ANALYSIS: 2020 Legal Employment Fell Hard—Especially for Women

For those of you still doomscrolling through the news of the week, the latest employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics will offer little respite. Total U.S. nonfarm employment fell in December for the first time since the grinding halt in March and April, finalizing an economic year that sometimes felt more like an eternity.

Employment in legal occupations also fell in December. But this wasn’t the first monthly drop since the recession and pandemic began; instead, the path for legal workers has taken more of an up-and-down course. But the December report does provide an opportunity to take ...