When it comes to lateral recruiting, most law firms share the same objective: improve the odds that the lawyer they hire will actually succeed at the firm.
The challenge hasn’t changed much over the years. What has changed is the environment in which we evaluate candidates.
A decade ago, I wrote about the importance of asking the right questions when interviewing potential lateral partners. The premise was simple: rather than relying on a candidate’s general assurances about what they will do, ask questions that reveal what they have actually done.
That principle remains sound. In fact, in the age of AI, it may be more important than ever.
Today’s candidates can arrive at an interview extraordinarily well prepared. They can anticipate common interview questions, refine their talking points, and even use AI to help formulate polished answers. That doesn’t necessarily make the answers less truthful—but it does make it harder to distinguish a compelling narrative from demonstrated behavior.
So the goal should be to ask questions that require specificity, judgment and evidence.
Dr. Phil McGraw famously said, “the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior.” Whether or not you subscribe to Dr. Phil’s broader philosophy, the concept is useful in lateral recruiting: past behavior provides evidence of how a candidate is likely to behave in the future.
Ask for the story—not the sales pitch
If you’re looking for a team player, don’t simply ask:
“Are you a team player?”
Almost everyone will say yes.
Instead, ask:
“Tell me about a significant client matter where you needed another partner’s help to succeed. Why did you involve that partner, and what did you do to make the collaboration successful?”
The follow-up is just as important:
“What did you learn from that experience?”
Now you’re learning not only whether the candidate collaborates, but whether they recognize when collaboration is necessary, how they bring others into a relationship, and whether they learn from experience.
Test business development by asking about behavior
Rather than asking:
“How would you describe your business development skills?”
Ask:
“Tell me about a client relationship that generated significant new business for you. How did that opportunity originate, what did you personally do to develop it, and what happened next?”
Then go one step further:
“What did you do that was repeatable—and what was unique to that particular opportunity?”
That distinction can be revealing. A successful rainmaker should be able to identify the behaviors, relationships and habits that contribute to business development rather than simply point to a list of matters.
Find out how they handle difficult clients
Every lawyer will encounter a difficult client. The interesting question isn’t whether the candidate has done so; it’s how they responded.
Try:
“Tell me about a client relationship that became difficult or was at risk. What was happening, what did you do, and what was the outcome?”
Then ask:
“Looking back, is there anything you would handle differently today?”
The second question may tell you more than the first. It tests self-awareness, judgment and the ability to learn from experience.
Look for lawyers who create opportunities
One of the most valuable traits in a lateral partner is the ability to see opportunities before the client asks for help.
Ask:
“Tell me about a time you contacted a client about an issue they hadn’t asked you about, and that conversation ultimately created value for the client or new work for the firm. What made you reach out?”
You’re looking for evidence of curiosity, commercial awareness and initiative—not simply responsiveness.
Ask how they institutionalize relationships
A lateral partner whose clients will only follow the lawyer presents a different risk from one whose relationships have become institutional relationships.
Ask:
“Tell me about a client relationship that started primarily with you but eventually became a relationship with your broader team or firm. What did you do to make that happen?”
This question gets at an issue that has always mattered in lateral recruiting: is the candidate bringing a portable practice, or merely a collection of personal relationships?
And now ask about AI
This is where the questions have changed.
It is no longer particularly useful to ask a lawyer:
“Do you use AI?”
The answer is almost beside the point.
Instead, ask:
“Tell me about a specific legal task or client problem where you used AI and it materially improved the way you practiced.”
Then ask:
“What did you have to do yourself rather than delegate to the technology?”
That second question is critical.
You want to understand whether the candidate views AI as a substitute for professional judgment or as a tool that can enhance it.
You might also ask:
“What is something you deliberately would not delegate to AI, and why?”
Or:
“Tell me about a time when an AI-generated result was wrong, incomplete or misleading. How did you catch it?”
These questions aren’t designed to identify the lawyer who knows the most AI terminology. They’re designed to identify lawyers who understand where technology helps, where it fails, and where professional judgment remains essential.
Ask about the economics of their practice
AI is also changing the economics of legal work.
For a lateral partner, therefore, an important question is:
“Where do you see AI changing the economics of your practice over the next three years?”
And then:
“What are you doing about it today?”
A strong candidate should have some view of how AI may affect staffing, efficiency, pricing, client expectations, leverage, margins and the types of work clients will continue to value.
You don’t necessarily need the candidate to have the “right” prediction. You want to see whether they are thinking ahead.
Don’t overlook the client
Perhaps the most important AI question isn’t about the lawyer at all.
Ask:
“What are your clients asking you about AI?”
If the candidate says clients aren’t asking anything, that’s useful information.
If clients are asking about AI-generated work product, confidentiality, privilege, pricing, efficiency, AI governance or how their outside counsel is using technology, the candidate should be able to explain how those conversations are affecting the relationship.
The best questions create follow-up questions
The temptation in lateral recruiting is to develop a checklist of questions and move through it systematically.
A better approach is to listen for something interesting and dig deeper.
If a candidate says, “I brought in $5 million of new business,” don’t simply write down “$5 million.”
Ask:
“How did you get the first meeting?”
Then:
“Who else was involved?”
Then:
“What did you personally do that made the difference?”
Then:
“How much of that process could another partner on your team replicate?”
The same approach works with AI:
“You said AI saved your team 30 percent of its time. How did you measure that?”
Then:
“What did you do with the time you saved?”
Then:
“Did the client see any of the benefit?”
Those follow-up questions turn an impressive-sounding assertion into something that can actually be evaluated.
The questions are different. The principle isn’t.
The technology may be new. The competitive landscape may be changing. The economics of legal services may be changing. And the way lawyers work may be changing dramatically.
But the fundamental challenge of lateral recruiting remains the same.
Determine what you want to know. Ask a question that requires the candidate to give you evidence. Then keep asking questions until you understand what actually happened.
Don’t just ask candidates what they believe, what they intend to do, or what they think they are good at.
Ask them to tell you what they did!
And in the age of AI, don’t stop at the polished answer. Ask for the example, the decision, the tradeoff, the result—and what the candidate learned from it.
Happy hunting!
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