equity partners cited professional development opportunities as a reason for leaving their firm. The survey results strongly suggest that firms offering innovative talent development initiatives – when combined with effective recruiting, onboarding and talent integration practices — will enjoy a significant competitive advantage in the battle to attract and retain productive talent across all experience levels.

The advent of AI provides an added impetus for reinvigorating professional development approaches. AI is taking over many of the entry-level tasks through which associates traditionally learned their craft. The widening training gap must be filled by other learning opportunities. Moreover, lawyers will need talent development opportunities over the full course of their careers to keep pace with advances in technology and the practice of law.

Given these considerations, how should law firms change their approach to talent development?

Law firms should make talent development a top priority when it comes to investments of time, money and other resources.

Law firms should embrace a culture of lifelong learning, ensuring that lawyers at all levels gain and maintain the evolving skill sets needed as technology and legal practice march forward.

Business acumen and ownership mentality should be cultivated by integrating junior talent into internal business procedures, such as involvement in negotiating terms of engagement and reviewing client invoices.

Firms should design their compensation models to reward partner-level time dedicated to training and learning while sending the message to associates through compensation and promotion guidelines, among other means, that their learning and development are an essential priority.

Hybrid work models in firms should incorporate sufficient in-office time for both associates and partners to provide ample opportunities for formal and informal in-person learning opportunities.

Firms should meaningfully involve junior lawyers in real-world legal practice, such as shadowing experienced lawyers, conducting depositions and participating in client meetings.

Firms should provide individualized training that recognizes lawyers’ varying backgrounds, skill sets, neurodiversity and learning styles.

Given the high attrition rates for women and people of other diverse backgrounds and their growing representation in the profession, talent development initiatives should be tailored to these groups’ needs and interests.

Lawyers who have training responsibilities should be educated in effective training techniques.

Supervisors should provide frequent, constructive feedback and recognition to support their charges’ growth.

Firms should institute robust mentorship programs that involve multiple mentoring avenues and establish meaningful expectations of participants on both sides of the equation.

Enhanced Career Advancement Strategies

Career advancement strategies are another integral piece of the puzzle when it comes to retaining productive talent. All too often, firms fail to lay out a transparent and achievable path for junior talent to rise to the partnership level. Perhaps only 15% of associates ever make partner in Big Law, and the levels can be dispiriting in midsize and smaller firms too. Uncertainty, dim prospects and lack of support in terms of career advancement will spur associates to look for other jobs, leading to squandered investments on the firm’s part.

Law firms should consider the following upgrades to their career advancement strategies:

Firms should adopt transparent career progression guidelines with clear milestones, ensuring that talent understands what is expected of them to move to the next level and that promotion decisions are fair.

Firms should design their talent development programs to ensure employees receive the training and tools needed to achieve their career goals.

Firms should create alternate career trajectories, which can help retain talented lawyers who are not ready or willing to take on an equity ownership role.

Firms should support lawyers when they take time off for family reasons, encourage them to rejoin the firm when their circumstances allow and provide meaningful reintegration assistance when they do so.

By embracing sponsorship and allyship initiatives, firms can help less experienced talent — especially women and people of other diverse backgrounds — navigate career paths. In sponsorship initiatives, younger attorneys are paired with more experienced attorneys who take them under their wing and advocate for their advancement. Allyship programs build broad allies for underrepresented lawyers in their journey within the firm.

Firms should institute leadership training initiatives that identify and cultivate core leadership competencies through measures such as coaching, peer learning and actual leadership opportunities. These programs should foster development of business acumen, owner’s mentality and emotional intelligence.

As the talent pool constricts and AI’s capabilities surge, continuous investments in talent development and advancement are a vital smart growth strategy. These investments will help law firms build the productive talent bench required as client expectations evolve. My next article in Attorney at Work will drill down deeper to explore career strategies through which law firms can protect their investments in female lawyers and minimize attrition as firms become increasingly dependent on female talent.