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UK law firms are continuing to invest in outsourcing legal work traditionally undertaken by associates. The idea is that big-ticket work will be undertaken within the firm whereas lower end work will be outsourced to places such as India. How will this affect the hiring of junior associates?

The London Times ran an article recently stating that “…predictions suggest that fewer young lawyers will make it in the top London law firms and experts say that the rise in outsourcing will lead to fewer people overall being taken on in London.” I tend to agree somewhat with this suggestion but I do not think that it will be as bad as is being touted, for at least a couple of reasons. First, large law firms recruit junior lawyers not only to undertake deals/cases but also to prepare for overall succession for the firm down the road. Yes, it is true that many lawyers lateral into firms and that partners too make lateral moves taking their team and clients but time and again, we hear the same refrain from firms as to how they like to train their lawyers from the ground up. For lawyers to be successful at firms, they not only need to be good lawyers but they need to learn the culture of the firm – elevation to partnership at a law firm is part ability external contacts (clients) and part internal networking. The goodwill a lawyer generates internally plays a huge part of rising through the ranks. Secondly, I think that quality control and confidentiality issues will continue to play a large part in outsourcing. We are living through a worldwide recession and costs are at the forefront of every client’s mind. When the economy ticks upward again, concerns about spending on lawyers will again subside being countered by the requirement for quality legal services.