Market Outlook: Legal Industry in 2021
Legal industry expected to pick up in 2021. The legal market in Hong Kong SAR will likely recover in 2021 as it has remained relatively stable throughout 2020. Businesses and individuals were increasingly engaging professional legal services from private practice due to new employment laws and newly enacted national security law. In response to the global healthcare crisis, most private practices in Hong Kong SAR have adopted a risk-averse attitude towards the business environment in 2020. Employers have tightened their headcount budgets and halted expansion plans to focus on business sustainability, and are only hiring talent to address clients’ needs. However we can see some ease out in hiring activities, as we expect more organisations to expand their legal teams across capital markets, corporate and private equity in 2021. Employers are looking for highly-qualified professionals who have the technical expertise and in-depth knowledge of the local regulations in derivatives, fixed income as well as private equity.