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Leaders in Legal Business
Legal Recruiting and Staffing Jon Lindsey1
Major, Lindsey & Africa
New York Founding Partner
During the more than three decades since the 1982 founding of our firm — Major, Lindsey & Africa
(MLA) — the legal recruiting and staffing industry has undergone enormous changes; indeed, in many respects,
it has changed more than the legal industry it serves.
The Role of Legal Recruiting and Staffing Firms
Legal recruiting and staffing firms make professional placements for a variety of positions
and professional roles at client companies and law firms, either for permanent placement or
for predetermined durations of time. They include:
In-House Legal Departments: in-house counsel positions, e.g., general counsel
(GC), corporate counsel, or legal secretary.
Law Firms: partner and associate candidates who typically work exclusively with a
single recruiter to identify firms that would be the best cultural, financial, and practice fit.
Business Management: retained searches for firms’ business management professionals, e.g., chief
operating officer (COO), chief marketing officer (CMO), chief strategy officer (CSO), chief financial
officer (CFO), and corporate legal department operations professionals.
Permanent: full-time employees, whether at law firms or in-house at companies.
Specialized/Temporary: legal professionals for specific projects or on an interim and temporary-to-
permanent hire basis (both at companies and law firms).
Most of the scores of legal recruiting firms in the U.S. have a small handful of recruiters in a single city;
several have offices in more than one city. Our firm is unique in having nearly 200 recruiting professionals in
more than 20 locations worldwide, including London, Hong Kong, Tokyo, and cities across the U.S., and strategic
alliances in Beijing, Moscow, and Seoul. This provides the distinct advantage of having market information about
law firms, corporate clients, and practice trends globally rather than just for a single city.
Why Use A Recruiter?
There are five main reasons that law firms and companies utilize legal recruiters:
1. Attract top talent: Top legal talent is difficult to find because those professionals are usually not looking
for new opportunities; one must “search” for them thus necessitating the role of legal recruiters and
staffers.
1 Jon Lindsey is the New York founding partner of Major, Lindsey & Africa. Over the past two decades, Jon has placed scores of partners and practice
groups at many of the world’s top law firms and assisted firms in merger and branch office acquisitions. As the former Global Co-Chair of the MLA’s
Partner Practice Group, Jon helped to set strategy and coordinate the partner practice for the firm’s 21 domestic and international offices. He is the co-author
of “Managing People in Today’s Law Firm” (Quorum Books, 1995) and the 2014 MLA “Lateral Partner Satisfaction Survey.” He gratefully acknowledges
the contributions of his colleagues Robert Major Jr, Michelle Fivel, Ru Bhatt, Amanda Brady and Greg Richter in the development of this chapter.
58
Legal Recruiting and Staffing Jon Lindsey1
Major, Lindsey & Africa
New York Founding Partner
During the more than three decades since the 1982 founding of our firm — Major, Lindsey & Africa
(MLA) — the legal recruiting and staffing industry has undergone enormous changes; indeed, in many respects,
it has changed more than the legal industry it serves.
The Role of Legal Recruiting and Staffing Firms
Legal recruiting and staffing firms make professional placements for a variety of positions
and professional roles at client companies and law firms, either for permanent placement or
for predetermined durations of time. They include:
In-House Legal Departments: in-house counsel positions, e.g., general counsel
(GC), corporate counsel, or legal secretary.
Law Firms: partner and associate candidates who typically work exclusively with a
single recruiter to identify firms that would be the best cultural, financial, and practice fit.
Business Management: retained searches for firms’ business management professionals, e.g., chief
operating officer (COO), chief marketing officer (CMO), chief strategy officer (CSO), chief financial
officer (CFO), and corporate legal department operations professionals.
Permanent: full-time employees, whether at law firms or in-house at companies.
Specialized/Temporary: legal professionals for specific projects or on an interim and temporary-to-
permanent hire basis (both at companies and law firms).
Most of the scores of legal recruiting firms in the U.S. have a small handful of recruiters in a single city;
several have offices in more than one city. Our firm is unique in having nearly 200 recruiting professionals in
more than 20 locations worldwide, including London, Hong Kong, Tokyo, and cities across the U.S., and strategic
alliances in Beijing, Moscow, and Seoul. This provides the distinct advantage of having market information about
law firms, corporate clients, and practice trends globally rather than just for a single city.
Why Use A Recruiter?
There are five main reasons that law firms and companies utilize legal recruiters:
1. Attract top talent: Top legal talent is difficult to find because those professionals are usually not looking
for new opportunities; one must “search” for them thus necessitating the role of legal recruiters and
staffers.
1 Jon Lindsey is the New York founding partner of Major, Lindsey & Africa. Over the past two decades, Jon has placed scores of partners and practice
groups at many of the world’s top law firms and assisted firms in merger and branch office acquisitions. As the former Global Co-Chair of the MLA’s
Partner Practice Group, Jon helped to set strategy and coordinate the partner practice for the firm’s 21 domestic and international offices. He is the co-author
of “Managing People in Today’s Law Firm” (Quorum Books, 1995) and the 2014 MLA “Lateral Partner Satisfaction Survey.” He gratefully acknowledges
the contributions of his colleagues Robert Major Jr, Michelle Fivel, Ru Bhatt, Amanda Brady and Greg Richter in the development of this chapter.
58
