The Washington, D.C., market saw a slowdown in lateral partner and counsel hiring in the first quarter of the year, largely due to firms hiring fewer government candidates.
Lateral partner and counsel hiring in D.C. was down about 10% in the first three months of 2024 compared with the same period of 2023, according to legal recruiting firm The McCormick Group, using Firm Prospects data. Overall, there were 189 lateral partner and counsel moves in D.C. in the first three months of this year, compared with 210 moves last year. The data figures include moves at Am Law 100 and Am Law 200 firms, as well as firms in the D.C. area with more than 10 lawyers.