The Recorder: Sarah Morris on the Slowdown in Lateral Partner Hiring in the SF Bay Area
Elite law firms in the San Francisco Bay Area have brought on significantly fewer lateral partners so far this year. What’s driving the slowdown? Macrae shared our analysis of the data - our research team tracks all partner moves into top firms across our markets - with The Recorder, which tapped recruiter Sarah Morris for commentary.
Here, key excerpts from the article:
Partner moves hovered just above 40 in 2023, according to Macrae. That compares to more than 50 moves last year, more than 70 moves in 2021, and around 60 moves in both 2020 and 2019.
Sarah Morris, a managing director at Macrae, attributed the decline to macroeconomic conditions and the tech sector’s recent stumble. “Firms are still hiring, but not as quickly or aggressively,” she said.
Morris noted that while there are a handful of firms pursuing growth in the Bay Area, some firms aren’t as well-positioned as others to compete for top talent, especially in key practice areas such as capital markets, mergers and acquisitions or private equity. She said one strategy that may help firms is executing a group move or several partner hires.
“There is a lot of hesitancy to move,” Morris said. “But if you see a firm hiring 10 really great attorneys, then you’re not the only one. There might be more of a feeling that you’re getting on the ship at the right moment.”
Another factor impeding movement is firms’ continued willingness to re-recruit important partners, she added. “We’re seeing firms buying back candidates that have offers, even if they are getting double the compensation,” Morris said. “Firms are holding onto people in key practice areas.”
By practice area, Macrae’s data also revealed that both corporate and litigation partner hiring declined, while intellectual property hiring picked up. In addition, there continued to be a small handful of moves in other practice areas, such as antitrust, privacy, energy, health care and white collar, among others.
“Firms that aren’t strong in M&A and private equity are still looking for that,” Morris said. “But compared to last year, we are perhaps seeing a bit more general movement. Firms are looking to diversify.”
We encourage you to read the article in full here: Lateral Moves in California Slow as Firms Shift Focus to ‘Clear-Cut Growth’ Markets