With the landscape for lateral associate hiring continuing to evolve in 2024, BigLaw firms are demonstrating a slight increase in demand for associates specializing in debt finance, particularly in national legal markets such as Boston, New York, and Washington, D.C. Debt finance is a large and fairly broad legal practice involving attorneys who collaborate with borrowers (companies) and lenders (banks) on intricate loan transactions, ranging from general operational funding to financing large purchase transactions orchestrated by private equity firms.

Here's a closer look at the emerging hiring trends in debt finance:

1. Growing Demand Amidst Shifting M&A Dynamics: As M&A activity remains steady, albeit with a slower pace, there's a noticeable uptick in demand for associates specializing in traditional debt finance roles. While leveraged finance, closely linked with M&A, experiences a slowdown, traditional debt finance practices are hiring more, creating opportunities for midlevel and senior associates in particular with around 3 years of experience or more.

2. Specialized Skill Sets in Demand: Employers are seeking trained finance associate candidates with specific experience tailored to their client needs. Depending on the firm, they might prioritize candidates with experience working with borrowers, lenders, private equity sponsors or a specialized mix of these client types. This demand opens doors for associates looking to shift focus or relocate to firms with diverse client industry focuses.

3. National Market Dynamics: Post-pandemic, a lot of large law firms have "nationalized" some of their key practice areas and will accept good candidates for an in-demand practice area from any city, provided they have an office in that particular location. As a result, BigLaw firms across all the major legal markets in the nation, including Boston, New York, and Washington, D.C., are witnessing this increase in demand for debt finance associates. These markets, known for their vibrant corporate sectors, offer opportunities for professionals adept at navigating complex loan transactions and regulatory frameworks.

4. Career Advancement Prospects: The right BigLaw firm leads to the right exit options when it comes to in-house prospects and other non-firm opportunities. Associates specializing in debt finance can leverage their expertise for future career moves, including transitions to in-house roles within specific industries such as life sciences or technology. Understanding the client industry landscape of your particular BigLaw firm enhances career prospects and opens doors to diverse opportunities.

In conclusion, the increase in demand for debt finance associates in BigLaw firms reflects the evolving dynamics of the lateral hiring in 2024. As firms gear up to meet client needs in an increasingly complex (and somewhat uncertain) financial landscape, opportunities are out there for associates with the right skill sets and industry focus.

If you're an associate specializing in debt finance or considering a transition to this practice area, feel free to schedule a career advising appointment with me at calendly.com/gridline to explore potential opportunities and career pathways tailored to your goals and aspirations.

With the market outlook specifically for M&A activity in 2024 looking strong, BigLaw firms are starting the year by staffing up related practices -- especially areas that are chronically hard to fill.

Executive compensation law -- sometimes called, or inclusive of, employee benefits work or ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act) practice -- is often one of the hardest practices for BigLaw firms to staff. The work requires a strong understanding of tax laws related to employee benefits and compensation. In some ways, it is spin-off of corporate tax practice but BigLaw firms with large and active transactional practices usually keep "exec comp" lawyers separate and in their own space. Many young lawyers that find interest in this type of work end up going into a broader tax practice. This can undersupply a busy exec comp practice and thus the chronic demand right now across multiple firms.

Here is what I'm seeing:

1. A promising M&A landscape for 2024 = a demand for more exec comp associates

Goldman Sachs' M&A Outlook for 2024 provides valuable insights into the strong M&A market outlook for the year. The report highlights a climate of optimism regarding mergers and acquisitions, driven by various factors, including economic recovery, industry consolidation, and opportunities for strategic expansion.

This expected demand directly impacts the demand for specialized legal expertise, particularly in executive compensation, ERISA, and the extensive web of tax, securities, and other relevant laws that surround these matters. As organizations engage in intricate M&A transactions, they seek legal counsel to navigate the intricate legal frameworks and compliance issues involved, underscoring the importance of professionals in this field.

2. The demand is increasing across all of the major legal markets

One notable aspect of this trend is its nationwide reach. Major markets known for their robust transactional practices, such as New York City, Boston, Washington, D.C., and the San Francisco Bay Area, are all witnessing an increase in demand for legal associates specializing in executive compensation and ERISA work. These markets are hubs for Fortune 500 companies, tech giants, financial institutions, and startups, all of which drive M&A activity.

In New York City, the global financial center, Wall Street firms are actively involved in M&A deals, necessitating the expertise of executive compensation and ERISA attorneys with a multifaceted skill set. Boston's thriving biotech and pharmaceutical sectors are fueling significant M&A transactions that require comprehensive legal support. The dynamic regulatory environment of Washington, D.C., adds to the complexity of corporate transactions. In the San Francisco Bay Area, the tech industry's anticipated recovery and growth fuels the demand for legal professionals who can adeptly handle executive compensation and ERISA issues within the tech sector while managing intricate tax and securities law matters.

3. The BigLaw firms are looking for certain types of exec comp associates

The increase in demand for executive compensation and ERISA attorneys is not general though; it's about specific skills and experience that are connected to the legal work that is expected to increase in 2024. Here's a closer look at what's in high demand:

• experience in company representation and compensation disclosure: Firms are seeking associates who can effectively navigate complex compensation disclosure requirements in transactional documents. This experience is critical in ensuring that companies comply with regulatory standards while designing and implementing compensation plans.

• expertise in transactional executive compensation and benefits matters: The ability to handle a wide range of transactional executive compensation and benefits matters is also sought after. This includes advising on tax, securities, and other relevant laws associated with compensation packages, equity-based arrangements, and incentive compensation plans.

• M&A expertise, particularly in private equity: Professionals who can seamlessly integrate executive compensation and employee benefits matters into M&A transactions, especially in the private equity sphere, are more in demand. Their expertise is crucial for structuring deals that align with strategic goals while managing the intricate legal aspects.

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In conclusion, the recent increase in demand for legal associates specializing in executive compensation and ERISA work is closely linked to the robust M&A market outlook for 2024. As clients continue to navigate complex M&A transactions in this promising landscape, the need for professionals with specific skills and experience becomes increasingly evident.

If you are an exec comp associate in BigLaw (or even a tax associate open to further specialization as part of your move), you can set up a time to have a career advising appointment with me at calendly.com/gridline.

The summer is an excellent time to start strategizing and thinking about a lateral move if you're a BigLaw associate, especially given the slower hiring market.

Here are some things you can do as a BigLaw associate over this summer to set you up for a move later in the new year or going into 2024:

• Get your materials up to date and in good shape. For a BigLaw lateral submission your recruiter will need an updated resume and a copy of your unofficial law school transcript, and then possibly a representative deals or matters list, a writing sample and unofficial transcripts from your other higher ed institutions. The resume is obviously the most important and you will want to ensure that you are including good amount of detail about your current BigLaw position, especially regarding drafting experience.

• Make sure you are getting more of the work that you enjoy. I talk to lots of BigLaw associates that want to retool to a different BigLaw practice. This is not easy to do. However, to the extent you can obtain exposure to more interesting work at your current job, it will be easier to make a move that helps achieve your lateral goals when it comes to practice. For example, a corporate associate may be only working on M&A deals, but their group has been getting busier with SEC advisory and corporate governance work. To the extent the associate is planning a move to a firm where they can get a broader corporate experience, it will make sense to take on assignments in these busier areas to strengthen their candidacy for corporate generalist openings.

• Consider whether geographic relocation makes sense and when. Maybe you are working in a city that you and your family did not plan on living in forever. If you are thinking about a geographic relocation in the future, there are important steps to take to make this type of move easier. First, what steps do you need to take to get admitted to the bar in the state to which you want to relocate? Can you get admitted via a score transfer? Admission by motion? Or will a new bar exam be necessary. (The National Conference of Bar Examiners has jurisdiction-specific information to answer these questions.) Second, you might need to shift your practice at your current firm or work to get assignments in practice areas that are larger or more popular in your target geographic destination.

• Start talking to recruiters and industry professionals. Even if the timing is not right for a BigLaw lateral move this summer, it makes sense to start having conversations with recruiters and industry professionals. When BigLaw associates who are considering a lateral move reach out to me, I provide tailored and specific advice regarding what they can do to set themselves up for success.

When Lehman Brothers collapsed in September of 2008, I was at work at Dewey & LeBouef's London office. I had just become a 2nd year associate, working for attorneys in both the capital markets and insurance regulatory groups. Since I was junior and I was a first generation attorney, I did not know what the news meant for my career or the economy at large. Our practice at Dewey had a lot of interaction with the U.S. and the New York office, so broadly speaking, I knew that the news was not good. As everything turned into a full-blown economic crisis, I started to see deals stop cold and my billable hours drop. Like many BigLaw associates, my 1st year was not a high-billing year, so I was not sure how much to worry. More started to happen that got me worried. My cost of living adjustment was cut off. The firm announced a program called "DL Pursuits," which encouraged associates to leave the firm to pursue public interest work in return for 1/3 of your salary for one year. I thought: "Do I look into this for myself?" "Should I look into this?"

Ultimately, I stayed at the firm another 3 years and left on my own accord.

Much has already been written about how these times differ from 2008. Nevertheless, as we start to see BigLaw paycuts and layoffs (AmLaw is keeping a running list), I wanted to share my experience and tips for making it through:

1. Relax (honestly!), as you have time to figure this all out. Earning a living is important, but being healthy is paramount. We are in the middle of an unprecedented pandemic. Taking care of you and your family is most important. At the same time, when it comes to your BigLaw associate job, it's very unlikely that it will be gone tomorrow. Up until a couple weeks ago, large law firms were doing very well economically. Additionally, since the financial crisis, firms have been smarter about their finances. As a result, most BigLaw firms are in a position to make careful decisions regarding talent management. In fact, even the harshest talent announcements from AmLaw 200 law firms have provided some form of a timeline for furloughs and layoffs.

2. Communicate by phone and video when you are able. If you are well and actively able to work from home, make sure you are in communication with your team. Check in with your fellow associates, senior associates and partners. Call when you are able. Take advantage of the increased use in video conferencing to connect. Don't just send and respond to emails. Right now, your check-ins might simply say "How are you and your family feeling?" During the financial crisis, informal communication with my peers and supervisors was paramount. It helped affirm that I saw myself as "part of the team" and would be ready to chip in when the time came.

3. Offer succinct suggestions and updates by email. Across the board, clients are looking for quick and succinct responses from their lawyers right now. The U.S. just passed a very large, complicated and evolving piece of legislation with the stimulus bill. If you read something about the stimulus bill (or something else new) that you think clients should be informed on, consider sending a short email memo to a senior associate or partner. Make sure it is well-considered and well-edited. And don't be alarmed if there isn't a response. Attorneys in my capital markets group appreciated this when it came to the bailout bills and, later on, with respect to the Dodd-Frank Act.

4. Make sure clients are getting timely responses. When I was a junior associate, I would often get cc'd on emails from clients to whom I would not draft the response. Either the partner would respond directly or he/she would affirmatively ask me to draft a response. When the financial crisis hit, partners became more distracted by other things: firm management issues, business development, etc. As a result, there was more implicit reliance on associates to be proactive in drafting responses to clients and making sure they were taken care of.

5. Identify new opportunities for getting billable hours. Right now, nearly everything may be on hold at your firm in terms of billable work. But work will come back. Your firm's clients will have more questions. The courts will reopen. Business will finance, buy and sell again. Identify cases, deals, projects and assignments where you know that you can be helpful, even if you haven't worked in that area before. Go beyond saying "Do you have any work for me to do?" and be more specific: "I heard from [fellow associate] that [x] deal may be coming back soon and you might need additional assistance on the diligence review. I have some experience doing this for [x type] deals and I'd appreciate the opportunity to help out." When deals stopped completely at Dewey around the financial crisis, I looked for opportunities to provide securities and regulatory advice to our clients. I took it upon myself to identify and follow the demands for work in order to make sure that I kept billing time.

These are my tips for making it through the economic crisis, but I admit they come from the benefit of hindsight. Working at a BigLaw firm during a time of global uncertainty is stressful. But, if nothing else, keep these two things in mind:

• Nobody has experienced what is going on before and everyone is still trying to figure it all out.

• If you show that you are there to work and be a part of the team, partners will remember it.

I've written before about changing markets as a corporate associate. This article looks at the broader movement of law firm associates that have changed geographic markets and moved to new law firms, looking at data from 2018. Here are some findings regarding some of the key "destination markets" for associates last year:

Lateral data copyright 2018 Firm Prospects, LLC. All rights reserved. Used with permission. Not for redistribution. Graphic by DuelingData.

• The Bay Area and New York lead the pack for destination markets, driven by high corporate needs. Attorneys that do some type of transactional work flock to the San Francisco Bay Area and New York City markets. Even though the Bay Area is generally a smaller legal market than NY and DC, the needs for corporate attorneys to service tech companies, their buyers, their targets and their financiers. This need will likely grow in 2019 (see here).

• DC transfers were diverse in original location and practice. The DC market had 160 transfer associates in 2018, which excludes the number of associates coming to firms from judicial clerkships (significant in the DC market). These associates came from all over the country. This can partly be attributed to the fact that the DC bar has a much easier admission process for laterals than, for example, California. Practice areas were similarly diverse with DC drawing in associates to fill corporate, litigation, real estate, tax and IP needs, amongst others.

• Boston's lateral associate needs were significant compared to the city size. Boston attracted about 100 new associates to the market last year. This is the 6th largest transfer destination market, even though the metropolitan area is only the 10th largest in the country. New firms along with active financial services and life sciences industries keep the needs for associate talent high, especially for corporate practice.

Expect the trend of lateral associate geographic movement to increase in numbers over the next few years for a few reasons:

1. Large firms will continue move into new markets (see Boston) and partner groups will continue to move as firms compete for books of business.

2. Some practice areas like tech transactions, real estate and data privacy are in such high-demand for trained talent that firm offices will have to look out of their geographic areas to find the talent.

3. The liberalization of state bar admission via adoption of the UBE will make it easier and easier for associates to make themselves marketable to a new firm in a new market.

The need for experienced corporate and transactional associates in San Francisco and Silicon Valley is high. If you're practicing law at a big firm in New York or elsewhere in the U.S., consider exploring the market. As previously written, the Bay Area is the top legal market for working with clients in the technology industry (as well as their bankers and investors).

Using job listings collected by Firm Prospects, LLC, here are some of the trends that I am seeing for Bay Area lateral associate hiring at the start of 2019:

• High need for tech trans associates with 2+ years of experience. "Technology transactions" attorneys advise on agreements related to the development, licensing, sale and purchase of intellectual property. Unlike other types of intellectual property work, a technical undergraduate degree is not usually a requirement (though firms do want attorneys that have experience working with tech companies). If you are someone that has "deal experience" working with tech companies, this may be something you want to focus in on in the Bay Area market. It's also one of the best paths for going in-house to a tech company (thus the high need on the firm side).

• Need for public capital markets associates with 3+ years of experience. Firms across the Bay Area are looking for mid-level public capital markets attorneys. People who know the BigLaw legal market tend to think that New York is the primary market for advising on IPOs and other public equity and debt offerings. But in recent years, Bay Area-headquarted law firms have moved to become more full service, while New York-headquartered law firms have opened up offices in the area to leverage strong reputations in areas like public capital markets. The result is growth all around with everyone strategizing to advise on the "next big tech IPO in 2019."

• Need for M&A associates with 3+ years of experience. M&A legal practice has long been a mainstay in the Bay Area legal market. Whether you are an attorney that advises startups, small tech companies, established tech companies, private equity firms, venture funds or all of the above, there is a lot of work to do. If you're an experienced M&A deal attorney that likes that pace and life, but wants to dig into the tech industry world, then a Bay Area move might be right.

• General need for general corporate attorneys of different levels of experience. If part of the appeal for making a move is to find a firm that will allow you to have a more general corporate practice that includes a mix of finance, capital markets, M&A and others, then the Bay Area has opportunities in this space. Firms that have this need often want attorneys that can be full service to clients in a particular industry such as life sciences or tech.

Ultimately, whether you want to build a path to in-house or partnership, or just want a West Coast change of scenery, the time to lateral to the Bay Area may be now.

The 2019 annual advisory on the state of the legal market from the Law Firm Group at Citi Private Bank and Hildebrandt Consulting was just released. The report is an authority on demand for legal services from major US-based law firms.

The report projects a 6-7% increase in the demand for legal services in 2019. But not all firms will benefit equally from this growth.

The report identifies higher performance at the biggest law firms (the AmLaw 50) and firms outside the top firm rankings (“niche” law firms).

In terms of findings that may be of interest to potential lateral attorney candidates at large law firms:

1. Expect M&A to remain the main “practice area driver.” That being said, the survey also found that other major practice areas should have a good year, including BigLaw standbys like finance, capital markets, white collar, investigations, IP and real estate.

2. Surveyed firms plan to grow their income partner, counsel AND associate counts. This is good news for associates looking to move up the ladder or move to a new firm.

3. Increased equity partner turnover and retirement in 2019. The survey noted a recent shift from survey firms for lateral equity partner hires over internal promotions. And when it comes to retirements, Baby Boomer demographics work in the favor of associates from other generations; the survey notes that the average mandatory retirement age for firms is at 67.