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A report released by U.S. News and World Report in late June 2010 says law jobs are going to become increasingly difficult to secure.  This isn’t the kind of news law school graduates want to hear.  It gets worse, too.  It’s expected the class of 2010 will likely “have lower raw employment numbers than the class before it”.  This, from the executive director of the National Association for Law Placement, is definitely a letdown.  He goes on to say those looking to graduate in 2011 will join an already oversaturated job pool of those 2010 graduates who might still be looking for employment or at least, better opportunities than they currently have.  A. Harrison Barnes, attorney and LawCrossing.com founder, says one advantage every law student should be pursuing are those coveted summer internships.  The statistics agree.  In 2009, just 3% of law firms say they hired associates who were not a part of their summer internship programs.

Now, courtesy of the economy, it’s believed 25% of law firms won’t even offer internships this year and possibly next summer as well.  One law professor says he’s never seen a more difficult year for lawyers wishing to enter the legal arena.  It’s not entirely bad, though, says A. Harrison Barnes.  A full 33% of firms say they expect to begin hiring later in the summer, it’s just that they may bring on board more experienced attorneys. Because many legal firms had already made major cutbacks, there simply isn’t the support in place that allow the partners to invest a lot of time into inexperienced lawyers.  That said, only three percent say they won’t hire at all this year.  That’s an improvement over the past few years, says the LawCrossing.com founder.

So what does Barnes recommend for those seeking work in the legal field.  The first thing he emphasizes is that your resume should be flawless.  Triple check it or better yet, consider allowing a professional create it for you.  This will ensure you have an edge going into the process even before you meet the interviewer.  LawCrossing.com offers a resume service for those who need a dynamic legal resume.  There’s a reason this team of professionals has seen the competition come and go while they have remained stead: it’s all about the quality and attention to detail.   Another suggestion includes applying for internships early.  If you wait until Thanksgiving or Christmas, you’ve waited too long.  Now’s the time to start the process for next summer.

Finally, Barnes points out that downturns are to be expected, regardless of what anyone does for a living.  It’s just part of the cycle; it ebbs and flows and for now, the country is still digging out of one of those low points; this one just happened to be a bit deeper than other recessions in recent history.

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