Understanding Markets
Markets are the core unit of intelligence in Client Portal. Everything -- contacts, calls, signals, campaigns -- is organized around a market. Understanding how markets work is the key to getting the most out of the platform.
What is a Market?
A market is a tightly defined segment of the lateral attorney landscape. Each market is built from a combination of:
| Dimension | Description | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Practice Area | The legal specialization | M&A, Patent Litigation, IP, Real Estate |
| Geography | The target region or city | New York, Chicago, Texas, Multi-Market |
| Seniority | The career level of candidates | Associate, Senior Associate, Counsel, Partner |
| Firm Tier (optional) | The AmLaw ranking category | AmLaw 10, AmLaw 50, AmLaw 100, AmLaw 200 |
The narrower the market definition, the clearer the signal. A well-defined market gives you specific, actionable intelligence rather than generic noise.
Market Naming Convention
Every market follows a consistent naming format:
[Specialization] -- [Scope]
The specialization describes the practice area and focus. The scope describes the geography or segment.
Examples:
| Market Name | Specialization | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| Patent Litigation -- Multi-Market | Patent Litigation | Multi-Market |
| M&A -- New York | M&A | New York |
| Real Estate Finance -- USA National | Real Estate Finance | USA National |
| IP Transactions -- Chicago | IP Transactions | Chicago |
Consistent naming makes it easy to scan, compare, and filter your markets at a glance. If you need a market with a specific focus, your account manager will follow this convention when setting it up.
Why Markets Are the Core Unit
In legal recruitment, information advantage comes from depth, not breadth. By organizing intelligence around defined markets, Client Portal lets you:
- Track movement patterns within a specific candidate pool over time
- Spot timing windows before opportunities become public knowledge
- Build compounding intelligence -- every conversation adds to your understanding of who is moving, when, and why
- Compare market health across your portfolio to see where opportunities are richest
Think of a market as a lens. The tighter the lens, the more clearly you see what is happening inside it.
Market Exclusivity
Every market in Client Portal is exclusive to one client. When a market is assigned to you, no competing firm shares access to the same intelligence. This means:
- Your intelligence stays yours -- candidate names, movement signals, and engagement data are never shared with another client in the same market
- No overlapping outreach -- because markets are exclusive, there is no risk of another firm reaching the same candidates through our platform
- Deeper, more candid conversations -- candidates are more willing to engage when they know they are not being contacted by multiple recruiters from the same source
How Exclusivity Works
- Market definition -- During onboarding, your account manager works with you to define your markets based on practice area, geography, and seniority
- Exclusivity confirmation -- Within 24 hours of onboarding, your markets are confirmed and locked to your account
- Ongoing protection -- If another client requests a market that overlaps with yours, they will be offered an alternative segment or placed on a waitlist
If you want to add a new market that borders an existing exclusive lane, your account manager can help define it so there is no conflict. Markets are scoped precisely to avoid overlap.
Example Markets
Here are some real examples of how markets are defined:
- Patent Litigation -- Multi-Market -- Tracks patent litigators across multiple geographies, typically at AmLaw 100 firms
- M&A -- New York -- Focuses on M&A attorneys in the New York market, from associate to partner level
- Real Estate Finance -- USA National -- Covers real estate finance specialists nationwide
- IP Transactions -- Chicago -- Narrows in on IP transactional attorneys based in the Chicago area
Your account manager defines markets in close collaboration with you to make sure they align with your firm's active search priorities and recruiting strategy.
If you identify a candidate segment you would like visibility into, talk to your account manager. They can spin up a new market and begin building intelligence within it.