A weak recruiter costs a law firm more than a fee. It costs partner time. It costs a shortlist of people who do not fit. Sometimes it costs you a candidate who heard about your role from three directions. This checklist is for the partner, practice manager or HR lead who has to choose.
It covers what to look for, the red flags and what to ask at the first meeting. It also shows how to test an agency on a live role. Most of it works on any agency, ours included.
Why does a law firm need a specialist legal recruiter?#
Because hiring is hard, and an agency that does not know your practice area adds noise. The first two figures are general. The third is about law. Each comes with its caveats.
64%
of UK employers that tried to hire found it hard to attract candidates. CIPD survey of 1,016 UK HR and resourcing decision-makers, April 2024, all sectors.
27%
of those employers reported counteroffers or candidates dropping out after accepting an offer. Same survey.
About 75%
of law firms and in-house legal teams said hiring had been difficult in the previous 12 months. Michael Page research, sample size not stated. Michael Page sells recruitment.
The same Michael Page research, as Legal Futures reported it, listed what made hiring and keeping people hard.
- Work-life balance affecting staff retention57%
- Aligning pay with candidates' expectations52%
- Career progression affecting how long staff stay48%
- Finding candidates with the right skills43%
Source: Legal Futures, 1 November 2024, reporting Michael Page 2025 salary guides
Two of those four are about pay and skills. A recruiter who knows your market can tell you early if your offer sits below it. A generalist may not find out until the offer stage. Keeping people matters too. The 27% above is why a counter-offer can undo a month of work.
What should you look for in a legal recruiter?#
Look for seven things. They are practice-area knowledge, a named contact, a track record you can check, honest screening, careful handling of your name, advocacy and plain talk about the market. You can test each one in a single meeting.
- They know your practice area. Ask what a conveyancer expects from a caseload. Ask how a private client fee earner is measured. A specialist answers with completion, exchange, WIP or PQE, not adjectives.
- You get a named contact. One person who answers. You should know who looks after your role before the meeting ends.
- The track record can be checked. Ask for two clients who will take a call, ideally in your practice area. Ask what was placed and whether the hire stayed.
- Screening is described, not implied. Ask who speaks to each candidate before a CV reaches you. Ask what they check. The REC's guide says permanent recruiters should make clear which checks they will and will not carry out.
- Your name is handled with care. Ask when your firm is named to a candidate. Ask whether the candidate has agreed to be put forward. If the vacancy is confidential, say so.
- They advocate and prepare. A good recruiter briefs the candidate on your team and brings you honest feedback. That saves a second interview round.
- They tell you the truth about the market. If your pay is below what candidates are asking, you should hear it before the search starts. Not after.
A recruiter's own pages show how well they know a field. Compare what an agency says about conveyancing or commercial property with what it says about every other area. If the words could describe any job, the knowledge may be thin.
What are the red flags in a legal recruitment agency?#
The main red flag is a CV before terms. Others are a pile of CVs with no reasons, no references, vague screening and pressure to commit in the first meeting. The table pairs each with its opposite.
What to avoid
- Sends CVs before you have agreed terms.
- Sends a pile of CVs with no covering note.
- Cannot offer a client you can call.
- Talks about the fee and speed before the role.
- Will not say how candidates are screened.
- Asks for sole supplier status at the first meeting.
- Posts your vacancy to job boards without asking.
- Approaches your own staff about other jobs.
What to look for
- Terms in writing before any CV is sent.
- A short list, each with a reason it fits your role.
- Two references who will take your call.
- Starts with the caseload, supervision and pay.
- Names who speaks to each candidate and what they check.
- Asks only after a market read, for one role and a stated period.
- Agrees where and when the role is advertised, and who approves it.
- Agrees in writing not to.
Two of those lines have a source. The REC's guide says adverts must reflect the client's instruction. It also tells members to have a policy on not targeting client companies for search, ideally for 12 months after last providing services. Ask for that in writing. The sole supplier point has its own guide: exclusivity and rebates.
On this siteSee what a bad hire costs your firmThe calculator shows each part of the bill, so you can weigh a fee against it. Nothing you type is sent or stored.Run the numbersWhat should you ask a legal recruiter at the first meeting?#
Ask who will look after your role, who they have placed in your practice area, how they screen and what the terms are. Take the list below. Twelve questions cover most of what goes wrong.
The fee and rebate questions have their own guides. Read how much legal recruitment agencies charge for the published ranges. Read exclusivity and rebates before you sign anything.
How do you test a recruiter with a live role?#
Give the agency one real role you would fill anyway. Brief it in writing. Judge the first shortlist against that brief. A made-up vacancy tells you nothing, but a real one shows how the recruiter works when it matters.
Pick a real role
Choose one you need filled, not a trial vacancy. For a conveyancing role, write the advert first so the brief is clear.
Brief it in writing
Pay, working pattern, caseload, supervision and who the candidate will meet. A vague brief returns a vague shortlist.
Ask for the market read first
What the market holds at your pay, before any CV. Note whether you hear anything you did not want to hear.
Judge the shortlist on fit
Count the CVs that meet the points you set. Three that fit beat fifteen that do not.
Ask what candidates were told
A candidate will tell you how the call went and what was said about your firm.
Decide, then widen or stop
If the first shortlist fits, extend the brief. If it does not, you have lost a week, not a quarter.
Give two agencies the same brief if you can. Do not tell either how the other is doing. Compare the answers, not the speed of the first email.
How do you compare two legal recruiters on more than the fee?#
Put both sets of terms side by side, in writing, and score each on the points below. A lower fee with a short rebate window and a long introduction period can cost more than a higher one. Work both through on one real salary.
| What to compare | Why it matters | How to check |
|---|---|---|
| Practice-area knowledge | Fewer wrong CVs. | Ask for the last roles filled in your area. |
| Named contact | Someone answers. | Note who replies in the first week. |
| Shortlist quality | Interview time saved. | Count the CVs that met your brief. |
| Screening | Fewer wasted interviews. | Ask who speaks to candidates and what they check. |
| Terms in writing | You know the cost and the exit. | Ask for them before any CV, then read them. |
| Rebate window and triggers | Protection if the hire leaves. | See exclusivity and rebates. |
| Candidate care | It reflects on your firm. | Ask candidates how they were treated. |
| Honesty about the market | A failed search costs time. | Note which agency told you something unwelcome. |
Pay is the point candidates raise most, so check how each agency handles it. Why legal job adverts should show the salary explains why it matters.
What does UK law require of a recruitment agency?#
Less than most firms assume. The Conduct Regulations set duties on information, enquiries and confidentiality. The REC Code sets standards for its members. Neither caps what an agency can charge a firm.
The Regulations. The Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003 cover agencies, which find permanent roles. They also cover employment businesses, which supply temporary workers. GOV.UK says the Fair Work Agency enforces them in England, Scotland and Wales. Since 7 April 2026 it has included the former Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate. For a hirer, five points matter.
- Information from you. Before introducing a candidate, an agency must have enough information from you to select a suitable one. For an agency, that includes the minimum pay and other benefits for the role (regulation 18).
- Willingness. It may not introduce a candidate without confirmation that the candidate is willing to work in the position (regulation 19).
- Enquiries. It must take reasonably practicable steps to make sure the placement would not harm either side. For three months after an introduction, it must tell you promptly of information suggesting the candidate is or may be unsuitable (regulation 20).
- Confidentiality. It may not disclose information about a candidate without prior consent, with some exceptions. It may not disclose it to the candidate's current employer without consent (regulation 28).
- Fees. GOV.UK describes fee levels as a commercial agreement between business and hirer. The Regulations do not set the amount.
The REC Code. The Recruitment and Employment Confederation's Code of Professional Practice binds its members. Its principles include honesty and transparency, which covers disclosing fees. They also include confidentiality. The REC's guide to compliance goes further. Members should send terms before providing any services and try to get a signed agreement. For permanent work, terms should be in writing before first providing services. They should cover the type of service, how fees are calculated and how a refund or rebate is worked out. The guide's file properties show October 2020, so check the REC for the current version.
What does Wilson Mannion do before a firm pays anything?#
Two things, both in writing. We give a written market read before a firm pays anything. Terms are agreed in writing before any CV is sent. A named person looks after your role.
The discovery meeting is 30 minutes on Microsoft Teams. Every advert we run shows the pay or earnings basis, the working pattern and the date. No CV goes to a firm without the lawyer's say so. Test us the way you would test anyone, with the checklist above. Our case studies and reviews are public, and the employers page says how the process runs.
On this siteBook a 30-minute discovery meetingBring the twelve questions. You get a written market read before you pay anything.Book a callSources
- GOV.UK: Overview of the Conduct Regulations 2003 (page updated 22 June 2026)
- legislation.gov.uk: The Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003, regulation 18 (information from a hirer)
- legislation.gov.uk: Conduct Regulations 2003, regulation 19 (confirmation about a work-seeker)
- legislation.gov.uk: Conduct Regulations 2003, regulation 20 (protecting the work-seeker and the hirer)
- legislation.gov.uk: Conduct Regulations 2003, regulation 28 (confidentiality)
- REC: Code of Professional Practice
- REC: Code of Professional Practice, guide to compliance (PDF; its file properties show October 2020)
- REC: Complaints FAQs
- CIPD with Omni RMS: Resourcing and talent planning report 2024 (survey by YouGov, April 2024)
- Legal Futures: Most law firms and in-house teams struggling to recruit (1 November 2024, reporting Michael Page research)
This is general information, not legal advice. Where a figure comes from another organisation, the source is above, and we say when it is dated.