By MATT CHANDLER
Buffalo Law Journal

A study released this week by the Washington, D.C.-based Association for Legal Career Professionals highlighted what many local law firms already know - the legal profession isn't insulated from the recession, and a J.D. degree is no longer a golden ticket to a secure future.

James Leipold, executive director of the association - which was formerly the National Association for Law Placement, and still goes by NALP - said that although the numbers may reflect a decline, they have a long way to go before it's time to panic.

The study reports an employment rate of 89.9 percent for those who graduated from law school in 2008.

"Remember, for the class of 1993, the employment rate nine months after graduation was 83.4 percent," he said. "That's kind of the low watermark in recent history, but clearly we are well above that."

Leipold said the employment situation in the legal field during this recession is in line with what has been seen over the 35 years NALP has been conducting this study.

"Typically, in past recessions, we've seen employment in large firms contract, and employment in smaller firms increase," he said.

At least two large Buffalo-area firms implemented such cuts. Hodgson Russ LLP in February let go 13 employees, including five attorneys, and Jaeckle Fleischmann & Mugel LLP instituted a "voluntary separation" program for support staff in an effort to trim the firm's head count by as many as 10 employees.

Some smaller firms, meanwhile, have reported that they continued to hire through the recession.

2008 University at Buffalo Law School graduate Kim Georger landed a position at Rupp Baase Pfalzgraf Cunningham & Coppola LLC while still in school.

"When we first graduated and took the bar, it was pretty rough," she said of the job prospects for her classmates. "At this point, it's getting better, and I'm hearing more and more people getting jobs, but the consensus is, they are not the jobs they were looking for coming out of law school."

Leipold said another national trend indicated by the study is the increase in firms delaying start dates for recent law-school grads or even rescinding employment offers.

Hodgson Russ LLP will be bringing on seven new attorneys from the 2009 graduating classes, despite the staff reduction implemented earlier this year.

"That is a fairly large number, even for a firm of our size," said Gary Schober, Hodgson Russ president and CEO. A spokeswoman said the firm, Buffalo's largest, has 153 attorneys on its roster of 237 total Buffalo-based staff.

Schober said four of the new hires will join the firm in September, with the other three additions deferred until January. Together, they're the largest group of new attorneys the firm has ever brought on board in one year, Schober added.

"We are continuing to hire, and we think we will be able to keep these people busy when they join us," he said.

Given the rise in unemployment among recent law graduates, has Schober seen a greater influx of résumés and job queries?

"We do fairly well in getting résumés," he said, "and I don't think that has increased with the economy, it has stayed pretty stable."

Lisa Patterson, associate dean for career services, said unemployment for 2008 UB Law grads was lower than the overall NALP figure, but higher than it's been in recent years.

"I think part of the numbers is a reflection of jobs coming later than usual as opposed to not coming at all," she said.

"Our numbers tracked lower, though. We usually run between 97 and 99 percent (of recent graduates who are employed), and for 08 we are at about 95 to 96 percent."

Patterson noted that the number of students who didn't participate in the study rose from last year, leaving her to wonder whether the true unemployment rate for recent law graduates is even lower.

"Students just didn't want to even think about it, and they haven't been as engaged in the process," she said. "I think for them it has been more of a wait and see."

She said the law school is taking proactive steps such as encouraging students to diversify their course of study, anticipating that employment numbers will continue to drop.

"We are really going to capitalize on watching the trends and making sure we continue to diversify," Patterson said, "including (encouraging participation in) our dual-degree programs that may prepare (students) for that alternate career."

Working numbers

For its study on employment for 2008 law-school graduates, the Association for Legal Career Professionals surveyed 188 ABA-accredited law schools. Among its findings:

• 10.1 percent of graduates were unemployed as of Feb. 15, the first drop in the employment rate of graduates in six years.
• Starting salaries for 23 percent of graduates were $160,000 or higher, while 34 percent earned $55,000 or less.
• The number of those employed part-time rose from 5 percent in 2007 to 6.5 percent this year.
• The median salary for graduates was $72,000, though medians varied widely by position: private practice, $125,000; government jobs, $52,500; judicial clerks, $50,000; public-interest jobs, $43,765.
• 16 percent of employed graduates reported that they were seeking another job.
• The number of those seeking jobs in academia rose in 2008, accounting for 2.3 percent of jobs.

Source: Association for legal Career Professionals