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Number of lawyers in the U.S. 2007-2019
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Number of lawyers in the U.S. 2007-2019
Number of lawyers in the United States from 2007 to 2019 (in 1,000s)
by E. Mazareanu,
last edited
Aug 9, 2019
How many lawyers are in the U.S.?
The total number of lawyers in the United States has seen little increase in the last few years; in 2019, there were 1.35 million lawyers in the U.S. – virtually unchanged from the previous year, and not much above the 2015 figure of 1.3 million.
Lawyers in the U.S.
Unlike many other common law countries, the United States does not differentiate between lawyers who plead in court and those who do not. For example, in the United Kingdom the former are titled barristers and the latter solicitors. However, in the U.S., terms such as lawyer and attorney can refer to either profession.
Oversupply in the U.S. legal industry
Despite continuous growth of the U.S. legal services market since the great recession, there is an oversupply of lawyers relative to the number of jobs. An overproduction of law graduates is one cause of this oversupply; consequently the number of law graduates shrunk by around a quarter between 2013 and 2017. Increasing automation is another cause, with around half of law firms admitting to replacing human resources with technology in the last two years.
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by E. Mazareanu,
last edited
Aug 9, 2019
How many lawyers are in the U.S.?
The total number of lawyers in the United States has seen little increase in the last few years; in 2019, there were 1.35 million lawyers in the U.S. – virtually unchanged from the previous year, and not much above the 2015 figure of 1.3 million.
Lawyers in the U.S.
Unlike many other common law countries, the United States does not differentiate between lawyers who plead in court and those who do not. For example, in the United Kingdom the former are titled barristers and the latter solicitors. However, in the U.S., terms such as lawyer and attorney can refer to either profession.
Oversupply in the U.S. legal industry
Despite continuous growth of the U.S. legal services market since the great recession, there is an oversupply of lawyers relative to the number of jobs. An overproduction of law graduates is one cause of this oversupply; consequently the number of law graduates shrunk by around a quarter between 2013 and 2017. Increasing automation is another cause, with around half of law firms admitting to replacing human resources with technology in the last two years.
- Show sources information
- Show publisher information
- Release date
- May 2019
- Region
- United States
- Survey time period
- 2007 to 2019
- Supplementary notes
-
Figures have been rounded. Individual state bar associations or licensing agencies were asked to provide the number of resident and active attorneys as of December 31st of the prior year, e.g. 2018 data is as of 12/31/2017. The numbers reflected here are the best available data provided from the respective associations or agencies.
Values have been rounded.
Source
- Show sources information
- Show publisher information
- Release date
- May 2019
More information
- Region
- United States
- Survey time period
- 2007 to 2019
- Supplementary notes
-
Figures have been rounded. Individual state bar associations or licensing agencies were asked to provide the number of resident and active attorneys as of December 31st of the prior year, e.g. 2018 data is as of 12/31/2017. The numbers reflected here are the best available data provided from the respective associations or agencies.
Values have been rounded.
Other statistics on the topic
Legal services industry in the U.S.
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BigLaw firms in the U.S.
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Statistics on "BigLaw firms in the U.S."
- Market overview
The most important statistics
- Size of the legal services market in the United States in 2019 and 2020, by category (in billion U.S. dollars)Size of the legal services market in the U.S. by category 2019-2020
- Size of the legal services market in the United States between 2005 and 2027, by type (in billion U.S. dollars)Size of the U.S. legal services market by type 2005-2025
- Total revenue of the leading law firms in the United States from 2015 to 2018 (in million U.S. dollars)*Revenue of the leading U.S. law firms 2015-2018
- Market share of law firms in the United States in 2000 and 2017, by firm grouping*Market share of law firms in the U.S. by firm grouping 2000-2017
- Number of lawyers in the United States from 2007 to 2019 (in 1,000s)Number of lawyers in the U.S. 2007-2019
- Hourly rates of lawyers in the United States from 2017 to 2019, by greater metropolitan area* (in U.S. dollars)U.S. lawyers' hourly rates by metropolitan region 2017-2019
- Number of law graduates in the United States from 2013 to 2018Number of law graduates in the U.S. 2013-2018
- Share of unemployed law graduates in the United States in the class years from 2013 to 2018Share of unemployed law graduates in the U.S. in the class years 2013-2018
- Leaders
The most important statistics
- Leading law firms in the United States in 2018, by gross revenue (in billion U.S. dollars)Leading U.S. law firms by revenue 2018
- Leading law firms in the United States in 2018, by number of lawyersLaw firms in the United States with the highest number of lawyers in 2018
- Gross revenue of Kirkland & Ellis from 2015 to 2018 (in billion U.S. dollars)Kirkland & Ellis - gross revenue 2015-2018
- Number of lawyers working at Kirkland and Ellis from 2015 to 2018Kirkland & Ellis - number of lawyers 2015-2018
- Gross revenue of Latham & Watkins from 2015 to 2018 (in billion U.S. dollars)Latham & Watkins - gross revenue 2015-2018
- Number of lawyers working at Latham & Watkins from 2015 to 2018Latham & Watkins - number of lawyers 2015-2018
- Baker McKenzie's revenue worldwide from 2016 to 2019 (in billion U.S. dollars)Baker McKenzie: global revenue 2016-2019
- Number of lawyers working at Baker McKenzie from 2015 to 2018Baker McKenzie - number of lawyers 2015-2018
- Technology
The most important statistics
- Top challenges North American law firms are facing in 2018Top challenges of law firms in North America 2018
- Is your firm doing any of the following to increase efficiency of legal service delivery?Methods used by U.S. law firms to increase efficiency of legal services 2017-2019
- How is legal analytics most valuable?Top reasons legal analytics is valuable to U.S. law firms in 2017
- Share of organizations using technology to manage legal disputes in 2018, by technologyTechnology used globally to manage disputes 2018
- Technology concepts likely to increase efficiency in law firms worldwide in 2018Technology concepts likely to increase efficiency in law firms worldwide 2018
- Factors driving the adoption of cloud-based technology by law firms worldwide as of 2018Factors driving cloud technology adoption by law firms worldwide 2018
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Statistics
- Top U.S. law firms with most pro bono hours 2018
- Largest law firms in Canada by number of lawyers 2019
- Washington, D.C. law firms by number of lawyers 2018
- Chicago law firms by number of lawyers 2018
- Reasons why law firms in the U.S. added or lost lawyers in 2015
- New York City law firms by number of lawyers 2018
- Average legal department FTEs working for companies worldwide by industry 2017
- Average attorney headcount at companies worldwide by company size 2017
- Number of lawyers in Hong Kong by profession branch 2018
- Number of staff lawyers providing services for legal aid in Canada 2011-2015
- Distribution of the headcount of the leading global law firms by region 2018
- Legal problems commonly handled outside of the legal system in U.S. 2018
- Corporate legal affairs spending in the U.S. 2001-2014
- Average annual income of attorneys in the U.S. by region 2018
- Unemployment rate of legal professionals in the U.S. Q2 2017
- Number of solicitors in Australia 2011-2016
- Legal activities revenue in Czechia 2014-2022
- Personnel costs of the legal & accounting industry in Denmark 2008-2016
- Personnel costs of the legal & accounting industry in France 2009-2016
- Legal activities revenue in Estonia 2010-2022
Statistics on "BigLaw firms in the U.S. - Market overview"
- Size of the legal services market in the U.S. by category 2019-2020
- Size of the U.S. legal services market by type 2005-2025
- Revenue of the leading U.S. law firms 2015-2018
- Market share of law firms in the U.S. by firm grouping 2000-2017
- Number of lawyers in the U.S. 2007-2019
- U.S. lawyers' hourly rates by metropolitan region 2017-2019
- Number of law graduates in the U.S. 2013-2018
- Share of unemployed law graduates in the U.S. in the class years 2013-2018
Statistics on "BigLaw firms in the U.S. - Leaders"
- Leading U.S. law firms by revenue 2018
- Law firms in the United States with the highest number of lawyers in 2018
- Kirkland & Ellis - gross revenue 2015-2018
- Kirkland & Ellis - number of lawyers 2015-2018
- Latham & Watkins - gross revenue 2015-2018
- Latham & Watkins - number of lawyers 2015-2018
- Baker McKenzie: global revenue 2016-2019
- Baker McKenzie - number of lawyers 2015-2018
- DLA Piper - gross revenue 2015-2018
- DLA Piper - number of lawyers 2015-2018
Statistics on "BigLaw firms in the U.S. - Technology"
- Top challenges of law firms in North America 2018
- Methods used by U.S. law firms to increase efficiency of legal services 2017-2019
- Top reasons legal analytics is valuable to U.S. law firms in 2017
- Technology used globally to manage disputes 2018
- Technology concepts likely to increase efficiency in law firms worldwide 2018
- Factors driving cloud technology adoption by law firms worldwide 2018
Further related statistics
- Top U.S. law firms with most pro bono hours 2018
- Largest law firms in Canada by number of lawyers 2019
- Washington, D.C. law firms by number of lawyers 2018
- Chicago law firms by number of lawyers 2018
- Reasons why law firms in the U.S. added or lost lawyers in 2015
- New York City law firms by number of lawyers 2018
- Average legal department FTEs working for companies worldwide by industry 2017
- Average attorney headcount at companies worldwide by company size 2017
- Number of lawyers in Hong Kong by profession branch 2018
- Number of staff lawyers providing services for legal aid in Canada 2011-2015
- Distribution of the headcount of the leading global law firms by region 2018
- Legal problems commonly handled outside of the legal system in U.S. 2018
- Corporate legal affairs spending in the U.S. 2001-2014
- Average annual income of attorneys in the U.S. by region 2018
- Unemployment rate of legal professionals in the U.S. Q2 2017
- Number of solicitors in Australia 2011-2016
- Legal activities revenue in Czechia 2014-2022
- Personnel costs of the legal & accounting industry in Denmark 2008-2016
- Personnel costs of the legal & accounting industry in France 2009-2016
- Legal activities revenue in Estonia 2010-2022
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