Haley Voll
Founder & Partner
Legal Recruiting · District of Columbia
The the District of Columbia lateral market, in the numbers firms publish.
We track every opening the District of Columbia law firms post publicly, and the salary ranges they publish with them. Here is what the market looks like right now, and what it means if you are weighing a move.
Open demand
What the District of Columbia firms are hiring for today
Openings posted publicly by law firms with the District of Columbia offices (July 2026). Postings only show you the visible market; many searches, especially at partner level, never get posted at all.
1,036
Open law-firm postings
529
Attorney roles (associate)
262
Litigation openings
The rare market where IP demand rivals litigation. Washington is not a litigation-first market the way most states are: intellectual property openings nearly match litigation, a signature of the patent bar and the regulatory agencies clustered here. Corporate demand runs deep too, and posted ranges sit at the top of the national scale.
Source: Voll Recruiting analysis of publicly posted law-firm openings, July 2026.
Practice areas
Where the demand concentrates
Posted openings by practice area. If your practice sits in a deep column, you have options; if it sits in a thin one, timing and positioning matter more, and that is exactly the situation a recruiter earns their keep in.
Litigation
262 openings
Corporate / transactional
164 openings
Intellectual property
227 openings
Source: Voll Recruiting analysis of publicly posted law-firm openings, July 2026.
Published pay
What the District of Columbia postings are offering
Salary ranges taken directly from current public postings. Ranges like these are the floor of a negotiation, not the ceiling; knowing where a specific firm actually lands is the part we do for a living.
| Role | Firm · location | Experience | Posted range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life sciences licensing associate | Goodwin Procter · Washington, DC | 3 to 5 years | $260,000 – $365,000 |
| Capital markets associate | Morrison Foerster · Washington, DC | 1 to 3 years | $225,000 – $260,000 |
Source: Salary ranges published in public law-firm job listings, July 2026.
The part postings can't show you
The best the District of Columbia moves are rarely the posted ones.
A posting tells you a seat exists. It does not tell you which groups are quietly building, which firms flex on class year, or where your book and background put you at the front of the line. That is the read we give every the District of Columbia attorney we work with, confidentially, before anything is sent anywhere.
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Recruiters who work this market every day
One conversation tells you what your options in the District of Columbia are actually worth.
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Even if the timing isn't now, a confidential conversation tells you what your options are worth. No pressure, no spam. Just market intel.