The retirement trend among general counsel and chief legal officers that search executives have seen in recent years is continuing, according to Fortune 500 survey data from executive search firm BarkerGilmore.
“There were 68 new GC and CLO appointments in 2024, and 34 of those were the result of retirements,” the firm says. “Many ... executives have benefited from the robust economic environment over the past few years and are now prepared financially to step down.”
In addition to those retiring, eight left to take new roles within the same company and the other 26 went elsewhere.
To fill the roles, companies hired from within in just under half the cases. “This aligns with BarkerGilmore’s experience over the past five years,” the firm says. “Clients have worked to build internal bench strength through investment in leadership coaching for both their senior- and mid-level legal executives.”
Of the 35 people hired from outside, 18 were men and 17 were women. “This gender parity reflects the current talent pool, which includes an increased number of women who currently hold GC or CLO positions,” the firm says.
Of the 33 hired from inside, 22 were men and 11 were women. In previous years, the trend has been more evenly split, with women generally getting promoted into the in-house legal leadership role at the same rate as men.
Among those hired from outside, prior GC or CLO experience was key. Of the 35 outsiders brought in, 31 were public company GCs, two were deputy GCs who also held corporate secretary titles and two came from Big Law.
The firm advises legal professionals to take on as much and as varied responsibility as possible if they hope to land that first GC or CLO role.
“The success of attorneys who aspire to become a GC or CLO without prior experience in those roles is often based on their record of taking on additional responsibilities, and honing their leadership skills, to earn the trust of their CEO and board,” the firm says. “Another route is to take on a Fortune 1000 GC or CLO role and leverage their success for advancement to a Fortune 500 company position.”
The data is included in a press release the firm shared with Legal Dive; the survey report wasn’t released.
