Law Profits Fall as Hiring Spree Dulls Rates Gain, Report Finds

Law firm profits per equity partner fell nearly 4% last year as the cost of a hiring spree dampened an increase revenue, a Wells Fargo & Co. report found.

Hours billed per lawyer fell 6% to 1,568—the first time the figure fell below 1,600 in the 15 years Wells Fargo has been doing the report. Headcount grew 4.5% after firms hired to cope with a 2021 surge in work, the report said.

“We are concerned about the excess capacity in the industry,” Owen Burman, managing director of the bank’s legal specialty group, said in an interview. “We did see quite ...