Jeffrey Lowe, one of the top law firm partner recruiters and advisors in the United States, recently launched Jeffrey Lowe Partners, LLC, a boutique advisory firm focusing on select, exclusive search engagements for the world’s leading law firms and the representation of major rainmakers, groups and top government officials.
Prior to founding Jeffrey Lowe Partners, Jeffrey served as the Global Practice Leader of Major, Lindsey & Africa’s Law Firm Practice Group for over a decade and was the Founder and Managing Partner of the firm’s Washington, D.C. office since its inception in 2003. Many in the legal community also recognize him for his work on the Major, Lindsey & Africa Partner Compensation Surveys. His insights have appeared in publications like The American Lawyer and The Wall Street Journal.
Prior to founding MLA’s Washington, D.C. office, Jeffrey was a corporate and securities partner with Hogan & Hartson (now Hogan Lovells), where he spent nearly his entire legal career.
Learn more about Jeffrey and his new venture in this Q&A.
Tell us about the launch of your new recruiting firm.
It’s been a lot of fun, and the reception from former candidates, clients and colleagues truly has been overwhelming. In many ways, it reminds me of when I founded MLA’s DC office back in 2003 – the newness of it all is very energizing. Obviously, the big difference this time around is that I have 20 years of incredibly deep experience in the field, so for the most part I’m just doing what I’ve been doing for the past 20 years.
Why did you decide to launch the new firm now?
The timing seemed right. I loved my 20 years at MLA, but I felt like it was time to have my own name on the door.
How did you pivot to legal recruiting from being a practicing attorney?
Fairly seamlessly lol. Seriously, though, I practiced corporate M&A for nearly 14 years, most of which were spent at Hogan, first as an associate and then my last five years as a partner. I like to think I was very good at it, but deep down I knew my heart wasn’t in it. Some of my partners, the ones who were truly great, would get incredibly excited when a new deal came in at 4:30 pm on a Friday. I, on the other hand, would be thinking “Oh f—, there goes my weekend.” Being a lawyer – any kind of lawyer – is hard. Being a partner at a major international law firm is *extremely* hard. I was 38 when I finally made the decision to leave Hogan because I just didn’t see myself doing it when I was 45, let alone 55 or 60.
What do you enjoy most about what you do?
Everything. I love what I do. Every day. Not many people get to say that, and I feel very fortunate to be able to. For the last 20 years I’ve been the person who’s incredibly excited when the new deal comes in at 4:30 on a Friday.
What do you foresee with respect to the lateral partner hiring market for the rest of the year and into 2024?
I’m confident it will remain strong. Though it’s not as crazy as it was during the height of the pandemic, the appetite for lateral talent is still there. Most notably, every firm, even the most blue-chip of the blue chips, are actively in the market now, unlike 10-20 years ago when they may have found lateral partner hiring unseemly.
What do you do in your free time?
I love to swim and play golf and tennis. I’ve just started getting into pickleball and I can see why it’s taken off – it’s very social and fairly easy to pick up. I’m also an avid reader across a wide variety of genres – biographies, true crime, math and physics, beach reads, light science fiction – you name it – though my kindle algorithm keeps sending me every one of Reese’s Book Club picks, so perhaps my selections aren’t nearly as eclectic as I think they are. I also make several treks each year out to the Arizona desert to take advantage of some of the most amazing deep sky astronomical observing sites in the world.
How can people get in touch with you?
You can find me on LinkedIn, check out my web site, which includes thought leadership pieces I’ve written and media coverage, and of course feel free to email me at jlowe@jlowepartners.com