Hiring good lawyers is one of the most important responsibilities of any law firm. Attorneys are not only responsible for serving clients competently, but also for working collaboratively with staff, colleagues, and leadership. A poor hiring decision can impact morale, client satisfaction, and firm culture far beyond a single case.
In a prior article, I discussed four common tiers into which lawyer candidates often fall:
Tier 1 – Experienced with a good personality: These lawyers have experience in the firm’s practice area and are coachable, adaptable, and good teammates.
Tier 2 – Not experienced, but a good personality: They may lack direct experience in the practice area, but they are coachable, receptive to feedback, and collaborative.
Tier 3 – Experienced, but a poor personality: These candidates have experience but are difficult to work with, resistant to feedback, and poor team players.
Tier 4 – Not experienced and not a good personality: They lack both relevant experience and the temperament necessary to function well within a law firm environment.
As a general rule, law firms should hire only from Tier 1 and Tier 2. Hiring from Tier 3 or Tier 4 often leads to predictable problems—strained internal relationships, unhappy clients, and eventual turnover.
However, beyond these four tiers, there is another category of candidate that deserves special attention.
The “They Can Do the Job” Trap
Some lawyer candidates go beyond having a poor personality. They are simply quirky in ways that disrupt a professional environment. These lawyers often make clients uncomfortable. They make staff uneasy. They do not follow firm procedures, resist structure, and disregard norms that most professionals understand instinctively.
Frequently, these individuals present themselves as experienced lawyers who “just need an opportunity.” In reality, they are often dominant personalities who are seeking employment because they were unsuccessful at prior firms or could not sustain a practice on their own.
When law firms hire these candidates, it is often during periods of urgency: a sudden vacancy, a heavy caseload, or a thin applicant pool. In those moments, decision-makers may rationalize the hire by thinking, “At least they can do the job.”
That reasoning is where firms get into trouble.
The Hidden Cost of the Wrong Hire
Yes, these lawyers are licensed. Yes, they may technically be capable of handling files. But their presence can cause disproportionate damage.
They can alienate clients through poor interpersonal skills. They can disrupt staff and attorney morale. They can resist systems and procedures that keep firms running efficiently. They often become springboard lawyers who leave quickly and attempt to take clients with them. When they depart or are asked to leave, they can also behave unprofessionally.
In many cases, these candidates appear to be Tier 3 lawyers on paper. In practice, their behavior places them below Tier 4 because their oddities and lack of self-awareness create instability that no amount of experience can offset.
The Takeaway for Law Firm Owners
Law firm owners must resist the temptation to hire someone simply because they can do the job. Cultural fit, coachability, and professionalism matter just as much as raw experience.
A bad hire does not merely fail quietly. The wrong lawyer can drive away good employees, frustrate clients, and undermine the systems a firm has worked hard to build.
In law firm hiring, “they can do the job” is not a sufficient standard. Firms that grow sustainably understand that who you hire, and who you avoid, shapes everything that follows.
If you have any thoughts, feel free to share them below.