Law Firms Say They Don't Use Agencies. Here's Who Actually Does the Hiring.
'We use our network' is the most common answer a law firm gives an agency, and it is usually true for about half the firm. The other half, the staff side and the practice group with a trial in six weeks, is where agencies get paid. Here's how to find it.
- At small firms the managing partner and office manager decide; at midsize firms the legal administrator runs staff hiring; at large firms staff and attorney hiring are separate machines.
- 'We use our network' usually describes attorney hiring, not paralegal and legal assistant hiring.
- Litigation deadlines, lateral moves and year-end bonuses set the legal hiring calendar; time your calls to them.
- Never put a client or matter name in a submittal. Let the firm run its own conflict check.
- LLP in a company name is a strong tell you're looking at a law firm, and a reason to call the administrator first.
Who hires at a law firm depends on its size
Law firms are partnerships first and employers second, and that shapes hiring. Partners own the work and the profits, so a hire is a partnership decision even when an administrator signs the offer. Many firms organize as an LLP, PC or PLLC, so the name on the door often tells you that you are looking at a partnership with its own hiring habits.
- Small firms (under about 15 attorneys): the managing partner decides, often with an office manager who screens and handles paperwork. There's no HR department. Treat it like any small business, where the owner is the hiring manager; we cover that pattern in at a small company, the CEO is the hiring manager.
- Midsize firms (roughly 15 to 150 attorneys): a legal administrator or firm administrator runs the business side, including staff hiring, and practice group leaders decide what they need. The Association of Legal Administrators describes its members as the people who keep the business side of law firms running, from human resources and operations to finances.
- Large firms: two separate machines. Legal recruiting (recruiting coordinators, a lateral recruiting manager, attorney recruiting directors) handles associates and laterals. Staff hiring runs through HR, a legal staffing manager or a paralegal manager, with practice group partners approving.
Your door, by firm size and role
Start with the person who controls the process, and name the attorney you think the hire supports.| Firm size | Paralegal and legal assistant hires | Associate and lateral hires | Call first |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo to 15 attorneys | Managing partner, with the office manager | Managing partner, often through personal referrals | Office manager, then the partner |
| 15 to 150 attorneys | Legal administrator, with the practice group leader | Practice group leader and a hiring committee | Legal administrator |
| Large national firm | Legal staffing or paralegal manager; practice group partner approves | Attorney recruiting team; practice group decides | Paralegal manager for staff; recruiting manager for laterals |
| Corporate legal department | Deputy or associate general counsel | General counsel | The lawyer who manages the team; see our corporate counsel guide |
The legal hiring calendar
Law firm hiring follows the work, and the work follows courts, clients and compensation cycles.
- Trials and big filings. A litigation group with a trial date needs a litigation paralegal who can start Monday. The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook notes paralegal work can be stressful because it is fast paced and done under tight deadlines, and that paralegals may assist attorneys during trials. That deadline is your urgency. Phrases like 'trial-ready' or 'trial experience required' in an ad are the signal.
- Laterals. Attorney movement is active. NALP's 2025 survey of law firms on lateral and 3L hiring, released April 22, 2026, found lateral hiring up 16.4% from 2024 among offices reporting both years, with associates making up 58.2% of laterals. A lateral partner usually arrives with work and often needs staff to support it within weeks.
- Year-end bonuses. Practitioners see both associates and staff wait until bonuses are paid before moving. Expect candidates to get serious in January and February, and plan your BD calls to firms for December so you have openings ready when candidates are.
- Steady replacement. Paralegal and legal assistant employment barely grows, with 404,900 jobs in 2025, but turnover creates openings all year. Most staff reqs are a seat someone just left.
What 'we use our network' actually means
Each version of the objection has a different answer. Our post on honest answers to 'we don't use agencies' has the full set of responses.Calling a legal administrator about a litigation paralegal
Fictional firm, real pattern: a midsize firm with a reposted paralegal ad. Be brief; administrators get many calls.Conflicts and confidentiality: how not to scare a law firm
A paralegal moving between firms can bring a conflict with them. Under the commentary to ABA Model Rule 1.10, a conflict involving a nonlawyer such as a paralegal or legal secretary doesn't automatically disqualify the whole new firm, but that person should be screened from the matter. The North Carolina State Bar's explanation of imputed conflicts describes screening as written undertakings, denial of file access and reminders to firm personnel. Firms take this seriously because a missed conflict can cost them a client.
What that means for your desk:
- No client or matter names in any submittal, email or voicemail. Describe matters by type: 'products liability defense, two federal trials.'
- Let the firm run the check. Don't ask the candidate to list confidential matters for you. The firm's conflicts process will ask for what it needs, in the form it needs.
- Flag same-side and opposite-side overlap early. If your candidate's firm is opposing counsel in a case the target firm is litigating, say so before the interview, not after the offer.
- Protect the candidate. Legal markets are small. Present blind until the firm commits to an interview.
Not legal advice. Professional conduct rules vary by state; firms will apply their own state's version.
A fictional firm that 'didn't use agencies'
A 40-attorney firm in Pittsburgh has told every agency the same thing for years. Its legal administrator, fictional here as Denise, isn't being rude; the attorneys really do hire each other through referrals. But two of its legal assistants retire in the same quarter, a litigation paralegal leaves for a corporate job, and the referral list runs dry.
Ray from Keystone has called Denise three times over a year, each time with one specific candidate and never with a pitch. The fourth call happens to land the week the firm reposts the paralegal ad. She takes the blind profile, the litigation partner interviews, and the firm signs its first agency agreement. Six months later, when a lateral partner arrives with a book of business and no assistant, Denise calls Ray before posting the job.
Questions agency recruiters ask
- Do law firms pay agency fees for paralegals and legal assistants?
Many do, especially for experienced litigation paralegals and for legal assistants supporting partners. The fee conversation usually happens with the legal administrator or office manager, not the attorneys. Get a signed agreement before you send a name.
- Who hires associates at a large law firm?
Practice groups decide; the attorney recruiting team runs the process. Entry-level associates come through law school recruiting, which agencies rarely touch. Lateral associates are where search firms work, usually through the lateral recruiting manager.
- How do I handle conflicts when submitting a paralegal?
Describe matters by type, never by client name, and let the firm run its own conflict check. Flag any obvious overlap, such as the candidate's current firm being opposing counsel on a known case, before the interview.