Specialty leaderboard · Updated Nov 11, 2026

Legal recruiters, Boston

Fee models, from the firms' own websites: 2 hybrid. Together they advertise 323 open roles.

Legal firms ranked

Legal recruiting firms in Boston, ranked within the specialty
Rank	Firm	Focus	Fee model	Terms	Open roles	Index score
01	Gillard Associatessince 1980	Permanent and contract attorney, paralegal and legal secretarial recruitment	Not stated	Not disclosed	24	82.3
02	Ave Staffingsince 2016	Law-firm attorneys, paralegals and professional support staff	Not stated	Not disclosed	29	81.7
03	New England Legal Searchsince 1982	—	Not stated	Not disclosed	106	67.3
04	CB Consulting Groupsince 2019	—	Not stated	Not disclosed	9	58.8
05	JOHNLEONARD	—	Not stated	Not disclosed	90	53.0
06	Prime Headhunting & Recruiting	Executive search and direct hire for legal professionals, business leaders and corporate support roles.	Not stated	Not disclosed	12	50.5
07	King & Bishop	—	Not stated	Not disclosed	48	42.2
=08	Elevate Mestelsince 1987	Attorney, partner, counsel and practice-group recruitment and law-firm mergers	Not stated	Not disclosed	0	41.3
=08	Legal Staffing Solutionssince 1998	Permanent placement of law-firm and in-house attorneys	Not stated	Not disclosed	0	41.3
=08	Wolfe Search Groupsince 1998	—	Hybrid	Not disclosed	0	41.3
11	A.W. Rush & Co.	Attorney, law firm partner and compliance recruitment	Hybrid	Not disclosed	5	26.2
=12	Breakaway Executive Search	—	Not stated	Not disclosed	0	23.8
=12	CenterPeak	Law-firm partners, practice groups and strategic expansion	Not stated	Not disclosed	0	23.8
=12	Executive Search AssociatesCambridge, MA 02140	Law firm lateral partner, practice group and office-launch recruitment	Not stated	Not disclosed	0	23.8
=12	Headfirst Legal	—	Not stated	Not disclosed	0	23.8
=12	Major, Lindsey & Africa	Law-firm partners and associates, in-house counsel, legal management and interim legal professionals	Not stated	Not disclosed	0	23.8
=12	Stone Legal Recruiting	—	Not stated	Not disclosed	0	23.8
=12	Sullivan Global Search	—	Not stated	Not disclosed	0	23.8
=12	Supreme Staffing Solutions, Inc.	—	Not stated	Not disclosed	0	23.8
=12	Z Legal Staffing	—	Not stated	Not disclosed	0	23.8

01Gillard AssociatesPermanent and contract attorney, paralegal and legal secretarial recruitment82.3
Not statedNot disclosed24 open roles
02Ave StaffingLaw-firm attorneys, paralegals and professional support staff81.7
Not statedNot disclosed29 open roles
03New England Legal Search67.3
Not statedNot disclosed106 open roles
04CB Consulting Group58.8
Not statedNot disclosed9 open roles
05JOHNLEONARD53.0
Not statedNot disclosed90 open roles
06Prime Headhunting & RecruitingExecutive search and direct hire for legal professionals, business leaders and corporate support roles.50.5
Not statedNot disclosed12 open roles
07King & Bishop42.2
Not statedNot disclosed48 open roles
=08Elevate MestelAttorney, partner, counsel and practice-group recruitment and law-firm mergers41.3
Not statedNot disclosed0 open roles
=08Legal Staffing SolutionsPermanent placement of law-firm and in-house attorneys41.3
Not statedNot disclosed0 open roles
=08Wolfe Search Group41.3
HybridNot disclosed0 open roles
11A.W. Rush & Co.Attorney, law firm partner and compliance recruitment26.2
HybridNot disclosed5 open roles
=12Breakaway Executive Search23.8
Not statedNot disclosed0 open roles
=12CenterPeakLaw-firm partners, practice groups and strategic expansion23.8
Not statedNot disclosed0 open roles
=12Executive Search AssociatesCambridge, MA 02140 · Law firm lateral partner, practice group and office-launch recruitment23.8
Not statedNot disclosed0 open roles
=12Headfirst Legal23.8
Not statedNot disclosed0 open roles
=12Major, Lindsey & AfricaLaw-firm partners and associates, in-house counsel, legal management and interim legal professionals23.8
Not statedNot disclosed0 open roles
=12Stone Legal Recruiting23.8
Not statedNot disclosed0 open roles
=12Sullivan Global Search23.8
Not statedNot disclosed0 open roles
=12Supreme Staffing Solutions, Inc.23.8
Not statedNot disclosed0 open roles
=12Z Legal Staffing23.8
Not statedNot disclosed0 open roles

Score built from public signals · Fee model from firm websites · Terms reported by firms · Terms never affect the score

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How these firms are scored

Rank here is within Legal. Every score is built from public signals and measures specialisation and activity, not a guarantee of service quality. Terms, claiming and sponsorship never change it.

Specialist focus: 40%
Market activity: 35%
Track record: 25%

Read the full methodology →

What Legal firms charge

Market context · Fee survey

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Hiring in Legal?

Describe the role once. We route it to the Boston firms that specialise in it, and they reply with their approach and terms.

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Legal recruiters in Boston: questions

How do legal recruiters in Boston charge?

Of the firms ranked here, by their own websites: 2 hybrid. Most agencies charge a percentage of the hire's first-year base salary. Contingency recruiters are commonly quoted at around 15–25% and are paid only when you hire; retained and executive search firms often charge 25–35%, paid in stages as the search progresses.

How are legal recruiters ranked here?

Rank is within this specialty only. The biggest factor is specialist focus: the share of a firm's open roles that are in this field. Hiring activity and track record make up the rest. No firm can pay for placement.

Should I use more than one recruiter?

For contingency roles many employers brief two or three firms at once. Retained searches are exclusive by design. Posting one brief here sends it to the specialists and lets you compare their approach and terms before you commit.