Looking for authoritative numbers on the legal profession? The American Bar Association has it covered.
On Aug. 10, the ABA will release the first ABA Profile of the Legal Profession a 100-page compendium of statistics and trends. The report will include sections on demographics, wages, law schools and law students, federal judges, pro bono work, women in the profession, legal technology, lawyer well-being and lawyer discipline.
"This report is an important reference for anyone who wants to understand where the legal profession came from and where it stands today," ABA President Bob Carlson said.
Among the many facts in the report:
- There are 1.3 million lawyers in the United States, and 1 in 4 are in just two states (New York and California).
- Nearly half of all law school graduates take jobs at law firms, but 12% go to work for the government and 1% start a solo practice.
- 1 out of 3 law school deans are women. In 2000, it was 1 in 10.
- The average lawyer provides 37 hours a year of volunteer services to low-income clients who cannot afford a lawyer.
- 1 in 4 lawyers say their law firm has experienced a computer security breach, but only 1 in 3 law firms has cyber liability insurance.
The ABA Profile of the Legal Profession will be released at 2 p.m. Aug. 10 at the ABA Annual Meeting in San Francisco. At the release program, a panel of ABA experts will discuss recent trends in diversity, technology, legal education and women in the profession.
The report will be available online at that time at www.americanbar.org/profile.
Published: Fri, Aug 09, 2019
