Behind the December Dip: Where In-House Legal Demand Persisted in London

December - A Predictable Year-End Slowdown

The London in-house legal job market eased slightly in December, with 192 new roles advertised directly by organisations on LinkedIn. As expected for the final month of the year, activity dipped from November’s levels, most likely reflecting seasonal slowdowns rather than any structural shift in demand.

Despite the reduction in headline volume, December’s data reinforces a familiar theme seen throughout 2025: whilst the market may not be as busy as previous years the areas where inhouse lawyers are most in demand continue to be technology, financial services, and key consumer-facing sectors.

Headline Breakdown:

The distribution of roles across the three headline groups remained broadly consistent with recent months:

• Commerce & Industry: 117 roles (61%) – continuing to dominate the market and accounting for nearly two-thirds of all new opportunities.

• Financial Services: 64 roles (33%) – softer than November but still a significant contributor given the time of year.

• Government & Not-for-Profit: 11 roles (6%) – quieter, though consistent with typical December patterns.

Chart of new London inhouse roles advertised directly by organisations on LinkedIn

Sector Leaders: Technology Holds the Crown, Consumer & Media Stay Active

Technology – 43 roles

Technology remained the single largest hiring sector in December, comfortably leading the market for another month. While volumes softened slightly from November, tech continues to demonstrate remarkable consistency as a source of in-house legal demand. Ongoing work around AI deployment, platform scaling, data governance, and commercial contracting continues to be driving many of the roles.

Sports, Media & Entertainment – 18 roles

After a standout November, Sports, Media & Entertainment remained highly active into year-end. Streaming platforms, content producers, gaming businesses, and sports organisations all continued to invest in legal capability, making this one of the most resilient non-financial sectors in the December data.

Retail & Consumer Goods – 17 roles

Retail and consumer businesses were another notable contributor, reflecting a peak in legal demand, at the same time as their peak trading season.

Financial Services: Banking Reasserts Itself

Although overall financial services hiring slowed, banking emerged as the leading financial sub-sector in December:

• Banking: 28 roles – the strongest banking month since early autumn.

• Fintech, Crypto & Payments: 17 roles – still a strong showing, though slightly cooler than recent peaks.

• Insurance: 9 roles – steady and consistent with late-year norms.

• Asset Management: 9 roles – moderate but stable activity across funds and investment managers.

Broader Commerce & Industry Highlights

Beyond technology and media, a wide range of sectors contributed meaningfully to December’s total:

• Real Estate & Construction: 9 roles – consistent demand across development, infrastructure, and property businesses.

• Healthcare & Lifesciences: 8 roles – stable hiring across pharma, biotech, and healthcare providers.

• Energy & Infrastructure: 6 roles – quieter than November but still present, reflecting longer-term project pipelines.

Chart of London inhouse roles (by sector) advertised by organisations directly on LinkedIn

December’s figures point to a controlled and seasonal slowdown rather than a market retreat. While overall volumes dipped, the underlying distribution of roles remains healthy and well-spread across sectors that have driven demand throughout 2025.

Technology continues to anchor the market, financial services remains structurally important, and consumer-facing and media businesses are demonstrating surprising resilience. Taken together, the data suggests that the London in-house legal job market enters 2026 on relatively solid footing, with many indicators pointing toward renewed momentum once hiring budgets reset in the new year.

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