Legal Job Market in Austin
The Austin legal market continues to grow at a steady pace. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics and other reported statistics, the area ranks among the top U.S. metropolitan areas for employment levels among lawyers, and was the ninth highest market in jobs added between June 2013 and June 2014. With a broad range of industries and thriving tech, health care and capital sectors, Austin also boasts a high concentration of patent and intellectual property professionals contributing to the overall demand. Corporate and financial services jobs followed patent, as the top job positions added this year with moderate growth in other areas such as litigation and family law continuing to drive the demand for attorneys.
With projections anticipating an increase in legal jobs over the next 10 years and the creation of another 1 , 000 legal services jobs (projected) in 2014, the relatively low unemployment rate of 3.09 percent in the sector reflects the current high demand for firms and corporations to seek capable legal professionals. The expanding market continues to be a driver for employment in all major legal sectors, with large, mid-size, and small firms competing for the best and brightest talent.
Austin offers a competitive job market and attractive relocation options for legal professionals looking for greater opportunity. At a cost of living rate that is 32 percent lower than the national average, and a robust lifestyle and cultured community, the area is ideal for many professionals seeking to relocate.
Leading Employers of Legal Talent in Austin
Despite its burgeoning reputation as a technology and business powerhouse, Austin remains home to a number of traditional legal employers. This includes major law firms, corporate legal departments, and government agencies.
Austin has a healthy mix of regional and national firms with offices in Austin, and the types of positions and practices vary widely amongst them. Some of the larger law firms in Austin include Jackson Walker, Kirkland & Ellis, DLA Piper, Norton Rose Fulbright, and Haynes & Boone. These large firms have general litigation and transactional practices, with robust IP, labor & employment, antitrust, tax, bankruptcy, and other practice groups. Some of the major firms tend to be highly selective and raise concerns for candidates about work-life balance, but there is also a large segment of firms that are more collegial and have less stringent hiring requirements. There are also a number of regional and smaller firms that have a strong presence in Austin. For example, Duff & Phelps, Coats Rose, K&L Gates, Latham & Watkins, Locke Lord, and McGuireWoods all have offices in Austin. Many of these firms offer a wide range of practices but are generally smaller than the aforementioned national giants. Many of Austin’s largest companies also have in-house legal departments. Electronic Arts, HomeAway.com, Apple, IBM, Silicon Labs, and Whole Foods all have significant legal departments. Common roles at these companies include privacy counsel, compliance counsel, contract negotiators, trademarks, investigations, and consumer protection. Employers like Apple and Silicon Labs, for example, hire both lawyers and non-lawyers with J.D.s in a variety of roles. The State of Texas also employs many attorneys through government agencies. Common employers include the Texas Attorney General’s Office, the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, the Texas General Counsel’s Office, and the Office of the Secretary of State. Though most of these positions are Assistant General Counsel or hearings officers, there are sometimes openings for managers or managers who supervise other lawyers for more experienced attorneys who want to get off the junior track in government agencies.
Legal Roles Available in Austin
Given the diversity of legal professionals, job opportunities in Austin vary widely in terms of roles and expectations. On one end of the spectrum are paralegals and legal assistants who support attorneys in cases and the day-to-day running of a law office. The next level up are the associates or junior attorneys who do the research and briefs that move cases forward, while more senior attorneys oversee the process and counsel clients directly. For larger firms, partners are the managing attorneys who may or may not work directly with clients but are responsible for sales and strategies to grow the business. Less common, but equally important players in the Austin legal arena, are judges – mostly assigned to courts at the county and district level. An attorney can become a judge after being elected or appointed. The Supreme Court of Texas is the only court with a mandatory retirement age, 75 (Texas Government Code sections 661.003 and 661.004). The Texas Constitution (Article V, Section 28) also bars certain public officials, such as district attorneys, from being appointed to anything other than municipal courts.
Requirements for Legal Positions
Understanding the required qualifications and skills is an important step in the process for how to get a job as a lawyer. The following outlines what law firms and companies are looking for when hiring legal professionals for in-house and law firm positions.
Education and Training
A Juris Doctor (J.D.) from an accredited law school is a requirement for all legal positions, unless internships are available. In addition to education, most employers require new hires to obtain both state and federal bar admissions. Some companies have training programs for new hires or assign mentors to in-house hires.
Skills
Soft skills are just as important as hard skills with employment opportunities. Strong communication skills are required, and attention to detail is a must. The ability to work with different groups of people is necessary or employers will not seek to retain you. Certain personal attributes such as self-motivation, logical reasoning, analytical thinking, and problem-solving are also required.
Certifications
Certain certifications apply to certain legal specializations, so they are not needed for all legal job opportunities. Examples of certifications include: litigation support and paralegal certifications, which may require CP, HSR, and/or CBF certifications. It is also becoming more common for legal professionals to obtain certifications for record management. The requirements associated with filing federal bankruptcy documents require certification as a bankruptcy petition preparer.
Experience
All legal careers expect to see experience through internships, even for entry-level positions. Experience in other professional areas can be helpful if the applicant proves it is applicable to the position being applied for. Career positions require a high level of experience with employer companies requiring 9 to 10 years. In-house staff spend a lot of time training entry-level hires.
Types of Qualifications
For those pursuing partners or in-house counsel positions, specialized education is needed in the form of an LL.M. (Masters of Law) or S.J.D. (Doctor of Science of Law). An LL.M. is an advanced law degree that typically takes one year of study full-time after graduation from an ABA-approved J.D. program. The S.J.D. is a research doctorate in law that is less than one percent of the total number of law degrees granted each year. The S.J.D. is optional and more work than an LL.M., sometimes taking up to five years of research and writing.
Law offices often offer courses or scholarships to help current employees earn certifications. These opportunities are used by employers to keep talent in house and grow the capabilities of their bench.
Networking and Job-Seeking Skills
Austin is home to a multitude of legal job opportunities, but discovering them often requires a strategic approach. Beyond just responding to posted openings, tapping into the local legal community through networking is essential to uncovering job leads. One of the most effective and underutilized strategies is attending professional association events. Organizations such as the Austin Bar Association, Women in Technology Law, the Texas Young Lawyers Association, and the Austin Black Lawyers Association frequently host mixers, luncheons, happy hours, and even more formal networking events. Making an investment in time to attend these events, especially in the early stages of your legal career, can open doors to opportunities inside and outside of your desired legal niche .
Online platforms and attorney directories should also be utilized to your advantage as valuable tools. While the old-school paper directories are all but a thing of the past, there are now numerous electronic databases where you can search for firm contacts by practice area and contact them directly. When connecting through these avenues, pay special attention to how well your specific area of expertise aligns with the firm’s need, as this will be the key selling point for your "cold" outreach. Rather than sending out a generic resume, sending targeted letters of introduction along with resume attachments to meet their needs will allow you to stand out. Also, while internet searches make it easy to "cold call," try to reach out gently via email first rather than bombarding them with a phone call on Monday morning.
Compensation and Perks
As with any profession, those seeking employment in the legal field in Austin can expect to receive a comprehensive salary but should be prepared for increased salary opportunities through demonstrated hard work and loyalty. The average salaries for legal professionals working in Austin are competitive with the nation and the state, albeit with a little less variance. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the mean hourly wage for lawyers in Texas was $59.82. This translates to an annual salary of roughly $124,000. Of those attorneys in the state, the highest proportion earned between $60,490 and $82,110 per year.
Another significant segment of the legal job market in Austin includes paralegals. As of 2010, the average hourly wage for paralegals in the Lone Star State was found to be $24.95, or roughly $51,800 annually. Recently, the mean annual salary for paralegals in Austin has hovered around $55,000. The salary range for these professionals has been reported as $36,120 to $69,500, meaning that most paralegals fall into the high end of the range. The income potential for paralegals in Austin is relatively high for those seeking employment without a law degree. Most paralegals in the area work for more than one employer at a time in order to maximize salary potential. Studies have shown that paralegals working in private law firms make higher salaries than those employed by corporations, non-profit organizations, or government agencies. Significantly high annual incomes can be earned when more than one job is held at a time. The mean salary for all legal occupations has also consistently been estimated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics at $63,600, which translates to an hourly wage of $30.57 per hour. Workers in this classification can expect to earn between $47,120 and $102,500 each year. When it comes to employment benefits, those working in the legal profession can also expect to receive a number of perks as well as paid time off from work. Although many jobs in the legal field are superior in terms of the income they generate, working in the field associated with trial lawyering involves a stressful job environment. For this reason, legal professionals can expect most employers to offer paid vacations, as well as an assortment of other benefits. Examples include participation in a profit-sharing plan, medical coverage, retirement plans, and holiday pay. These benefits typically become available after completing an initial probationary period.
Prognosis for Austin Legal Jobs
As we look to the future, it is important to consider how evolving legal technology, economic shifts, and regulatory changes might impact the job market—and what this means for new legal professionals just stepping into the field. Austin is a unique hub for legal jobs. Unlike some markets where the major firms dominate the field, Austin offers an array of opportunities in smaller practices and boutique firms. Home to several highly-rated public affairs, environmental, and intellectual property firms , the legal industry in Austin continues to produce talent that is nationally ranked. With so many large-scale tech players in Austin—from ADP and Google to Ikea and Apple—the legal industry is likely to see further growth in the coming years. While automation may reduce the need for some entry-level roles, the integration of technology with legal practice creates a demand for lawyers who are as comfortable with coding as they are with contract law. According to the Austin Chamber of Commerce, the region is the fifth fastest-growing metropolitan area in the nation. As more companies and individuals move into the area, legal professionals in Austin will be presented with an increasing number of opportunities.