NALP Bulletin+
December 2023

In conjunction with the work being undertaken by the Native and Indigenous Peoples in the Legal Profession Task Force, this article looks at Native American and Alaska Native Law Students and Lawyers to determine the latest trends in this cohort and how they compare with other law school graduates. Figures, many newly compiled, are from NALP’s graduate employment survey for the law school graduating classes from 1991 to 2022. The following is an executive summary with key findings including the low numbers of law school graduates in this group.

• Law school graduates reported as Native American/Alaska Native, either alone or in combination with another racial/ethnic group, have numbered in the low hundreds in the past three decades, in contrast to the tens of thousands of law school graduates overall each year. As a group, this small segment of the class, about one percent in the past 10 years, has experienced fluctuations in their employment rate, generally tracking with fluctuations for the class overall. [Table 1.]¹

• However, in all but six of the years since 1991, the employment rate for Native American/Alaska Native graduates lagged that of the class as a whole, in a few cases by less than one percentage point, but typically two to four percentage points and more than five percentage points in a few instances. After a stretch in recent years (2018-2021) where the gap was less than one percentage point or on the positive side, the gap returned to more historic levels for the Class of 2022. [Figure 1.]

• In general, Native American/Alaska Native graduates are more likely than their peers to obtain jobs with government or in public interest organizations, and less likely to obtain jobs in private practice.

• Historically, between 50% and 60% of employed graduates in the class as a whole have obtained a job in private practice. In contrast, the proportion of employed Native American/Alaska Native graduates obtaining a job in private practice has typically been less than half of the cohort. Of the nine instances since 1991 when that proportion was greater than 50%, five have come in the eight most recent classes for which graduate data is available. On average, the gap between the rate of employment in private practice for all employed graduates and for employed Native American/Alaska Native graduates has been about seven percentage points, with a range from one to almost 19 percentage points. The figure for Native American/Alaska Native graduates has exceeded that for all employed graduates just once, in 2015 and by 1.5 percentage points.

• Typically, at least 15% of employed Native American/Alaska Native graduates obtain a government job, with the percentage being as high as 20% for one-third of the years in the period studied. For employed graduates as a whole, the percentage of government jobs has ranged only from 11.1%-13.5%, and figures exceeding 13% occurred prior to 2004, when government figures included public defenders. Notably, starting with the Class of 2020, tribal government positions were included with the tracking of government positions, suggesting that about one-third of the government jobs obtained by Native American/Alaska Native graduates are with tribal governments.

• Prior to about 2006, rates of employment in public interest organizations for employed Native American/Alaska Native graduates greatly exceeded that of employed graduates overall, in some cases by a factor of three. Since then, the numbers for the two groups have come more in line, with graduates as a whole catching up to rates among employed Native American/Alaska Native graduates.

• The extent to which employed Native American/Alaska Native graduates obtain judicial clerkships has varied considerably, from less than 4% in 1994, 1997, and 2014, to 12.1% in 1992. Figures ranging from 5% to 9% are most typical. These rates are almost always lower than that for the class as a whole, which historically has been in the 10-11% of jobs range. Only in 2016 and 2022 did the rate for Native American/Alaska Native employed graduates equal or exceed that for employed graduates as a whole.

Employed Native American/Alaska Native law school graduates who do make their way to large firms comprise a very small cohort, their presence being best measured in three decimal points. The following is an executive summary of this cohort based on the demographics reported by large firms in the NALP Directory of Legal Employers.

• Over the 30 plus years for which figures can be compiled from the Directory, the number of lawyers collectively accounted for by firms with a listing has ranged from about 79,000 to 139,000. Firms that list in the Directory are mostly, though not exclusively, firms of at least 100 lawyers. They are referred to here as “large” firms. The number of lawyers collectively reported as Native American/Alaska Native has ranged from 60 to just over 300. However, raw numbers are not especially useful, as the volume of listings and firm participation can vary for any number of reasons; therefore, percentages provide a more robust measure of the demographics of the lawyers in these firms. Table 3 presents these figures for lawyers as a whole, associates, partners, and summer associates. These are the four categories of lawyers that have been reported consistently over this time period.²

• The presence of Native American/Alaska Native lawyers in large firms has doubled since 1991, from 0.084% to 0.174%. In simpler terms, in 2022 Native American/ Alaska Native lawyers accounted for less than one-fifth of one percent of all lawyers’ at large firms. However, the increase has been neither consistent nor steady. A figure of 0.257% in 2003 appears to be an anomaly, and since then figures have wobbled between 0.152% and 0.199%.

• Representation of Native American/ Alaska Native people among partners climbed above one-tenth of one percent in 2002 and has ranged up to 0.179% in the years since. With the exception of 2008, these figures of 0.170% or greater have come in the most recent four years for which figures are available.

• At the associate level, change has been smaller, from just 0.112% in 1991 to 0.178% in 2022. Nor does the 2022 figure represent a high-water mark. That occurred in the 2002 to 2006 period when Native American/Alaska Native people accounted for almost one-quarter of one percent of associates; in 2003, again seemingly an anomaly, the figure stood at 0.348%.

• A notable decrease in the percentage of Native American/Alaska Native associates occurred from 2009 to 2010, when the percentage dropped from 0.237% to 0.194%. This pattern mirrors those that occurred for Black and Latinx associates during this period, who also saw a decrease in their representation after widespread layoffs resulting from the recession. However, though it took a number of years, the representation of Latinx and Black associates did recover and for several years now the representation of both groups has exceeded their 2009 levels. The same cannot be said for Native American/Alaska Native associates. Despite some gains since 2010, overall, those gains have not been sustained and in 2022 the representation of Native American/Alaska Native people among associates was lower than it was in 2010.

• The presence of Native American/Alaska Native people among summer associates has generally exceeded that for associates, in some cases by a factor of two. However, the figures have fluctuated considerably over the years, from 0.153% to 0.419%.

In Conclusion

The number of Native American/Alaska Native people among law school graduates each year can be counted in the low hundreds and stands at about one percent of recent classes. The number at large law firms is even smaller, far less than one percent. The number of Native American/Alaska Native graduates, either Native American/Alaska Native alone or in combination with another race, has increased. Whether this continues, and how that translates into employment is an open question. To date, employment patterns have been fairly consistent, and in contrast to the class as whole with respect to employment in private practice and government.

End Notes

1. In reviewing the information provided in this article, it is important to keep in mind that from 1991 to 2000, only one choice for race/ethnicity was permitted on the graduate employment survey. Starting with the Class of 2001, two choices were available, and counts/percentages referenced here for 2001 and later include graduates for whom Native American/Alaska Native was reported alone and those for whom Native American/ Alaska Native was reported in combination with another race/ ethnicity. For that reason, some figures referenced here and, in the tables, will differ from figures that may have been reported elsewhere based on graduates reported as Native American/ Alaska Native alone.

2. Note that the Directory demographics reporting has included a category for 'multi-racial' lawyers since 2003. Unlike the graduate employment survey, this category can’t be split to determine the extent to which various racial/ethnic identities are reported in combination. It is likely, however, that some of those lawyers counted as ‘multi-racial’ in the Directory identify as Native American/Alaska Native in combination with another race/ethnicity. The percentage of lawyers categorized as 'multi-racial' has increased from 0.15% in 2003 to 2.34% in 2022.

Table 1. Employment Status of Native American/Alaska Native Graduates Reported
Classes of 1991- 2022

Note: From 1991 to 2000, one choice for race/ethnicity on the graduate employment survey was permitted. Starting with the Class of 2001, two choices were available, and counts and percentages shown here for 2001 and later include graduates for whom Native American/Alaska Native was reported alone and those for whom Native American/Alaska Native was reported in combination with another race/ethnicity. For that reason, some figures in this table will differ from figures that may have been reported based on graduates reported as Native American/Alaska Native alone.

For the Classes of 1991-1995, employment status was reported as of '6 months post JD'; for the Classes of 1996-2013, employment status was reported as of February 15, or about 9 months after the typical May graduation; for the classes since 2014, employment status has been reported as of March 15.

Source: Compiled from Employment Report and Salary Survey [ERSS] data sets for Classes of 1991-2022.

Table 2. Employer Types for Native American/Alaska Native Graduates Reported
Classes of 1991- 2022

Note: For the period 1991-2003, public defenders were categorized as government positions. From 2004 on, these positions are included in the public interest category.

Note: From 1991 to 2000, one choice for race/ethnicity was permitted on the graduate employment survey. Starting with the Class of 2001, two choices were available, and counts and percentages shown here for 2001 and later include graduates for whom Native American/Alaska Native was reported alone and those for whom Native American/Alaska Native was reported in combination with another race/ethnicity. For that reason, some figures in this table will differ from figures that may have been reported based on graduates reported as Native American/Alaska Native alone.

Table 3. Presence of Native American or Alaska Native Lawyers in Large Law Firms, 1991-2022

Source: Compiled from the NALP Directory of Legal Employers for the years shown.