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Finance-related practices in New York saw the highest rates of partner growth last year (up 21%)—a trend that has continued into 2025. This momentum is now filtering down to the associate level, where demand for lawyers who can hit the ground running is stronger than ever.
One of the most prominent legal hiring trends this year is the rise of niche and hybrid finance roles—those sitting at the intersection of capital markets and credit.
As client demands evolve, law firms are expanding their finance teams with lawyers who bring cross-functional expertise. These roles are growing rapidly because they combine transactional strength with regulatory insight—exactly what today's deal environment requires.
Key Areas Driving Demand in Financial Services Legal Recruitment
1. Structured Finance
Lawyers with experience structuring complex transactions across the full spectrum of structured finance—including hybrid structured/leveraged credit facilities, structured private credit transactions, securitizations, and CLOs—are in high demand.
This space continues to be a strong driver of lateral hiring as deal structures become more sophisticated and investor appetite expands across traditional and emerging asset classes.
2. Derivatives
Ongoing market volatility and regulatory change have led to a surge in demand for derivatives lawyers—particularly those advising on OTC and equity derivatives, as well as other structured products.
This is a technically demanding area where legal expertise is critical to both risk management and execution strategy.
3. Financial Institutions Group (FIG), Financial Services, and Bank Regulatory
Lawyers advising across FIG, financial services, and bank regulatory are seeing steady and sustained hiring. The combination of transactional and regulatory expertise is especially valuable in cross-border mandates, where firms are looking to guide clients through complex, evolving frameworks.
4. Private Credit & Direct Lending
Private credit has become a core component of global finance, offering a flexible alternative to syndicated lending—especially in the mid-market private equity space.
Direct lenders are now the preferred option for many sponsors, offering speed, certainty, and flexibility. As a result, AM Law 100 firms are actively hiring into direct lending and private credit teams to support the continued surge in deal flow.
Why These Hybrid Finance Roles Matter for Legal Careers
These roles don’t always sit neatly within traditional law firm departments—but that’s exactly what makes them strategic.
Clients increasingly expect lawyers to advise across capital markets, credit, and regulation, and law firms are responding by building out teams that can bridge these intersecting areas.
For lawyers, these roles offer:
- Access to high-value, cross-border deals
- Opportunities to work directly with financial sponsors and alternative lenders
- Exposure to complex, market-shaping deal structures
Final Thoughts
Law firms are hiring aggressively into niche and hybrid finance roles—particularly across structured finance, derivatives, FIG, and private credit.
If you're a finance lawyer thinking about your next move—or wondering where the market is heading—this is where to focus.
📩 For advice or a confidential conversation, feel free to connect with me directly.
Dom Duchesne
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