Ten Predictions for the Legal Job Market in 2026 | TruLegal

Ten Predictions for the Legal Job Market in 2026

A message from our Founder & CEO Jared Coseglia:

Exciting news — I’ve published a new article on Legaltech News / LAW.com: “Ten Predictions for the Legal Job Market in 2026.”

After closely tracking how AI is reshaping the legal ecosystem over the last three years, I outline what legal professionals should anticipate in 2026—whether they’re hiring, job searching, or simply trying to stay ahead of rapid change. The big theme is clear: AI is no longer on the sidelines of the legal job market—its impact is now measurable, and it’s accelerating.

Here’s the full list, counted down - but the article dives much deeper into the data behind the trends and prophecies:

1. Legal pros with AI skills will see disproportionately higher raises.
2. AI-enabled legal talent will command a premium in compensation at the point-of-hire.
3. The AI legal software marketplace will become polarized with clear leaders and laggards.
4. The rate of change will slow for early AI adopters and accelerate rapidly for new entries.
5. Lack of AI regulation will shift the value of privacy leaders from compliance to business enablement.
6. Legal operations teams will grow almost entirely through flex talent acquisition.
7. Corporations will hire e-discovery professionals in-house at the largest rate in the history of the profession.
8. Law firms will continue to hire more e-discovery professionals than vendors.
9. Specialist versus generalist legal jobs will become more polarized and defined.
10. Legal job interviewers will ask new, unexpected questions from job seekers.
    
    

This is my 14th year publishing a “Top Ten” list with LAW.com, and, unlike years past, these predictions touch nearly every corner of the legal job market—while still including notable nods to the specialized communities TruLegal has long served.

Read the article on LAW.com here:
https://www.law.com/legaltechnews/2026/01/27/ten-predictions-for-the-legal-job-market-in-2026/

I welcome feedback, and I encourage readers to share the article with trusted colleagues who are hiring, exploring career moves, or building AI-forward legal teams.

-Jared

About TruLegal

TruLegal (formerly TRU Staffing Partners) is a globally recognized, award-winning staffing agency specializing in representing AI-enabled talent for modern legal teams. With a network of relationships reaching over 100,000 legal professionals across 75+ countries, TruLegal has successfully placed thousands of attorneys, legal operations, litigation & eDiscovery, data privacy, cybersecurity and other legal professionals who focus on the intersection of technology and the law. For over fifteen years, TruLegal has provided flexible contract talent, direct hire contingency staffing, and executive level search services to the Fortune 1000, AmLaw 200, and the community of providers that support the legal industry.

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