The world’s legal market continued on its upward path last year. Given the sluggish growth, at best, of the globe’s major economies and the ongoing economic uncertainty surrounding some members of the European Union, that in itself should be considered some achievement. Total revenues for the world’s 100 largest law firms grew by just over $3 billion last year, hitting $85 billion, up from $81.9 billion in 2011. Total lawyer numbers also grew by a shade under 4,000 to reach 108,378, a year-to-year increase of 3.8 percent.
On the downside, that growth in revenues represents a slowdown from 2011, when the cash pile for the top 100 grew by 6.8 percent. Productivity stalled, as average revenue per lawyer—our most reliable measure of the legal sector’s health—was flat ($784,297 in 2012, compared to $784,419 in 2011).
