The highest demand is for lawyers with two-to-three years of experience.
“In any industry – and that’s also specific to legal – companies need to understand that to attract and retain talent, flexibility continues to be a high priority for workers in 2024,” says Michelle Dunnill, Toronto regional director at Robert Half Canada. “Work and work-life integration really has shifted through 2023.”
Workers know that many employers have shifted their workplace model to become more flexible, she says. That included work-from-home days and fluid schedules where employees are only required to attend the office for client-facing activities and meetings. This type of flexibility is in high demand in the legal sector, says Dunnill.
According to the report, only 46 percent of legal professionals are not considering a job search. Eighteen percent plan to look for a new job and 36 percent are actively looking.
Sixty-seven percent of law firms and legal departments are hiring for new permanent roles, and 31 percent are hiring for vacated permanent positions. Among those employers, 84 percent are facing challenges in finding skilled talent. In the first half of 2024, 90 percent of lawyers and managers will recruit contract workers – lawyers, legal administrators, office managers, administrative assistants, and file clerks. Legal departments plan to use contractors for administrative tasks, corporate in-house counsel, eDiscovery and litigation support.