Legal Recruiting Manager

Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP•Chicago, IL

21d•Hybrid

About The Position

Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP is a nationally recognized intellectual property law firm trusted by many of the world’s most innovative companies, research institutions, universities, and entrepreneurs. For more than six decades, we have focused exclusively on IP law—bringing deep technical insight, practical judgment, and exceptional client service to work that helps shape the future of innovation. Our collaborative culture, focused platform, and commitment to excellence allow our professionals to make a meaningful impact every day. We are seeking a strategic, highly organized Legal Recruiting Manager to help drive the firm’s legal talent strategy and deliver an exceptional experience for candidates, summer associates, and new hires. In this visible role, you will partner closely with the Recruiting Committee, Hiring Partner, practice leadership, and Human Resources to identify hiring needs, build strong candidate pipelines, coordinate interviews and offers, and lead the firm’s Summer Associate Program. This is an opportunity to shape how top legal talent experiences Marshall Gerstein from first introduction through onboarding and early integration. This is an excellent opportunity for a recruiting professional ready to grow into a broader, higher-impact role, or for an experienced external recruiter interested in bringing their relationship-building skills and recruiting judgment in-house within a sophisticated law firm environment.

Requirements

At least five years of legal recruiting experience, with a strong understanding of law firm hiring practices and candidate engagement.
Exceptional attention to detail, organization, follow-through, and accuracy.
Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the confidence and professionalism to work effectively with candidates, attorneys, firm leadership, and colleagues at all levels.
Sound judgment, discretion, professionalism, and a demonstrated ability to handle confidential information with care.
Initiative, accountability, adaptability, and the ability to manage multiple projects with shifting priorities and competing deadlines.
A collaborative, service-oriented approach and the ability to work effectively with minimal supervision.
Flexibility to work before or after normal business hours as necessary to support essential department and firm needs.
Bachelor’s degree.

Nice To Haves

Experience with applicant tracking systems and other recruiting software.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, including Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Responsibilities

Lead legal recruiting strategy and execution by partnering with the Recruiting Committee, Hiring Partner, practice leaders, and Human Resources to understand hiring needs and manage the full recruiting lifecycle, including job descriptions, postings, resume review, candidate screening, interview coordination, testing, background and reference checks, offers, and orientation.
Create a standout Summer Associate Program by designing and managing training sessions, program events, workshops, mentorships, feedback surveys, performance reviews, program metrics, and the offer process for summer associates transitioning to full-time roles.
Advance law student recruiting efforts by managing on-campus interview programs, job fairs, employer meet-and-greet events, interview scheduling, start dates, program calendars, and candidate travel or overnight accommodations, as needed.
Champion a thoughtful candidate experience by responding to professional employment inquiries, keeping candidates informed, and ensuring recruiting data is accurate and well maintained.
Support informed hiring decisions by preparing Recruiting Committee agendas and materials that help stakeholders evaluate candidates clearly and efficiently.
Build and manage external recruiting relationships by maintaining connections with legal search firms, identifying potential candidates, and negotiating contract terms, as needed.
Elevate the firm’s recruiting presence by maintaining the firm’s profiles in directories such as NALP and Vault, administering the annual Vault Associate Survey, and serving as the primary contact for law firm surveys requesting recruiting information.
Use data to improve recruiting outcomes by preparing reports and analytics that track recruiting effectiveness and provide meaningful updates to stakeholders.
Deliver a strong onboarding experience by administering orientations for new legal personnel, including technical specialists and interns, patent agents, associates, summer associates, special counsel, of counsel, and new non-equity partners.
Contribute to broader talent initiatives by supporting related projects and performing other duties as required and assigned.