The title is the first thing that popped into my head; it may be a dig at Obama, or maybe just frustration.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics has updated its industry projections through 2020. Let's cut to the chase and say that the outlook for lawyers sucks.
The table below is from a search I ran. The "Total Employment" is all lawyers and the "Legal Services" is, I believe, law firms. If I find differently then I'll update the post.
There will be an increase of 73,600 lawyer jobs between 2010 and 2020, during which time probably 450,000 people will graduate from law school and perhaps 200,000 will leave the "profession." The report doesn't touch on the quality of the jobs, treating a Cravath partnership-track position the same as doc review in a boiler room; however, I'm ASSuming the BLS took automation into account and its deleterious effect on low-end legal work.
You can see the data for yourself at http://data.bls.gov/oep/nioem/empiohm.jsp. Then, get your seat deposit in at Rutgers-Camden Rowan.
| Industry | 2010 | Projected 2020 | Employment change | ||||
| Title | Code | Employment | % | Employment | % | Total | % |
| Total employment | TE1000 | 728,200 | 100 | 801,800 | 100 | 73,600 | 10.1 |
| Legal services | 541100 | 368,200 | 50.6 | 389,800 | 48.6 | 21,600 | 5.9 |
The BLS report notes that this prognostication is based on long-term structural change to the economy. Of course, this will not preclude the law school pigs from ignoring this data - or blaming this on the "current state of the economy."
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