Understanding the Layoff Trends in Tech: What Job Seekers Need to Know
Clifford Chance, one of the largest international law firms, announced last year it was cutting jobs, citing increased adoption of AI tools, per the Financial Times. A major 2025 legal market report found firms have "reduced the pace" of associate hiring or cut the size of summer associate programs — the high-paid internships used to wine and dine potential associates later. What they're saying: Nik Guggenberger, a University of Houston Law Center professor, tells Axios that junior work has always served two purposes: billing and training. "If more and more of that work that trains junior associates is being automated, then there's no real material anymore for them to train on." Guggenberger said if the profession moves to partners and AI agents, it becomes very hard to break in. [...] Firms are racing to "extract the knowledge of their lawyers" and embed it in AI workflows, client portals and self-service tools, Stanford Law professor David Freeman Engstrom tells Axios. That could mean "getting ready for a world in which you need fewer human lawyers," he said. Yes, but: Tiffany J. Tucker, assistant dean for career development at the University of Houston Law Center says AI may create new legal jobs rather than erase entry-level ones. Students with AI skills are becoming "the more attractive candidates," she said. "If you don't have prowess using AI, you're going to be left behind." Engstrom said AI also may allow for new legal business to emerge for needs not met currently. [...] State of play: Firms are not just experimenting with AI — they're restructuring around it. Major firms use AI for research, litigation prep, document review and case law. Judges themselves are beginning to use AI tools for drafting and summarizing opinions. Zoom in: A&O Shearman and Harvey announced AI agents for complex legal workflows, to be used internally and sold to clients and other law firms. Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison began testing AI tools like Harvey across its lawyers in 2023 and has since embedded them into everyday legal work, from drafting to document analysis. Friction point: Some major firms are already adjusting their headcounts as the "efficiency paradox" takes hold. AI speeds up work, reducing the need for billable human hours.
