Law Job Stagnation May Have Started Before the Recession--And It May Be a Sign of Lasting Change - Magazine - ABA Journal

This is an excellent ABA Journal article about the structural changes we all face. Numerous graphics illustrate the story: the era of mass, collective production of paper documents is over.

The PC was a game changer: I eliminated one staffer and increased productivity when I started using a laptop in 1991. I was now able to do my ordinary caseload and add a great deal of bar association and pro bono work appellate - which is how I managed the switch to the academic side of the law. But the big game-changer of course is the internet. - GWC

Law Job Stagnation May Have Started Before the Recession--And It May Be a Sign of Lasting Change - Magazine - ABA Journal:

"Whether BigLaw lawyers, boutique specialists or solo practitioners, U.S. lawyers can expect slower rates of market growth that will only intensify competitive pressures and produce a shakeout of weaker competitors and slimmer profit margins industrywide. Law students will find ever-more-limited opportunity for the big-salary score, but more jobs in legal services outside the big firms. Associates’ paths upward will fade as firms strain to keep profits per partner up by keeping traditional leverage down.

And those who wish to rise above the disruption will have to deal with technology that swallows billable work, a world market that takes the competition international, and a more sophisticated corporate client with vast knowledge available at the click of a mouse."