If you’ve got a legal role in your 2026 budget, waiting until January to start your search is already too late. The first week of January is quiet. Everyone’s easing back in. Then the second week hits and BOOM. Every company posts their roles at once. Your ideal candidate is now looking at 15 other opportunities that look just like yours.
Start now. In December.
– Write the job description and get all internal approvals.
– Line up your search partner and give the green light to get started.
– Start seeing resumes while your competition is still out of office.
Let’s be real about timing, your interview process will take a few weeks or more. And if your top candidate is waiting on a year-end bonus (and the good ones usually are), you may be looking at a March or April start date. Getting a head start increases your odds of filling the role before the end of Q1.
So why not control what you can control? Start the search now. Get ahead of the January avalanche. Line up your talent before everyone else is scrambling. The GCs and Legal Ops leaders who move fast get first pick of the market. The ones who wait get what’s left over.
