By Neil Handwerker According to the US Bureau of Labor and Statistics, lawyers are the least happy workers in America (The Washington Post, Jan. 2023). Not just among professionals. All workers. Wow. Anecdotally, I find every practicing attorney knows at least 2 attorneys who want to do something else. Handwerker’s Theorem? Study after study shows substance abuse in the legal profession is growing exponentially.
This article is not about the causes of lawyer malaise…Alright, I’ll list some: Impossible deadlines, working in silos be it at the home or office, no sense of mission or group purpose (when was the last time you found yourself in the same room as superiors and colleagues to talk about solving a problem and what important role each person will play), return to office mandates, associate lay-offs, potential impact of AI on attorney employment, constant conflict/opposing counsel as adversary and on.
It's no surprise then that things are getting worse with more and more lawyers dissatisfied with their careers (44% of lawyers have considered leaving the profession according to a recent poll, Meeting Fever, February 2024)
The answer to most of this is simple. Executing upon it, not so much.
Paging Corporate America.
The JD skill set is a terrific foundation for myriad careers. Practicing law is just one of them. How many times do we encounter the two letters ‘JD’ in looking up the bio of a successful businessperson?
CHROs and talent executives should be looking at hiring lawyers for nonlegal careers going way past the usual ‘law adjacent’ jobs like compliance. I am talking about hiring lawyers who want to leave law in positions in marketing, sales, investor relations, investigative services, brand management and on and on. “The hidden talent pool in plain sight”
Let’s call it the hidden talent pool in plain sight.
Certain enlightened employers have been hiring lawyers for multiple nonlegal careers for years. This includes the Big 4 accounting firms, management consulting firms, talent agencies and, interestingly, the insurance industry is also way ahead of the curve.
Hiring lawyers who want to move to nonlegal careers should not be a stretch for talent executives. Here’s a statistic: 75 of the CHROs in Fortune 500 companies have law degrees. If they don’t know the value of the JD skill set and the flexibility of the law degree who does?
In fairness to hiring authorities across America, it’s not that they are purposely ignoring all these attorneys that want to work in nonlegal capacities. Attorneys who have already found career satisfaction in nonlegal careers should be lobbying their organizations to hire lawyers in nonlegal capacities.
Executive search firms and legal search firms should be seeking attorneys who want to move to business and presenting them to talent executives. And all the mega job boards should be talking this up so they get more job postings from Corporate America for positions where a JD is ‘preferred’ or would be ‘considered’ Lawyers speak up
Most importantly, lawyers who want to move to business should be advocating on their own behalf to help get the ball moving. This means making everyone in the universe aware that you are interested in finding a nonlegal career. Particularly search firms and others with access to CHROs and talent executives.
Before co-founding, ex judicata with Kimberly Fine, I was a recruiter, at one time heading the legal division of The Lucas Group (Korn Ferry). I worked with many lawyers who told me that they weren’t interested in moving to another law firm or law department but would love to be considered for any nonlegal jobs. I then helped them to find nonlegal positions.
Demographics strongly favor hiring lawyers for nonlegal roles
Employers across the country are facing skilled talent shortages. The latest data shows 9.5 million job openings in the US but only 6.5 million unemployed workers. (US Chamber of Commerce, February 2024) The “demographic/enrollment cliff” will see a dramatic drop in the college age population starting in 2025. Over the following 4 years colleges will lose approximately 576,000 students. There will then be fewer college graduates to fill professional roles, positions where the JD skill set would fit (source for all Best CollegesJanuary 2023)
Getting from A to B
CHROs, talent executives, legal search firms, executive search firms should all be looking into the myriad nonlegal jobs that JDs are a fit for and then actively recruiting lawyers. Adding “JDs considered” to job descriptions would help a lot as in most cases lawyers who seek to leave the law won’t know the scope of opportunities that are available.
And lawyers need to advocate on their own behalf. A skill they all possess.
About the Author Neil Handwerker is CEO and co-founder of ex judicata a startup helping lawyers who want to leave law find new careers. Prior, he spent 15 years as a legal recruiter including heading the Legal Division at the Lucas Group (Korn Ferry) He has written for publications including Spy, National Lampoon and Cosmopolitan. #NeilHandwerker #lawyer #career #nonlegal #jobs #recruiting
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