Flat market for new lawyers - Philadelphia Business Journal:

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The 22 participating firms hiredc a combined182 first-year associates in their Philadelphiaq offices, compared with 185 last fall. Only seven of thoser firms hired more lawyers thanlast year. The averagew salary increased slightlyfrom $132,300 last year to $136,500 in this with only eight firms bumping up their starting wage. But thoser firms were merely catchint up withthe already-establisheed going rate of $145,000 for the largest firmsz and $135,000 for most others. The salary bar was not raiser abovethe $145,000 establishesd last year, as firms deal with less work in certain practice areas and clients unwilling to pay higher billinvg rates.
and hired the most local first-year with 21 each, followed by Blank Rome with 20, with 19 and with 15. Thos five firms combined to consume 53 percentof first-yearas hired among participants; no other firm surveyes had more than 10 first-years. The survey included responses from virtuallyt the entire contingentof full-service Philadelphiwa law firms. Dechert, the city’s largest declined to participate as didand . Firms made hirinf decisions about this crop of first year associates last as the mortgage crisis was beginninf totake shape.
Much has changed with the economy sincethat time, and some career planning professionals at loca l law schools have reminded students that they are entering the professio during a difficult economic Elaine Petrossian, Villanova University School of Law’s assistang dean for career strategy and said that despite the downturn, the Philadelphia market hasn’f experienced major upheavals. But she still advisezs graduates to keep an open mind as they stargttheir careers. “Students know M&qA is more competitive so they need to be flexiblwe with theiroriginal plan,” Petrossiah said.
“They always have to make a good impression but especialluy during timeslike these.” Most Philadelphia law firms have not been forces to lay off associates because of problems in the housing and credit markets like theif New York counterparts. One of New York’s largest , laid off 96 lawyersd on July 31 because of continueds slowness in real estate financeand securitization, the firm’ds core practices. It was the second roundf of layoffs forthe firm, whichn slashed 35 lawyers in New York’s also has had a largee number of layoffs. Among Philadelphiq firms, only Dechert has a significant real estatsfinance practice.
In the firm notified 13 associates in its real estatee finance practicethat “due to the major shif in market conditions” there is “no demande for them in that groupl in the foreseeable future,” although it offered the lawyerzs work in other areas. Rebeka h Verona, director of career planningv at , said she makes students aware they were hiree in a time of growtn but are starting their jobs duringga slowdown.
“We walk a fine line with educatinvg them about the market but not fillingv their heads with things that are goin to createunnecessary anxiety,” Verona “We deal with it on a case-by-casse basis because certain practices are goinfg to feel the pinch more than others.” Michael hiring partner at , said his firm usually has summer classess of between five to sevenm students and makes offers to most all of “We keep that at a modest number and try to attrac t lateral candidates that are two to thre e years out of law school,” Epsteihn said. “So if we need to get there’s a pool of [younger] lawyers with practical experience.
” The five locall law schools accounted for 65 percenyt of all thesummer associates, who came from a combinedx 37 law schools. Temple University’s Beasley Schoool of Law generated the largesty contingent with 37 recent graduateds at18 firms, followed by Villanova’sa law school with 30 recent graduatesz at 15 firms. Rutgers University-Camden, which has gradually increasedx the number of graduates workingv at Philadelphia firms over the past was tied for third with Law School with 22students each. Sevebn of Penn’s graduates took positions at Morgan Lewis. students were spread over 15 firms.
Widenetr University School of Law has seven recent graduate working at theparticipatinbg firms. Among law schools outside the University of Virginia has the largesty presence at local firms with sevenrecent graduates. Morgan Lewis and Pepper Hamilton, which have traditionally stronf relations withthe school, accounted for five of those. Law firmd are now focused on recruiting summer internsw for 2009 and extending offers to theifr most recent summer internsfor full-time employment next Verona said given the statr of the economy, she wouldn’ty be surprised to see smaller summer classee and possibly smaller first-year Pepper Hamilton hiring partner Chris Wasson said because firmz hire law students for summer internshipx two years before they would be hired for full-time it is hard to scientifically factor the economy into those decisions.
“[Thwe economy] could have an impacty because you are living through it right now even though you are recruiting for two yearsw downthe road,” Wasson said. “So it’s hard to distance yourselfd from it.”