THE CHANGING LEGAL PROFESSION

An Increase in Lawyers

The legal profession under-went major changes in the 1970s. The number of lawyers almost doubled between 1970 and 1980, from 278,000 to 525,000. The number of lawyers relative to the population also increased. In 1970 the United States had one lawyer for every 572 people. In 1980 there was one lawyer for every 418 people, a bigger change than in any other ten-year period. The biggest jump in enrollment in law schools and admission to the bar occurred between 1970 and 1972.

Expansion of Firms

Long-term changes in the practice continued. The percentage of lawyers who practiced by themselves declined from 36.6 percent to 33.2 percent. Overall, the number of lawyers who worked in private law firms declined from 72.7 percent of all lawyers to 68.3 percent. The number of associates, or beginning lawyers, in law firms increased. Overall government employment stayed about the same, and there was a substantial increase in lawyers who worked for local government, from 2.4 percent to 5.6 percent.

Earnings

The substantial increase in the number of lawyers and the number of law-school graduates entering practice kept the average lawyer's earnings down. Measured in constant 1979 dollars, lawyers and judges earned an average of $39,000 in 1969 and only $36,700 in 1979. Earnings varied by the type of practice. Attorneys in firms saw dramatic increases in their earnings. Partners' earnings went from $59,800 in 1971 to $82,900 in 1979. Attorneys practicing on their own went from earning on average about $25,100 in 1971 to about $31,900 in 1979.

Source:

Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 238 (1972).

Background

The 1970s saw an expansion in the number of women in law schools. In 1970 women made up 8.9 percent of the full-time students in law schools approved by the American Bar Association (ABA). In 1980 women constituted 34.3 percent of the students. How-ever, they did not make up as great a part of the profession once they graduated. In 1970 women were about 5 percent of all lawyers; in 1980 they were about 8 percent. People of color, incorporating black, Hispanic-American, Puerto Rican, Asian/Pacific Islander and American Indian, similarly increased their representation in law schools. Those groups made up about 20 percent of the American population. In the 1969-1970 school year they made up 4.3 percent of the student body in ABA-approved law schools. In 1979-1980 they were 8.1 percent of the student body. The increase has not been as rapid since then.

NUMBER OF LAW SCHOOLS AND BAR ADMISSIONS

Year	No. of law schools	Law school admissions	Bar admissions
1970	146	86,028	17,922
1971	147	95,943	20,510
1972	149	105,245	25,086
1973	151	114,800	30,707
1974	154	116,517	33,358
1975	164	122,542	34,930
1976	163	125,010	35,741
1977	168	126,085	37,302
1978	168	126,937	39,086
1979	169	126,915	42,756

Source:

Richard L. Abel, American Lawyers (New York: Oxford University Press, 1989).