In-House Legal Careers: Is it Just a Quiet Phase?

If you are a lawyer in private practice hoping to make the leap in-house, especially into financial services, you may be wondering if the market will ever bounce back. The truth? It’s been a bumpy ride. But despite the gloom, there is still plenty of reason to stay optimistic (and proactive).

Let’s take a quick look at where we are now.

Coming out of the pandemic, the in-house market was booming. Legal teams in banks, insurers, asset managers and fintechs were hiring like mad to catch up with regulatory and commercial demand.

Fast-forward to today, and hiring has stalled at many institutions. Why? Because uncertainty has become the norm. Since 2022, we have had a cost-of-living crisis, energy shocks, geopolitical instability in Ukraine and the Middle East, tech layoffs, and an unpredictable UK and now US political scene.

Every time the market looks like it might stabilise, something else derails the momentum. And as any hiring manager will tell you, uncertainty is the enemy of headcount approval.

A market in flux

According to the latest KPMG and REC UK Report on Jobs, UK businesses have scaled back permanent hiring plans in early 2025 amid continued economic uncertainty. Professional services, legal included, are particularly cautious, with overall vacancy growth slowing and candidate availability increasing due to redundancies and paused recruitment activity.

In-house legal teams are far from idle. In fact, they are busier than ever, especially in financial services, where regulatory obligations continue to mount. But transactional work is still lagging behind, and without the commercial growth to match the regulatory workload and justify hiring, teams are stretched thin.

The result? Legal departments are hesitant to grow, even when they are overwhelmed.

Fintechs, once the go-to for agile legal opportunities, have also taken a hit. Many have scaled back hiring or are only seeking experienced hires who can make an immediate impact. Junior lawyers looking to break in, are finding fewer open doors.

Whilst in private practice, salary wars pushed junior pay through the roof, in-house roles which tend to prioritise work-life balance over cash, haven’t kept up. That salary gap has made the move feel less attractive, especially when hiring isn’t exactly booming. 

Cautious optimism remains

As reported by Reuters on May 11, 2025, UK employers are maintaining a careful approach to hiring amid ongoing economic uncertainties. Surveys indicate that businesses are slowing down their recruitment processes due to subdued economic outlooks and rising wage costs. This cautious stance is particularly evident in sectors like legal and professional services, where hiring remains subdued despite the availability of job seekers.

So… what now?

Yes, the volume of roles is down. No, it is not the worst market we have seen. There are still good jobs out there, but you need a targeted approach.

Here is what we are telling our candidates:

• Don’t spray and pray. A focused application strategy works better than firing off applications to every job going.
• Work with a specialist recruiter who knows your niche (hello!).
• Be decisive. If you are offered something good, take it. Gone are the days of managing multiple offers.

And while other recruiters keep shouting “it’s picking up!” only to backtrack a few weeks later, we’ll be straight with you – it is slow, but steady. And that might actually be a good thing. How many more “uncertainties” can come along after all?

We have been here before (and we will be here again).

May 2025