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The Shift: Time to Lay Off Lawyers or Scale Up? Big Law Faces Quandary

What a difference just one year makes. At this point last year, law firms were in a hiring frenzy, gobbling up groups of associates because of a deluge of transactional work, including for SPACs, M&A matters, IPOs and real estate deals. Five or even six-figure bonuses were being offered to associates to get them to move—or stay in place without getting recruited.