NALP, Class of 2010 Graduates Faced Worst Job Market Since Mid-1990s:

Standing at 87.6%, the overall employment rate for new law school graduates is the lowest it has been since 1996, when the rate stood at 87.4%. In addition to a lower overall employment rate than that measured for the classes that immediately preceded it, the Class of 2010 employment data reveal a job market with many underlying structural weaknesses, and the employment profile for this class marks the interruption of employment patterns for new law school graduates that have been undisturbed for decades. …

The overall employment rate of 87.6% of graduates for whom employment status was known, however, conceals a number of negative trends in the job market that were first apparent for the Class of 2009, but with the Class of 2010 have become more prominent. For instance, of those graduates for whom employment was known, only 68.4% obtained a job for which bar passage is required. This compares with 70.8% for the Class of 2009 and 74.7% for the Class of 2008 and is the lowest percentage NALP has ever measured.

• ABA Journal, A Record Low for 2010 Law Grads: Only 68% Have Jobs Requiring Bar Passage
• Above the Law, Latest Job Data From NALP Confirm That Class of 2010 Is Lost
• American Lawyer, NALP Report: Law Grad Hiring Reaches Lowest Levels Since 1996
• Philadelphia Business Journal, Job Prospects for Law School Graduates Not Improving Yet