Law firms that want to hire the best laterals have to be proactive and stop waiting for candidates to come to them. The most desirable laterals are not actively looking. They’re too busy to think about if they would be better off elsewhere.
Strategy Comes First
If your strategy depends on whoever happens to land in your inbox, you’re choosing from whoever is available. That’s chance, not strategy. Strategic growth starts with identifying who you want, not who is currently on the market.
Define your strategic needs first, starting with your growth priorities. Where are the gaps in practices, industries, geographies, the client base, succession and leadership? And what kind of partner would materially advance the firm’s strategy in the years to come?
Build a Target List
Identify specific partners and groups that fit your priorities, working with outside recruiters or your own internal staff. The obvious rainmakers are viable targets but look beyond them as well. Consider client relationships, reputation, leadership potential, cross-selling opportunities and cultural fit. Treat lateral recruiting as market mapping, not just vacancy filling.
Research the Partner Before You Approach Them
Understand their practice, clients and market position, and think about what their constraints might be. Examine what your firm could genuinely offer that their current firm cannot. Avoid generic pitches about culture, collaboration and platform.
Figure Out What Would Make Them Move
Successful partners need a reason to disrupt a functioning practice. Triggers can include conflicts, rate pressure, succession issues, leadership changes, lack of investment, limited cross-selling and strategic disagreement. Compensation can be a factor too, but it’s often overrated as the reason to move.
Start the Relationship Before There Is an Active Search
Recruiting a lateral partner can take months or even years. Build relationships with desirable partners before a move is even on their mind. Then, when circumstances change, you’ll be far ahead of the other suitors because the relationship is already established and warm.
Get Firm Leadership Involved from the Beginning
High-value lateral recruiting should not be an isolated HR process. Practice heads, firmwide leaders, and future colleagues can make the opportunity real and tangible. The people who will actually work with the partner are the ones who should help sell it.
Understand the Practice Needs, Not Just the Individual Partner
Figure out what the partner needs to succeed after joining. If it’s a group, meet the associates. Consider pricing, conflicts, client transition, technology and marketing, and review the support needed both within the practice and across practices. A large book alone does not guarantee a successful move.
Watch for the Triggers That Cause Partners to Become Movable
- Leadership Changes
- Mergers
- Partner Departures
- Client Conflicts
- Practice Group Instability
- Major Compensation Changes
- Strategic Shifts
Firms already in conversation with a target partner are positioned to act when these changes occur.
Move Quickly When the Opportunity Appears
Slow internal processes can kill lateral opportunities. Know in advance what needs to happen and who needs to approve what. Have a process ready for conflicts, due diligence and decision making.
Be Creative and Willing to Create a Position
Not every strategic hire needs to begin with an existing vacancy. Sometimes the right question is simply whether this partner would make the firm meaningfully stronger.
The firms that consistently win desirable laterals are not simply luckier. They know who they want, know why those partners might move, build relationships early, and are always prepared to act. Do not wait for the market to hand you the right partner. Be proactive and go get the partners you want!
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