An Insight Into North Dakota’s Legal Job Market
The North Dakota legal job market is among the most lucrative in the Midwest, boasting high salaries, low competition, and thousands of opportunities. Employment prospects for lawyers who are licensed in North Dakota are considered "very good," while prospects for those who are not licensed are rated as "excellent."
Very good
North Dakota has some of the highest salaries in the U.S. for lawyers and judges. For example, median annual salaries are $66,810 for judges and $80,200 for lawyers. The North Dakota bar exam is a two-day exam that incorporates the Multistate Performance Test (MPT), the Multistate Bar Exam (MBE), and North Dakota law. Applicants are required to submit their applications 90 days prior to the bar exam. First-time test-takers have a 76% chance of passing the exam, while repeat applicants have a 37% chance of passing.
Very few lawyers practice in North Dakota’s vast rural areas, and over 40% of the state’s lawyers are female . The state also has almost no criminal lawyers, with just eight public defenders statewide.
Employment of lawyers in North Dakota is projected to grow 5.8% over the next five years, while the overall job rate for lawyers nationwide is expected to increase 4% over the same period. The Bismarck-Mandan metropolitan area offers the most available jobs for lawyers in North Dakota, with 590 jobs, followed by Fargo at 580 jobs and Grand Forks, Mandan, Jamestown, and Minot each having roughly 200 jobs available for lawyers.
Industries With The Most Available Legal Jobs in North Dakota
The "other legal services" industry accounts for the majority of jobs in North Dakota. Approximately 2,890 jobs are expected to be added by 2021, while 140 jobs are expected to be added in the "legal services" industry, which includes law firms and title insurance. Finally, 30 jobs are expected to be added in "management of companies and enterprises."
Leading Legal Employers in North Dakota
North Dakota offers an interesting mixture of law firms, corporations, non-profit organizations and government agencies that actively recruit and employ legal professionals. Not only will you find larger law firms in North Dakota cities like Fargo and Bismarck, but North Dakota is also home to several Indian Nations, Native American entities, and corporations that hire attorneys to join their corporate legal departments. Government agencies and non-profit organizations that offer legal services to the public also focus their recruitment efforts in key North Dakota cities.
The largest law firms in the state of North Dakota are located in its largest metropolitan area, Fargo. Fritz Legal Group, P.C., McDougal, McCarty & Dersham, P.C., Murphy, Goldammer & Prendergast, LLP and Serkland Law Firm, Prof. are all highly ranked in the latest Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business guide. zoglaw is a highly regarded firm based in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Along with its affiliate Cheadle Law Firm LLC, this multi-office firm is one of the largest in the Northern Plains.
Also based in Fargo are the General Counsel Offices for Aldevron, Bobcat Company, Bobcat Company and Bobcat Company. Bobcat Company and Doosan Infracore America Corp. are both Doosan Companies. Frank Law Firm, P.C. is one of the most prominent law firms in the state. Other recognized law firms in North Dakota include Pringle & Herigstad and Larson Latham Huettl LLP, both located in Minot, North Dakota. Besides law firms, there are many companies that hire attorneys in North Dakota. Hytorc is a leading pioneer in hydraulic torque wrench technology for the industrial bolting industry. Bobcat Company is another industrial company that produces its own heavy equipment. One of the oldest companies in North Dakota is Dakota Gasification Company, which began its operations in 1988 and is a subsidiary of the Basin Electric Power Cooperative.
Native American tribes are also major employers of legal professionals in North Dakota. The Spirit Lake Nation is a federally recognized tribe with its headquarters in Fort Totten, North Dakota. Standing Rock Siouxs Tribe, Fort Yates is an Indian Reservation in the Lakota U.S. Congressional District. The Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate Agency is located in Agency Village, South Dakota, which is on the border of North Dakota and South Dakota. The Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation is a confederation of three Minthorn or A’aniih tribes and two Assiniboine tribes. Fort Berthold Indian Reservation is located in Mandaree, North Dakota.
In addition to corporations and Indian Nations, non-profit organizations in North Dakota also seek to hire attorneys. Equal Justice Works was founded in 1986 by leading public interest lawyers, Washington, D.C. insiders and philanthropists who were committed to developing the next generation of public interest attorneys. Habitat for Humanity Minnesota is a non-profit organization housing giant that partners with Habitat for Humanity International. Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid is a non-profit law firm dedicated to fighting for economic, racial and social justice in legal and administrative proceedings.
Legal Specialties in High Demand
North Dakota’s economy, buoyed by its energy sector, real estate development, and ag innovations, has resulted in a high demand for attorneys across a broad spectrum of practice areas. The Fargo-Moorhead area, which is one of the state’s largest legal markets, alone has over 200 attorneys. Eleven years of continuous population growth since 2007 has necessitated a variety of legal specialists, including in the corporate, employment, taxation, personal injury, and family law. Other areas showing strong demand include insurance and real estate law as well as estate planning, such as wills, trusts, powers of attorney, and advance medical directives.
Corporate law in particular is showing up in numerous small- and medium-sized firms in Bismarck, Minot, and Grand Forks, among other places besides Fargo-Moorhead, indicating a statewide interest in the discipline. Companies in nearly all sectors require corporate legal services that cover issues ranging from initial incorporation and ongoing general advice to mergers and acquisitions to IP protection.
Tax and estate planning attorneys are also in demand as individuals and families plan for retirement, transfer wealth to heirs, and structure living and charitable trusts. While many lawyers handle these matters, specialized tax and estate planning law firms in Fargo and Bismarck focus exclusively on these issues, periodically hiring new attorneys to expand their practices.
As companies continue to relocate to North Dakota or open offices within the state, including international corporations, there’s strong demand for immigration and visa legal specialists. These lawyers provide services that include obtaining immigrant visas for foreign employees, family-based petitions for alien relatives, citizenship applications, deportation and removal proceedings, waivers of inadmissibility, and adjustment of status.
Requirements for Obtaining Legal Employment
We noted earlier how the North Dakota Bar Examination is perhaps one of the toughest in the country. Passing the North Dakota Bar Exam is essential to being admitted to the state bar and thus being sworn in to practice law.
While in most states, you can do internships and if you don’t pass the bar, still be permitted to practice law, ND has an extremely stringent bar exam and they will not let you practice until you pass it. The applicants for the State Bar Exam must already be graduates of a law school approved by the North Dakota Supreme Court, or the applicant must have completed at least 4 years of study with a lawyer in the office of a North Dakota lawyer, and the applicant must have received training in Civil Law in addition to Common Law. Some of the things you can do with a legal degree are:
• Adopted in 1992, the North Dakota Bar Exam is not simply a formality, but is an actual test of your aptitude and ability in the area of law.
• Law students can also set up a legal research business for local lawyers or try their luck as paralegals to gain exposure to the types of work they could do.
• Law students can even be hired on for internships with the state’s top law firms and even some government related offices.
• In the field of public law, internships offer invaluable opportunities to gain experience in legislative drafting, political writing, administrative rule writing, and public law research.
• Internships offer practical hands-on training through legal internships, externships, and co-op opportunities at all post-secondary levels.
Expected Earnings in the Legal Industry
Like other industry trends in North Dakota, the legal job market is on the rise. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts above-average demand for lawyers continuing through 2024. Employment in this sector is already growing faster than national averages, with a 9 percent growth rate expected between 2016 and 2026. While the state’s expansive growth in oil extraction is the most common media reference when discussing economic opportunity in North Dakota, the state also has other opportunities for local and national businesses to start or continue their success, and the field of law is no exception.
Lawyers aren’t the only legal professionals in demand. The state also has significant legal job openings for paralegals, judges, and mediators. For those considering entering the legal field or relocating to North Dakota to pursue legal employment, salary expectations are an important consideration.
An average lawyer makes $79,660 a year, while the highest 10 percent bring in over $169,000 a year. In North Dakota, the average lawyer salary is already higher than the national average at $89,350, and already closer to the highest-earning segment of legal professionals. The highest-paid 10 percent of lawyers in North Dakota bring in $179,570 a year, according to calculations by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Paralegals, lawyers’ assistants, and legal secretaries are in demand as well. The median salary across all legal occupations in North Dakota is $56,730, with the highest-paid 10 percent earning over $100,000 a year. Paralegals make up the highest proportion of legal occupations in North Dakota and earn an average of $51,050. Legal secretaries make around $45 , 210 a year.
Other legal professionals such as public defenders and judges are also in demand and bring in a higher-than-average salary, though these professions comprise a much lower concentration of the overall legal workforce in the state. In North Dakota, judges earn an annual average salary of $113,610. Public defenders make an average of $69,510.
Factors that determine whether you’ll earn more or less than the average salary for your profession.
Location: Where you live can affect your salary. Metropolitan areas pay significantly more than rural areas, with rural confines even bringing in lower numbers. For instance, lawyers employed in Willston, ND bring in an annual mean salary of $56,420 but Timnewak, another largely rural area of North Dakota, brings in an even lower mean salary of $48,940.
Industry: Several jobs within the legal field have higher-than-average salaries, depending on the industry you work in and the demand for the position. Healthcare lawyers, for instance, tend to make higher salaries than other types of lawyers.
Experience: Naturally, the more experienced you are, the more you can expect to earn. While a recent graduate lawyer can expect to make around $64,270, an experienced lawyer with over 20 years under his or her belt can earn an average of $132,880 annually.
Education and credentials: The higher your degree, the more you can expect to earn. But advanced degrees aren’t always required for lawyers. Registered nurses with a law degree and paralegals with a bachelor’s degree can earn high salaries. Is a law degree worth the money? It depends on where you go to school, how well you do, and what field you choose to work in.
How To Secure a Legal Job in North Dakota
While exploring legal jobs in North Dakota, you may feel like you’re opening a treasure chest of opportunities. In addition to its growing economy, the legal sector is also expanding with a number of highly awarded law firms. Finding a position that fits your skills and your personal values may be just a matter of doing some research and networking.
When applying, take care to read up on what kinds of cases the firm or company takes and how they view themselves as an organization. If you are passionate about a certain practice area or even a type of legal organization, read the job postings carefully and only apply for the positions that actually fit your interests. When you tailor what you write to the body of the company, you demonstrate that you’re invested in what they do and you can see yourself there in the future.
Likewise, when you apply, be very specific about how your experiences and your interests have prepared you for the position in question. Many hiring groups will offer a "cut-and-paste" approach to scanning resumes, so if you have much to offer that you haven’t yet mentioned, be sure to document it in detail. It’s important to be concise, but it’s also important not to be vague. When in doubt, include something else that you think is relevant and allow them to decide whether or not it matters, rather than leaving it out.
Networking is always one of the best ways to raise your profile in a niche field, but it can seem like an intimidating endeavor. Reach out to those in your community that you already know and see if they are aware of any openings that might be a good fit for you. While you are out, consider stopping in and introducing yourself to other attorneys, judges, or people in the field. They may be able to suggest someone who they believe might be a good fit for the job you are after. Some law schools might actually offer networking seminars as well, so it’s worth checking to see if you can take advantage of them while you attend. If you’re still enrolled, check to see if there are any career fairs happening on campus.
Emerging Challenges for the Legal Sector in North Dakota
While there are ample, if not excessive, opportunities for legal jobs in North Dakota in terms of sheer numbers, those looking to work in the state must prepare themselves for the realities of the legal profession in North Dakota. Like many industries in this state, the legal industry is concentrated in larger cities and relatively low numbers of lawyers exist elsewhere. For those in search of legal job opportunities wanting to live in a rural area, opportunities will be difficult to find; as of 2011, the American Bar Association had recorded only 94 legal jobs in Williston, ND and just 25 in Devils Lake. Historically, and perhaps unfortunately, the legal profession has tended to conform to the economic model of the area it serves; in short, where there are few businesses or industries, there are fewer legal jobs . Many small towns in North Dakota have been experiencing a steady out-migration of families which impacts the number of available legal jobs; conversely, those looking to fill legal jobs in North Dakota may not find it challenging to fill openings. Competition for North Dakota legal jobs is also keen; expectations of lawyers in North Dakota are increasingly in line with larger states and their population centers. For new lawyers in North Dakota, legal jobs are typically offered to those who are willing to work long hours for modest pay. In the private sector, potential employers are looking for attorneys who bring experience in specialized practice areas, so college graduates and law school graduates taking positions in government legal jobs in North Dakota may have an advantage.