The US legal industry added 5,100 jobs in June, lifting total employment in the sector to 1,243,500 and marking the third consecutive month in which levels reached record highs, data from the US Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics showed on Thursday.
June's figure represents a 0.41% increase from the May level of 1,238,400. The preliminary numbers also indicate that employment in occupations such as lawyers, paralegals, judges and legal assistants is up 8.4% compared with five years ago, a result the data describe as showing that legal artificial intelligence tools have not yet translated into lower staffing levels.
Justine Donahue, a partner at legal recruiting firm Macrae, said she has not observed AI-driven job cuts in the profession. She added that law firms are seeking to leverage AI-related work and consequently require employees to support those matters.
Growth in legal employment comes against the backdrop of a cooling in overall US payroll expansion. Nonfarm payrolls rose by 57,000 in June following a downward revision to May's gain, which was set at 129,000. A subset of economists cited a delayed reaction to the conflict in the Middle East as a factor contributing to the broader slowdown.
The Labor Department report also recorded a decline in the unemployment rate to 4.2% last month. That fall coincided with approximately 720,000 people leaving the labor force, a shift that pushed the participation rate to its lowest level in more than five years.
Over the past year the legal employment market has been largely positive, with job gains in 11 of the last 12 months and a 1.9% increase in legal jobs year-over-year, according to the Labor Department's data. March was the only month in the period to show a decline in legal-sector employment.
Donahue pointed to sustained corporate activity as a driver of demand. She said major initial public offerings and steady deal flow have kept corporate law firms busy. "Deals are up and money is flowing," she said. "Litigation is as high as it’s been - complex civil litigation in particular, which drives all manner of life, from juniors and seniors to vendors and legal supports."
Taken together, the data portray a legal sector that continues to expand even as the wider labor market shows signs of cooling and lower participation. The figures underline that, at least for the period covered, automation and AI tools have not reduced headcount across core legal occupations.