Employment Law Partner Laterals: Portable Business Guide

Dear Thomas X.,

Your Roadmap to Employment Partner Lateral Success

If you're considering a return to firm life as an employment partner, here's the step-by-step playbook for evaluating and positioning your portable business:

Step 1: Benchmark Your Target Revenue Range

For most employment practices, firms expect:

Revenue expectations typically vary widely by firm and market, but partners generally need substantial portable business - often in the seven-figure range for larger firms. Specific requirements vary significantly by firm size and market.

However, these numbers shift dramatically based on your specialization. California PAGA expertise or wage-hour class action experience may reduce business requirements due to high demand, though specific thresholds vary by firm. The 2024 PAGA reforms (AB 2288/SB 92) introduced cure opportunities and manageability requirements, though demand for PAGA expertise remains strong (verify current requirements as implementation continues to evolve).

Step 2: Audit Your Relationship Portfolio

Your in-house experience actually provides unique advantages. Map out your potential business sources:

1. Former colleagues who've moved: HR executives sometimes move between companies and may maintain counsel relationships
2. Industry connections: Charlotte's significant financial services sector creates employment law opportunities
3. Vendor relationships: Companies you've worked with as outside counsel on specific matters
4. Professional networks: Bar associations, HR executive groups, compliance organizations

Use our partner portable book calculator to estimate potential annual revenue from each relationship.

Step 3: Leverage Market Timing and Geography

Charlotte has seen growth in its legal market, and several firms have employment practices in the region. Market conditions may affect how flexible firms are on requirements, though this varies by practice area and timing.

Your timing is particularly strong because:

• Financial services employment work may be active in markets with major bank presence
• Fintech and healthcare sectors are creating new employment law challenges
• Many firms are recruiting employment partners from higher-cost markets like DC and NYC

Step 4: Position Your Specialized Knowledge

Eight years in-house gives you something many firm partners lack: deep understanding of how companies actually make employment decisions. This translates into several positioning advantages:

Preventive counseling expertise: You understand compliance programs, training initiatives, and policy development from the client side. This knowledge often converts into higher-margin advisory work rather than just litigation defense.

Cross-selling opportunities: Your corporate background means you can identify when employment issues connect to M&A due diligence, securities compliance, or governance matters.

Step 5: Structure Your Business Development Plan

Before approaching firms, create a realistic 24-month business development projection:

1. Immediate pipeline (0-6 months): Matters you could realistically bring from current relationships
2. Medium-term targets (6-18 months): Prospects requiring cultivation but with strong connection potential
3. Long-term growth (18+ months): New market development and referral network expansion

Some firms may consider candidates with lower immediate business if they show strong growth potential, though requirements vary significantly.

Step 6: Consider Alternative Partnership Tracks

Not every employment partner needs massive portable business on day one. Several alternative paths exist:

Income partner positions: Some firms offer income partnerships with lower business requirements but participation in firm profits.

Practice group integration: Joining an existing employment team where your in-house experience adds value to the group's collective business development.

Industry specialization: Focusing on specific sectors (financial services, healthcare, technology) where your background provides competitive advantages.

Making Your Move With Confidence

Employment law firms may value candidates with combined firm and in-house experience. Your combination of firm experience and in-house perspective positions you well for partnership discussions, even if your portable business isn't at traditional Big Law levels.

Focus on firms where your industry knowledge and relationship network align with their client base. In Charlotte's market particularly, firms value partners who understand the local business community and can grow practices organically rather than just bringing immediate revenue.

The key is approaching the right firms with a realistic but compelling business development story. Your in-house experience isn't a limitation—it's a differentiator that smart firms will recognize and value.