What You Need to Know

• Recent layoffs at Reed Smith reveal that a broader set of law firms may feel the need to rightsize their workforce.
• Until recently, law firm layoffs have largely been conducted by firms with large tech-oriented transactional practices.
• Firms' staffing needs are also being disrupted by emerging technologies and hybrid work environments.

While there’s no certainty about how many more Big Law firms will reduce their workforce in response to a downturn in demand, recent layoffs at Reed Smith and Dechert reveal that more firms than just those with a Silicon Valley transactional focus are facing capacity constraints.

Layoffs at Pittsburgh-born Reed Smith came just before a 6% reduction in force at Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe, coupled with deferrals for its class of 2023 associates. In the spring, Cooley, Fenwick & West and Gunderson Dettmer Stough Villeneuve Franklin & Hachigian also announced deferrals. Meanwhile, Dechert said in mid-May that it would reduce its workforce by about 5%. All of the reported layoffs impacted both lawyers and staff.

Want to continue reading?
Become an ALM Digital Reader for Free!

Benefits of a Digital Membership

• Free access to 1 article* every 30 days
• Access to the entire ALM network of websites
• Unlimited access to the ALM suite of newsletters
• Build custom alerts on any search topic of your choosing
• Search by a wide range of topics

Already have an account? https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMidGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3Lmxhdy5jb20vYW1lcmlj...