Lawyers expect increased hiring for the legal field in the second half of 2017, according to a study released by Robert Half Legal. A third of lawyers interviewed, 33%, anticipate their law firms or companies will add legal jobs in the second half of the year, up from 25% who said the same thing six months ago and 31% one year ago.

Fifty-one percent of lawyers said they expect only to fill vacant posts, while 6% said they would neither fill vacant positions nor create new ones; 3% anticipate staff reductions in the next six months.

“To meet rising demand for business-related legal services, law firms are hiring attorneys and paralegals with specialized expertise, such as commercial litigation and insurance defense experience,” said Jamy Sullivan, executive director of Robert Half Legal. “General counsel are also expanding in-house teams to reduce their reliance on outside counsel and increase efficiencies. In particular, they are seeking legal specialists with backgrounds in corporate transactions and labor and employment law.”

Lateral hiring is expected to increase in the coming months as competition for experienced legal experts intensifies, according to Sullivan. “Law firms are recruiting senior-level associates with a book of business as a means to expand high-growth practice areas and grow revenue,” she said.

Litigation is expected to yield the most job opportunities from July through December, cited by 35% of attorneys surveyed. Within the litigation practice area, insurance defense was identified as the leading driver of job growth receiving 35% of the survey response.

The survey is based on 200 telephone interviews with lawyers in the US who have hiring authority within their organizations. It included 100 respondents employed at law firms with 20 or more employees and 100 respondents employed at companies with 1,000 or more employees.