Legal Career Center

POSITION OVERVIEW

As part of the Firmwide Legal Recruiting and Development Department, the Lateral Legal Recruiting Specialist will be responsible for all aspects of lateral attorney recruiting including, but not limited to: lateral hiring; strategic direction and planning; working closely with with senior partners within practice areas regarding lateral needs; day to day management and professional development of local recruiting team; relationship building with recruits, search firms, and vendors; budget planning; industry research.

This position requires a high level of collaboration with attorneys and staff and the ability to work independently.  This position requires the exercise of independent judgment.

The ideal candidate will be highly organized, possess excellent proofing and communication (verbal and written) skills; the ability to multitask in a fast-paced environment; a very strong attention to detail; and a professional demeanor.  Additionally, the ideal candidate will possess strong interpersonal skills with the ability to build relationships among lawyers and staff to achieve results. 

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS (This list is not exhaustive and may be supplemented and changed as necessary.)

• Proactively communicate and collaborate with senior partners within practice areas regarding lateral needs
• Provide strategic direction for lateral hiring programs and facilitate executing them
• Act as primary contact for lateral candidates and headhunters
• Source candidates and review candidate materials
• Schedule interviews and meet candidates
• Collect and distribute interview feedback
• Accurately track all candidates
• Update Kirkland’s website with open position information
• Work with our Immigration and Mobility Manager on pipeline of transfer attorneys to/from other Kirkland offices
• Prepare new-hire paperwork
• Coordinate new-hire orientation and onboarding
• Collaborate with the Attorney Engagement team on lateral attorney integration
• Provide reports and statistical data as needed
• Provide guidance to junior lateral team members on hiring best practices
• Collaborate in the lateral attorney offer and hiring process, including preparing, updating, and overseeing the correspondence of offer letters, reviewing offers for consistency and uniformity, conducting due diligence, facilitating attorney registration, and identifying liability issues
• Work with attorneys and assist local and firm management in the negotiation of lateral hire compensation, utilizing market trends and conditions that may affect compensation, bonuses, raises, and benefits
• Ensure the regular maintenance of, and contribution to, attorney applicant databases for purposes of lateral applicant tracking, NALP reporting, and reference checking; develop, prepare and analyze relevant reports and projections regarding attorney attrition, market analysis, hours and billing rates
• Collaborate with other Kirkland offices and departments to identify efficiencies and best practices, including efficient in-take of lateral hires/orientation programs
• Work closely with the LRD team to assist with ad hoc projects as needed

Education, Work Experience, Skills

The ideal candidate will have a minimum of 7 years of recruiting experience in a law firm or professional service industry. The candidate must also demonstrate strong leadership, problem-solving, and strategic planning skills, and the ability to work across all levels of management with various personality types; build relationships, be proactive, stay organized, and multi task in a fast paced environment. A Bachelor’s degree is required, along with superior verbal and written communication skills.

The ideal candidate will have:

• Demonstrated knowledge and expertise regarding lateral attorney recruitment activities;
• Strong leadership and teamwork skills;
• Strong problem-solving skills;
• Strong planning and organizational skills;
• Ability to design short-term and long-term goals, with clear criteria to measure success and return on investment;
• Ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines;
• Ability to excel in a matrixed organization;
• High degree of comfort interacting with partners, coupled with a strong image and presence that engenders confidence from firm management and attorneys;
• Strong presentation skills combined with confidence and poise;
• A Bachelor’s degree combined with a minimum of 7 years of recruiting experience, preferably in a large law firm or other professional services environment;
• Proficiency in the use office software, including Microsoft Office. Experience with ViDesktop preferred.