NALP Bulletin, September 2020
The Class of 2019 achieved historic highs not seen since prior to the Great Recession for multiple key employment metrics, and which will likely stand as high-water marks for several years to come following the aftermath of the current recession related to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to data from Jobs & JDs: Employment and Salaries of New Graduates, Class of 2019, post-Great Recession peaks were recorded for employment rates, overall median salaries, the percentage of jobs requiring bar passage, and the percentage of graduates not seeking other employment, among other benchmarks.
The overall employment rate for the Class of 2019 was up 0.9 percentage points, to 90.3% of graduates for whom employment status was known, compared with 89.4% for the Class of 2018. This is the best employment rate recorded since the 91.9% rate for the Class of 2007, which stands as the highest rate since 1988. (See Table 1. Employment Trends — Classes of 1985-2019.) Despite four consecutive years of increasing employment rates, the Class of 2019 is still only the fifth class to record an increase since 2007. Thus, the overall employment rate remains 1.6 percentage points below the 91.9% rate reached in 2007, a figure unlikely to be seen again for some time due to uncertainty about the length and scope of the current recession.
The rate of employment in jobs requiring bar passage also increased for the sixth year in a row, rising to 76.2% of graduates for whom employment status was known, and finally reaching its pre-Great Recession levels. This percentage is up by almost 12 percentage points since bottoming out in 2012 and 2013 at 64.4%. Despite the improvements in the employment rate, the total number of jobs found by graduates was down about 150 jobs compared with 2018. However, since the number of graduates was also down by about 270 according to the ABA, the employment rate increased even with a decline in the total number of jobs.
More than 55% of employed graduates obtained a job in private practice. This figure had sunk to a low of 49.5% in 2011 and has finally again reached the prevailing levels of 55-64% of jobs observed for the 25 years prior to the Great Recession. However, while the percentage of jobs in private practice has increased for the last five years and the overall number of law firm jobs has been up slightly for the last two years, the total number of law firm jobs taken by the Class of 2019 is still down by more than 4,000 jobs when compared to the Class of 2007.
As shown in Table 2. Law Firm Jobs by Firm Size — Classes of 1985-2019, the distribution of law firm jobs by firm size has changed over the years. For many years, jobs in firms of 1-10 lawyers outnumbered those in firms of more than 100 lawyers. In 1998, the pattern reversed, and up until the Class of 2010 the number of jobs taken in firms of more than 100 lawyers outnumbered those taken in firms of 1-10 lawyers. (The 1-10 category includes graduates who are working for a solo practitioner.)
Starting with the Class of 2010 there was a sharp reversal, with jobs in small firms outnumbering those in firms of more than 100 lawyers for the first time since 1997. The difference grew wider with the Class of 2011 but has shrunk since then as large firm hiring rebounded somewhat. By 2016, the two categories accounted for close to equal percentages. However, 2017 marked another fairly large shift, as the percentage of jobs in the smallest and largest firms approached their 2009 levels and this trend continued with the Classes of 2018 and 2019. It remains the case, however, that the proportion of jobs in either very small or large firms has accounted for at least 70% of law firm jobs since 2000.
Finally, the percentage of law firm jobs reported as solo practice — that is, graduates who started their own solo practice after law school — has decreased considerably since 2011 and the percentage for the Class of 2019 (1.5%) is the lowest on record, breaking the previous record low recorded for the Class of 2018. (Note that the firm size "101 or more" is used in this table so as to provide figures going back to 1985.)
Another indicator of what was a healthy job market for the Class of 2019 was the relatively small percentage of employed graduates who were still seeking other employment. Pre-Great Recession, this percentage had been between 11-15% in most years. This percentage spiked during the recession, peaking at nearly 25% for the Class of 2011, and subsequently declining in each year since. At just over 11%, the percentage of employed graduates still seeking other employment is at its lowest level since the Classes of 2000 and 2001, when it was also 11.3%. (See Chart 1. Percentage of Employed Graduates Still Seeking Other Employment: Classes of 2000 - 2019.)
A final metric showing the strength of the market for the Class of 2019 is the increase in median salaries. Overall median salaries for the class increased 3.6% over the prior year to $72,500 and finally surpassed their previous peak of $72,000 for the Classes of 2008 and 2009. Median salaries for law firm jobs also grew by 4.2% to $125,000 but were still $5,000 shy of the $130,000 peak recorded for the Class of 2009. (See Chart 2. Overall and Law Firm Median Salaries, Classes of 2006-2019.)
It is worth noting that despite the many positive employment findings for the Class of 2019, most of these data were collected from graduates prior to the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and do not reflect changes in employment statuses that may have occurred since mid-March. And next year's data for the Class of 2020 are almost certain to reflect a very different job market for new graduates.
Jobs & JDs: Employment and Salaries of New Graduates, Class of 2019 is available for pre-order through September 16, 2020 at www.nalp.org/classof2019.
Table 1. Employment Trends — Classes of 1985-2019
| OF THOSE FOR WHOM EMPLOYMENT STATUS WAS KNOWN | ||||||||
| Year | % Employed | % Employed Legal Full-Time |
% Employed Legal Part-Time |
% Employed Other Full-Time |
% Employed Other Part-Time |
% Not Working | % Continuing Studies | % of Jobs in Law Firms |
| 1985 | 91.5% | 81.6% | 2.6% | 6.7% | 0.8% | 7.0% | 1.5% | 60.6% |
| 1986 | 91.3 | 81.8 | 2.5 | 6.2 | 0.8 | 7.2 | 1.5 | 62.3 |
| 1987 | 92.2 | 84.1 | 2.0 | 5.6 | 0.5 | 6.6 | 1.2 | 63.5 |
| 1988 | 92.0 | 84.5 | 2.0 | 4.9 | 0.5 | 6.9 | 1.1 | 64.3 |
| 1989 | 90.8 | 82.7 | 2.2 | 5.2 | 0.5 | 7.9 | 1.3 | 62.4 |
| 1990 | 90.3 | 82.1 | 2.4 | 5.2 | 0.7 | 8.2 | 1.4 | 62.9 |
| 1991 | 85.9 | 76.1 | 3.3 | 5.6 | 0.9 | 12.6 | 1.5 | 60.8 |
| 1992 | 83.5 | 72.5 | 4.0 | 5.9 | 1.1 | 14.5 | 1.9 | 59.0 |
| 1993 | 83.4 | 70.3 | 4.6 | 7.0 | 1.5 | 14.6 | 2.0 | 57.1 |
| 1994 | 84.7 | 69.6 | 5.2 | 8.1 | 1.8 | 13.1 | 2.2 | 55.0 |
| 1995 | 86.7 | 70.7 | 5.4 | 9.0 | 1.6 | 11.2 | 2.1 | 56.1 |
| 1996 | 87.4 | 71.4 | 4.7 | 9.7 | 1.6 | 10.5 | 2.1 | 55.7 |
| 1997 | 89.2 | 73.6 | 4.4 | 9.9 | 1.5 | 8.6 | 2.2 | 55.6 |
| 1998 | 89.9 | 74.9 | 3.7 | 10.0 | 1.4 | 7.9 | 2.2 | 55.0 |
| 1999 | 90.3 | 75.5 | 2.9 | 9.8 | 1.1 | 7.8 | 1.9 | 55.1 |
| 2000 | 91.5 | 77.3 | 2.5 | 9.6 | 1.0 | 6.4 | 2.1 | 54.8 |
| % Employed in Positions Requiring Bar Passage | % Employed in Positions Where JD Is an Advantage | % Employed in Other Professional Positions | % Employed in Non-Professional Positions | |||||
| 2001 | 90.0 | 75.9 | 6.0 | 5.5 | 1.5 | 7.6 | 2.4 | 57.8 |
| 2002 | 89.0 | 75.3 | 5.2 | 5.8 | 1.6 | 8.5 | 2.5 | 58.1 |
| 2003 | 88.9 | 73.7 | 6.5 | 5.7 | 1.6 | 8.4 | 2.7 | 57.8 |
| 2004 | 88.9 | 73.2 | 7.5 | 5.3 | 1.4 | 8.6 | 2.5 | 56.2 |
| 2005 | 89.6 | 74.4 | 7.5 | 5.1 | 1.4 | 8.2 | 2.2 | 55.8 |
| 2006 | 90.7 | 75.3 | 7.9 | 5.1 | 1.3 | 7.0 | 2.2 | 55.8 |
| 2007 | 91.9 | 76.9 | 7.7 | 5.1 | 1.3 | 5.8 | 2.3 | 55.5 |
| 2008 | 89.9 | 74.7 | 8.1 | 4.9 | 1.3 | 7.7 | 2.4 | 56.2 |
| 2009 | 88.3 | 70.8 | 9.2 | 5.4 | 1.8 | 8.7 | 3.1 | 55.9 |
| 2010 | 87.6 | 68.4 | 10.7 | 5.6 | 1.9 | 9.4 | 2.9 | 50.9 |
| 2011 | 85.6 | 65.4 | 12.5 | 5.3 | 1.9 | 12.1 | 2.2 | 49.5 |
| 2012 | 84.7 | 64.4 | 13.3 | 4.9 | 1.8 | 13.2 | 2.1 | 50.7 |
| 2013 | 84.5 | 64.4 | 13.8 | 4.7 | 1.6 | 13.6 | 1.8 | 51.1 |
| 2014 | 86.7 | 66.3 | 14.8 | 4.2 | 1.4 | 11.7 | 1.6 | 50.9 |
| 2015 | 86.7 | 66.6 | 14.5 | 4.2 | 1.4 | 11.6 | 1.7 | 51.3 |
| 2016 | 87.5 | 67.7 | 14.8 | 3.8 | 1.2 | 10.8 | 1.7 | 52.9 |
| 2017 | 88.6 | 71.8 | 12.3 | 3.3 | 1.2 | 9.8 | 1.6 | 54.4 |
| 2018 | 89.4 | 72.8 | 12.5 | 3.0 | 1.1 | 9.2 | 1.4 | 54.8 |
| 2019 | 90.3 | 76.2 | 10.7 | 2.5 | 0.8 | 8.3 | 1.4 | 55.2 |
Note: Overall employment rates for 1990-1998 are based on all graduates for whom employment status was known, excluding a small number known to be employed but for whom basic job type was not known. Overall rates for all other years include such graduates, and thus may not necessarily be obtained by adding up figures for individual job types. Also, in 1985 and 1986, multiple jobs held by one person were reported separately; hence legal and other employment percentages for these years reflect positions taken rather than individuals and cannot be added to obtain the overall employment rate. The percentage not working includes graduates seeking employment as well as those neither working in any capacity nor actively seeking a job. Starting in 2011, the figure includes graduates who had accepted an offer of employment but had not started the job as of February 15 (class years 2011-2013) and March 15 (class years since 2014). New job classifications effective with the Class of 2001 preclude direct comparisons of job types with prior years.
Source: NALP’s Employment Report and Salary Survey/Jobs & JDs: Classes of 1985-2019
Table 2. Law Firm Jobs by Firm Size - Classes of 1985-2019
(percent of law firm jobs taken in each size firm)
| Year | SIZE OF FIRM (NUMBER OF LAWYERS) | |||||
| Solo | 1-10 | 11-25 | 26-50 | 51-100 | 101 or more | |
| 1985 | 5.0% | 35.7% | 15.1% | 11.7% | 12.0% | 20.6% |
| 1986 | 4.3 | 32.4 | 15.6 | 12.0 | 12.5 | 23.2 |
| 1987 | 3.3 | 31.6 | 15.3 | 12.9 | 12.8 | 24.1 |
| 1988 | 2.7 | 28.6 | 14.5 | 12.2 | 13.4 | 28.6 |
| 1989 | 2.8 | 24.6 | 15.0 | 12.6 | 14.8 | 30.2 |
| 1990 | 3.6 | 28.7 | 13.1 | 11.6 | 12.2 | 30.8 |
| 1991 | 5.2 | 33.1 | 12.5 | 10.3 | 10.0 | 28.9 |
| 1992 | 6.8 | 38.0 | 13.5 | 9.1 | 9.1 | 23.6 |
| 1993 | 7.5 | 41.5 | 13.1 | 7.8 | 7.9 | 22.2 |
| 1994 | 6.2 | 41.0 | 12.2 | 7.6 | 8.1 | 24.9 |
| 1995 | 6.0 | 40.9 | 12.3 | 7.5 | 7.5 | 25.8 |
| 1996 | 6.1 | 39.3 | 11.8 | 7.4 | 7.5 | 27.9 |
| 1997 | 5.7 | 36.4 | 12.0 | 7.7 | 7.6 | 30.6 |
| 1998 | 3.8 | 33.5 | 11.5 | 7.7 | 8.0 | 35.5 |
| 1999 | 3.2 | 31.4 | 11.1 | 7.4 | 7.7 | 39.1 |
| 2000 | 2.7 | 30.2 | 10.8 | 7.7 | 7.6 | 41.0 |
| 2001 | 2.8 | 29.9 | 10.3 | 6.9 | 7.4 | 42.6 |
| 2002 | 2.4 | 31.4 | 10.7 | 7.0 | 7.3 | 41.2 |
| 2003 | 3.3 | 34.5 | 11.6 | 7.2 | 6.8 | 36.6 |
| 2004 | 3.6 | 34.9 | 11.5 | 7.2 | 6.4 | 36.4 |
| 2005 | 3.2 | 36.0 | 10.7 | 6.8 | 6.0 | 37.3 |
| 2006 | 2.9 | 34.3 | 10.4 | 6.9 | 5.9 | 39.5 |
| 2007 | 3.0 | 33.2 | 9.6 | 6.1 | 5.8 | 42.3 |
| 2008 | 3.5 | 33.0 | 8.8 | 6.3 | 5.2 | 43.2 |
| 2009 | 5.5 | 35.1 | 7.9 | 4.9 | 4.8 | 41.7 |
| 2010 | 5.9 | 41.1 | 9.3 | 5.6 | 4.4 | 33.7 |
| 2011 | 6.1 | 44.0 | 10.7 | 6.3 | 5.2 | 27.7 |
| 2012 | 5.2 | 43.8 | 10.1 | 5.8 | 4.6 | 30.5 |
| 2013 | 4.9 | 42.6 | 10.1 | 5.7 | 4.6 | 32.1 |
| 2014 | 4.4 | 41.8 | 10.2 | 5.7 | 4.3 | 33.5 |
| 2015 | 3.4 | 40.1 | 10.4 | 5.6 | 4.8 | 35.7 |
| 2016 | 2.9 | 38.2 | 10.5 | 5.7 | 4.9 | 37.8 |
| 2017 | 2.5 | 35.6 | 10.4 | 6.1 | 4.9 | 40.5 |
| 2018 | 2.0 | 34.1 | 10.8 | 6.4 | 5.2 | 41.5 |
| 2019 | 1.5 | 31.9 | 11.0 | 6.7 | 5.3 | 43.7 |
Figures for 1989 and 1990 reflect only full-time law firm jobs; for all other years, figures reflect all law firm jobs acquired by graduates. Figures in this table differ slightly from those published in national reports (Employment Report & Salary Survey/Jobs & JDs) because law firm jobs for which firm size was not reported are excluded from the base.
Source: NALP's Employment Report & Salary Survey/Jobs & JDs: Classes of 1985-2019
