Why I Used My J.D. To Become a Legal Recruiter

Remember when you decided to go to law school? You had a plan and, in only a few short years, you were living the dream as a practicing attorney. Fast forward about five years and a pile of student loans later. Now if you’re honest with yourself, you may admit it’s a bit of a letdown.

But your career expectations! Your family’s expectations for you! And those loans! With ALL of that debt, how can you walk away from practicing law? If you feel discontent, fear not; you have options.

Consider a career as a legal recruiter

Putting Your J.D. to Use

The first question family and friends may ask when you leave the practice of law to pursue a career as a legal recruiter: “Do you have to be a lawyer to do that?”

While technically the answer is no, one of the great things about LHH is that all of our attorney recruiters are licensed attorneys themselves. Not only does this give us the ability to relate to the candidates we’re helping, but it also gives us the legal and market knowledge necessary to achieve quick success in this role.

Entrepreneurship

As a practicing attorney, you are typically operating under someone else’s plan. In a recruiter role, entrepreneurial spirit isn’t just appreciated, it’s strongly encouraged! Every day, the best recruiters in the business are pushing themselves to take the initiative to try a new recruiting strategy, act quickly on new opportunities and find innovative solutions to roadblocks that come their way. Every day is a little different — and sometimes even a little challenging — but also very exciting and never boring!

Team Environment

While it is true that entrepreneurship is encouraged, that doesn’t mean you’re on your own. We are a team at LHH, across all offices and even across disciplines. This means sharing leads, job orders, ideas and best practices. The goal is to be successful as a unit, as well as individually. We grow and thrive as a team.

Fantastic Training and Support System

Should you join the LHH team, the leadership of this company will do everything in their power to help you succeed — and succeed quickly! This starts with a week of in-person training designed to teach new recruiters best practices for early success in their new role. But the support doesn’t stop once you leave. Once back in the local office, the on-the-ground leadership team is there to answer questions, help to hone your newly acquired recruiting skills and ultimately to help you make money.

Financial Incentive

Speaking of money, the potential to be financially successful is huge at LHH. While the move to a commission-based position can be frightening, if you put in the hard work, follow the advice and training of the leadership team, and mix in a little of that entrepreneurial spirit, you can be hugely successful in the role of an attorney recruiter. So much so that even our former Big Law attorneys aren’t missing their old paychecks!

Making the move from practicing attorney to attorney recruiter can be one of the best decisions you’ll make in your professional career. It may be time to consider an alternative way to use your J.D., make a lot of money and enjoy getting up and going to work every day!

LHH is hiring legal recruiters in offices nationwide. Contact us today to learn more about joining our team.