The ABA Journal reports on new data showing that US law firms are experiencing new challenges in 2022, as profits fell and costs rose in the first half of the year.

A survey of 120 large, mid-size, and regional firms by Wells Fargo’s Legal Specialty Group showed that, while staff numbers increased by more than 5% in the period, the hours worked by lawyers dropped by 5%.

Joe Mendola (senior director of sales for Wells Fargo’s Legal Specialty Group) told the Reuters news agency that this represented a shift from last year, when law firms needed more staff to deal with a boom in corporate work.

‘Productivity down’

“Fast-forward a year later, and demand has slowed quite a bit,” Mendola told Reuters. “As a result, productivity is down. Over the long term, if that decline becomes protracted, it’s something BigLaw will have to address.”

Wells Fargo also highlighted an increase of nearly 17% in pay for lawyers, and an increase of more than 14% in general expenses, over the past year.

The US findings are in line with recent British figures that appear to show that a surge in demand for legal services has passed its peak.