Leverage Tech to Reduce Mid-Level Law Associate Churn

A recent Forbes article stated that attorney attrition rates are at 80% by the fifth year and that law firms put in an estimated $200,000 per mid-level law associate. If your firm hires ten law associates, and only two stay on after five years, 1.6 million dollars of investments just walked out of your door.

Don’t let attorney attrition be “the cost of doing business.” We break down four main reasons why mid-level law associates leave and how leveraging Metwork, a first-of-its-kind legal software, can help reduce your churn for a minuscule amount of money ($800 a year per associate) compared to the cost of losing them. 

Reason #1: No Mentoring

One of the most significant benefits a new lawyer gains from joining a law firm is mentorship. Learning real-world knowledge from seasoned attorneys accelerates an associate’s career. (Read more about how new lawyers benefit from mentorship.)

While new lawyers aim to gain mentorship experience from within the firm, the docket doesn’t always allow the time and resources needed to help them find their footing. That’s where Metwork comes in. Our mentorship module makes it easy to connect your associates with trusted mentors to boost their experience, knowledge, and confidence without bogging down partners or senior attorneys.  

Enhance your in-house mentorship and leverage your senior attorneys’ knowledge without overtaxing their time by bringing your entire firm onto Metwork. The mentorship module facilitates fluid mentorship within your organization. Senior lawyers at your firm can mentor associates “on the go” from within the app. Easily check in with their mentees and stay up-to-date on progress whenever the time permits. Metwork offers a simple, affordable solution to ensure your associates don’t feel their mentorship is neglected.

Reason #2: Feels Alone

Lawyering is lonely. It’s a grueling industry that chews up attorneys and spits them out. A recent study found that over 60% of lawyers felt the legal profession was a detriment to their mental health. New lawyers often look to join firms to have the community and support system that is hard to find as a solo practitioner.

Law firms have many lawyers and paralegals, but that doesn’t always translate to community. With demanding cases, long hours, and siloed duties, associates often find themselves alone with no one to talk to. Lawyers left adrift see stress levels rise, loyalty suffer, and burnout increase.

While law firms cannot always control how their employees interact, offering a solution to foster a sense of community can be the difference between being one of those firms that only retain 20% of their associates and one that is known as the law firm everyone wants to join. Having a motivated and confident staff leads to better results, happier clients, and more business.

Community is vital to Metwork. Fostering a healthy legal community and leveraging the power of positive relationships push the legal field and your firm forward. All Metwork users have access to discover and join legal associations, join non-case teams to work on problems together and partake in our co-mentorship program (which is like having a gym buddy for lawyering). In addition, we’ll soon release a Community Metlist for users to come together and share knowledge, challenges, and successes together, fostering a stronger legal community. 

Reason #3: Culture Stuck in the Past

Evolving a company culture is always a balancing act. You need to grow enough to attract and retain young talent, but you can’t change so much that you alienate your senior lawyers. Thankfully, it’s not a one or the other situation.

Metwork’s co-founder is Tom Metier, a 40-year veteran of the legal community. One goal of our software is to bridge the generation gap and create a stronger legal community. We do this by leveraging feedback from lawyers from all generations. Our design team created an intuitive, sleek platform that speaks to the techie nature of younger generations while offering an easy-to-use interface anyone can quickly pick up. 

Implementing newer technologies that speak to younger generations is a significant step in moving the company culture forward and promoting an inclusive environment. 

Reason #4: Want the Chance to be a Rainmaker

Becoming a rainmaker can take years of gaining experience, networking, a lot of hard work, and sometimes the luck to be in the room. Many mid-level associates never even get the chance to flex their rainmaking muscles, leaving them feeling dissatisfied and ready to find an opportunity with another firm.

Every associate should have the tools and opportunities to become a rainmaker. Their growth is your growth. Metwork gives them the opportunity to have a seat at the rainmaker table from the comfort of their office. Metwork is uniquely suited to enable every lawyer with the means and opportunities to move from entry-level associate to rainmaker without massive overhead to your firm. 

Leverage Metwork to give your associates the means for mentorship, growth, a sense of community, and the ability to make a difference for your firm. Book a demo today to find out how Metwork can help reduce mid-level law associate churn and enable exponential growth for your firm.

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