NALP Bulletin, October 2008
Of law firm jobs taken by the Class of 2007, just over half (51%), were taken in the 20 cities providing the most jobs to that class (Table 1). However, as Table 1 also shows, racial/ethnic minorities as a whole were more likely to take a law firm job in one of these cities than were non-minorities (58% versus 46%). Looking at specific racial/ethnic groups, Asian/Pacific Islander graduates are most concentrated in these cities (62% of law firm jobs). In contrast, most law firm jobs taken by Native American graduates are located outside of the 20 cities.
At the same time, as Table 2 shows, the proportion of jobs taken by minorities in each of the 20 cities ranged from a high of almost half in Miami to less than 17% in Cleveland, Columbus, Indianapolis, and Minneapolis/St. Paul. In some cities, one specific group dominates minority graduates. In Boston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York, San Diego, San Francisco, and Seattle it is Asian/Pacific Islanders; in Miami it is Hispanics; and in Atlanta, Baltimore, and Indianapolis it is Black/African-American graduates. In Philadelphia, Asian/Pacific Islanders and Black/African Americans are equally prevalent. In a few cities — Chicago, Dallas, and Houston — the mix between these three groups is relatively even.
Table 1. Geographic Distribution of Law Firm Jobs Taken by the Class of 2007
Law Firm Jobs Taken by: | % in 20 Largest Cities | % in Other Locations | # of Jobs |
All graduates | 51.2% | 48.8% | 20,274 |
Non-minorities | 45.6 | 54.4 | 14,768 |
All minorities | 58.4 | 41.6 | 3,993 |
Native Americans | 30.1 | 69.9 | 93 |
Asian/Pacific Islanders | 62.0 | 38.0 | 1,638 |
Black/African-Americans | 57.1 | 42.9 | 1,070 |
Hispanics | 57.7 | 42.3 | 994 |
Multi-racial | 52.0 | 48.0 | 198 |
Note: All counts exclude law firm jobs for which location was not reported. All counts, except the overall count, exclude jobs taken by graduates for whom race/ethnicity was not reported. The Asian/Pacific Islander category includes East Indian/Pakistani graduates.
Table 2. Distribution of Law Firm Jobs by Race/Ethnicity in 20 Cities — Class of 2007
City | Native American | Asian/Pacific Islander | Black/African-American | Hispanic | Multi-racial | Caucasian | # of Jobs |
Atlanta | 0.0% | 5.10% | 15.96% | 2.88% | 0.0% | 76.05% | 451 |
Baltimore | 1.20 | 3.61 | 10.84 | 4.82 | 0.0 | 79.52 | 83 |
Boston | 0.0 | 10.63 | 4.83 | 2.66 | 0.97 | 80.92 | 414 |
Chicago | 0.20 | 7.16 | 6.16 | 5.05 | 0.91 | 80.52 | 991 |
Cleveland | 0.0 | 5.10 | 4.46 | 1.91 | 0.0 | 88.54 | 157 |
Columbus | 0.0 | 3.60 | 6.31 | 4.50 | 1.80 | 83.78 | 111 |
Dallas | 0.33 | 5.02 | 7.02 | 7.69 | 2.68 | 77.26 | 299 |
Houston | 0.71 | 8.25 | 7.08 | 6.37 | 1.42 | 76.18 | 424 |
Indianapolis | 0.0 | 2.70 | 9.01 | 2.70 | 0.90 | 84.68 | 111 |
Las Vegas | 1.40 | 12.59 | 3.50 | 6.99 | 1.40 | 74.13 | 143 |
Los Angeles | 0.59 | 20.94 | 6.44 | 9.66 | 1.02 | 61.35 | 683 |
Miami | 0.0 | 3.00 | 7.30 | 32.62 | 0.86 | 56.22 | 233 |
Minneapolis/St. Paul | 0.0 | 7.14 | 4.46 | 2.68 | 0.89 | 84.82 | 224 |
New York City | 0.38 | 14.07 | 6.30 | 5.59 | 1.42 | 72.25 | 2,396 |
Philadelphia | 0.0 | 7.67 | 6.71 | 2.88 | 0.32 | 82.43 | 313 |
Phoenix | 2.17 | 4.35 | 2.90 | 13.04 | 1.45 | 76.09 | 138 |
San Diego | 0.0 | 10.07 | 3.02 | 7.72 | 0.34 | 78.86 | 298 |
San Francisco | 0.24 | 20.76 | 4.06 | 8.11 | 1.43 | 65.39 | 419 |
Seattle | 0.51 | 14.72 | 2.03 | 5.08 | 0.51 | 77.16 | 197 |
Washington, DC | 0.10 | 11.50 | 9.36 | 4.98 | 1.53 | 72.53 | 983 |
Note: Law firm jobs taken by graduates for whom race/ethnicity was not reported are excluded from this table. The Asian/Pacific Islander category includes East Indian/Pakistani graduates.