Staffwell Local: CA – 98 of 102 California litigators we spoke to were employed.

In March, we spoke to 102 California litigators while working a defense litigator search in San Diego.

The first thing that stood out:

98 of the 102 were employed.

They were not actively job seeking. Many were still open to a move for the right role.

That matters.

It matters because it means a meaningful part of the market is not applying cold.

They are evaluating opportunities more selectively.

1. Compensation mattered. It was rarely the whole story.

All candidates have a target compensation, commensurate with experience.

Compensation is usually not the only driver.

For this defense litigator search for a San Diego firm:

• Better firm environment came up.

• Better support came up.

• More access to partners came up.

• More responsibility came up.

A stronger role often mattered as much as a bigger number.

2. Support staff and infrastructure came up with everyone.

This was one of the clearest patterns across the conversations.

Candidates notice when attorneys are doing work that should be handled by proper support staff.

More than one candidate made some version of the same point:

“I did not go to law school to spend time handling secretary-level errands for partners.”

That line stuck with us.

Because it speaks to a broader issue:

Strong litigators want to litigate.

3. Work model mattered, but commute mattered too.

Only 11 of the 102 candidates were firm on wanting a hybrid or remote setup.

The rest were open to coming into the office. But not without limits.

A role can be in office and still be attractive.

A role can also lose traction quickly if the commute feels unreasonable relative to the opportunity.

4. Better opportunities are not always the ones paying the most.

What many of these conversations reinforced is that laterals are often evaluating the full role, not just base compensation.

They are looking at questions like:

• Is the firm stable?

• Will I get meaningful support?

• Will I have access to partners?

• Will I keep developing?

• Will this role actually feel better than the one I already have?

That is especially important when most of the market is already employed.

The takeaway

Many strong California litigators are open.

They are just not broadly available.

If a firm wants to attract them, it helps to sell more than compensation alone.

• The structure of the role matters.

• The support matters.

• The environment matters.

• The path matters.

If your firm is hiring in California in the next 90 days, reply with the role you are looking to fill.

You can always request talent here.

Staffwell | Legal Recruitment
Staffwell.ca | (929) 560-0868