About

Who We Are

Lateral Link is a global legal recruiting firm headquartered in Los Angeles, California, with a team operating across more than a dozen cities throughout the United States and Asia. Founded in 2006 by Harvard Law School alumnus and former BigLaw attorney Michael Allen, Lateral Link was built on a single conviction: that the best legal recruiters are ones who have actually practiced law.

Today, Lateral Link is widely recognized as one of the industry’s leading legal recruiting firms, with a proven track record of tens of thousands of successful placements across Am Law 200 firms, elite boutiques, Fortune 100 companies, and high-growth global enterprises.

Our Founding and History

Lateral Link was founded in December 2005 and launched operations in 2006 by Michael Allen, a Harvard Law School graduate who began his legal career at two of Los Angeles’ most prestigious firms, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP and Irell & Manella LLP. His experience inside BigLaw gave him a deep, firsthand understanding of what law firms need in a lateral candidate and what attorneys need in a recruiting partner.

That insight became the foundation of Lateral Link’s model: a recruiting firm staffed almost entirely by former practicing attorneys who speak the same language as the candidates and clients they serve.

From its origins as a U.S.-focused associate placement firm, Lateral Link has grown into a global operation with deep reach across every major U.S. legal market and an established presence in Asia, including Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, Singapore, Tokyo, and Seoul, where the firm has been active for more than 18 years and has completed over 600 attorney placements, more than any other recruiting firm in the region.

Leadership

Michael Allen, Founder and CEO

Michael Allen founded Lateral Link after practicing real estate law at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP and Irell & Manella LLP. He graduated summa cum laude from the University of California, San Diego, and earned his J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School. Based in Los Angeles, Michael focuses exclusively on partner and General Counsel placements for top law firms and companies. He is a recognized thought leader in the legal recruiting space and has been quoted by The American Lawyer, Law360, The Daily Journal, CNN, The Wall Street Journal, and Above the Law.

Under Michael’s leadership, Lateral Link has grown from a startup into one of the most recognized and trusted names in legal recruiting, with a team that has collectively transacted over $2 billion in portable partner business.

Our Locations

Lateral Link operates in more than a dozen cities across the United States and Asia, including:

United States: Los Angeles, New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, Washington D.C., Houston, Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, Seattle, and Miami/Florida markets.

Asia: Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, Singapore, Tokyo, and Seoul.

This national and international footprint allows Lateral Link to serve candidates and clients across virtually every major legal market in the world.

What We Do

Lateral Link places attorneys at every level, associates, counsel, and partners, with law firms and in-house legal departments across the globe. The firm operates four primary practice areas:

Lateral Associate Placement

Lateral Link’s regional associate recruiting teams bring deep, market-specific knowledge to every search. Recruiters maintain direct relationships with hiring decision-makers at Am Law 200 firms, regional firms, and elite boutiques, enabling access to opportunities that are never publicly listed.

Partner and Group Placement

Lateral Link’s national partner practice group specializes in placing partners and entire practice groups with Am Law 200 firms and other leading organizations. The team has decades of combined experience moving partners and groups with portable books of business ranging from $2 million to $50 million, and has collectively transacted over $2 billion in overall portable business, as well as consummated two firm mergers.

In-House Placement

Lateral Link’s in-house team places attorneys with corporations ranging from Fortune 500 and private equity firms to entertainment companies and emerging tech startups. The team conducts retained, exclusive, and contingent searches, with a personalized, research-driven approach tailored to each client’s specific needs and culture.

Asia Practice

Lateral Link has been one of the most active legal recruiting firms in Asia for nearly two decades with over 600 placements alone in Asia. Led by Evan Jowers, the Asia team places U.S. trained attorneys and international lawyers at top-tier U.S. and international law firms and corporate in-house departments across Hong Kong, Shanghai, Beijing, Singapore, Tokyo, and Seoul.

Our Differentiator: Recruiters Who Were Attorneys First

The majority of Lateral Link’s recruiters are former practicing attorneys with BigLaw backgrounds. Most have worked at Am Law 100 firms and major in-house legal departments. This is not a detail, it is the foundation of how Lateral Link operates.

Because our recruiters have practiced law themselves, they understand the demands of each practice area, the culture differences between firms, what partnership tracks actually look like from the inside, and what questions candidates should be asking but often aren’t. This background allows Lateral Link to provide genuine career counsel, not just job placement.

For law firms and in-house legal departments, it means Lateral Link recruiters understand exactly what a hiring partner is looking for before the conversation starts.

Our Affiliated Company

Lateral Link’s parent organization also operates Haistack.ai, an AI-driven legal recruiting platform that accelerates lateral hiring for Am Law 200 firms by curating candidate lists, market insights, and recruiter workflows.

Community and Giving Back

Lateral Link and its founder Michael Allen are committed to supporting the next generation of legal professionals. Through a $250,000 commitment from Michael Allen, Lateral Link established the Lateral Link Scholarship Fund at Harvard Law School, an endowed financial aid fund that directs ten percent of fees earned from the placement of Harvard Law School alumni back to current students in the form of financial assistance.

By the Numbers

Founded: 2006

Headquarters: Los Angeles, California

Offices: 12+ cities across the U.S. and Asia

Placements: Tens of thousands of successful placements completed

Partner Business Transacted: Over $2 billion in portable partner business

Asia Placements: 600+ attorney placements across Asia, more than any other recruiting firm in the region

Client Roster: Relationships with nearly every Am Law 200 firm

Work With Us

Whether you are an attorney exploring a lateral move, a law firm building out a practice group, or an in-house legal department looking for your next GC or senior counsel, Lateral Link has the market knowledge, relationships, and firsthand legal experience to help.

All candidate services are provided at no cost to the attorney. Searches are conducted with strict confidentiality, and no information is shared with any employer without the candidate’s explicit consent.

To get started, contact Lateral Link for a confidential introductory conversation.