FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE THE COWEN GROUP REPORTS JOB GROWTH AND STRONG SALARIES IN LEGAL TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY DESPITE THE LEGAL SECTOR LOSING JOBS OVERALL
Litigation support positions grew 25 percent in 2007 and are projected to grow another 20 percent in 2008
NEW YORK - June 10, 2008 - The Cowen Group (CowenGroup.com), a leading search firm specializing in the legal technology market, today reports the number of litigation support positions are on the rise, and salaries for this market are projected to rise by year end to be in line with the demand for talent. This report comes out at the same time the U.S. Department of Labor Statistics reports that the U.S. legal service sector has lost 9,700 jobs since a year ago and 4,200 in the last six months.
The Cowen Group researches top law firms, corporations and vendors in this space for their annual Salary Survey. This survey will be published by region throughout the year with a full report coming out at the end of the year that will contain all the salary data, comprehensive job descriptions as well as industry growth trends.
"Despite deep and ongoing layoffs in many other industries and the legal sector at large, our research shows job growth in the legal technology market has remained strong," stated David Cowen, president of The Cowen Group. "From 2006 to 2007, the number of litigation support job openings grew 25 percent nationwide. So far this year, the East Coast is up 15 percent, Chicago is up 10 percent, Texas is up 35 percent and the West Coast is up 10 percent."
The research for the Salary Survey also shows that most large firms are actively backfilling litigation support positions plus adding to staff while small and mid-sized firms are rapidly adding these litigation support roles for the first time.
"Despite this increase in demand for talent, salaries are holding steady and remain in line with what they were a year ago," continued Cowen. "However, we project that as the economy picks back up, new litigations get started and the corporate market engages, salaries will begin to rise noticeably by year end."
According to The U.S. Department of Labor, 1.17 million people, or less than one percent of the U.S. job market overall call themselves legal service employees which they classify as lawyers, paralegals, librarians, and secretaries.
More information on the Salary Survey can be found on The Cowen Group Web site (CowenGroup.com) and blog (OpportunityKnocksBlog.com).
About The Cowen Group
The Cowen Group (CowenGroup.com) was founded in 2004 and is a New York-based search firm specializing in the placement of experienced professionals in all areas of the legal technology industry, including e-discovery, litigation support, practice management, and computer forensics across the United States and Europe.
Contact:
Nicolle Martin
Edge Legal Marketing 952-447-1188 nmartin@edgelegalmarketing.com
