Attorney Resume Template
Today’s legal hiring landscape demands more than a strong GPA and bar passage. Recruiters now prioritize candidates who combine courtroom savvy with digital...
Reviewed by Yuvraj Bajwa, Founder, Resumae.
Sarah Mitchell
Attorney
sarah.mitchell@example.com
(555) 123-4567
New York, NY
Professional Summary
Experienced attorney with over 7 years specializing in corporate law and intellectual property. Proven track record of negotiating complex contracts and protecting client assets. Known for Legal Research and Contract Negotiation expertise, practical problem solving, and dependable communication. This ATS-optimized summary foregrounds quantified accomplishments and role-specific keywords so hiring managers and parsing software see immediate fit for legal roles.
Experience
Associate Attorney
2020 - Present- Negotiated over $50M in merger agreements, reducing client legal costs by 15%.
- Successfully defended 12 patent infringement cases with a 90% settlement rate.
- Drafted and reviewed 200+ contracts, ensuring compliance with federal regulations aligned to legal standards and ATS-readable formatting.
- Managed a team of 3 paralegals, improving case turnaround by 20%.
Junior Associate
2017 - 2020- Assisted in high-profile litigation resulting in $2.3M settlement for client.
- Conducted legal research for 50+ cases, supporting senior attorneys in trial preparation.
- Prepared legal documents including briefs, motions, and discovery requests with 100% accuracy.
Skills
Core Skills: Legal Research, Contract Negotiation, Litigation Strategy, Intellectual Property Law, Corporate Governance, Due Diligence, Risk Assessment, Client Counseling, Legal Writing, Discovery Management, Mediation, Trial Preparation, Regulatory Compliance, Patent Law
Education
J.D.
2017Columbia Law School
What Attorney hiring managers look for
How Legal resumes get screened
Legal resumes are screened for bar admission, practice area, and the sophistication of the matters you have handled. Reviewers read closely and notice imprecision.
Writing a stronger Attorney resume
01
State bar admissions and jurisdictions clearly
Every jurisdiction, with admission year and current standing. For support roles, state the courts and filing systems you work in instead.
02
Describe matters by type and scale
Deal size, case volume, or the specific practice area, such as commercial real estate, employment defence, or immigration. Practice area is how legal hiring is organised.
03
Show research, drafting, and filing systems
Westlaw, LexisNexis, Relativity, PACER, or the e-filing systems you use, along with document volume in discovery-heavy work.
Mistakes to avoid
- Omitting bar status, which is the first thing a legal recruiter checks
- Describing matters in ways that risk disclosing privileged detail
- Any typo at all, which in this field is read as a substantive signal
Attorney resume questions
What skills should an Attorney resume include?
Lead with the skills the job posting names, which for an Attorney usually start with Legal Research, Contract Negotiation, and Litigation Strategy. This example lists 14 in total, grouped so a reader can take them in at a glance, and every one of them is backed up somewhere in the experience section. Skills that appear in your list but nowhere in your history are the first thing an interviewer probes.
How do I get an Attorney resume past an ATS?
Legal resumes are screened for bar admission, practice area, and the sophistication of the matters you have handled. Reviewers read closely and notice imprecision. For an Attorney specifically, mirror the posting's exact wording rather than paraphrasing it, keep the layout to a single column so the parser reads it in the right order, and put Legal Research, and Contract Negotiation where they appear in the first third of the page.
What experience do employers expect from an Attorney?
Employers look for a clear progression and evidence of outcomes, which this Attorney example shows by moving from Junior Associate to Associate Attorney across 2 roles. Its 7 bullets describe results rather than duties, which is the difference that decides most screens. If you have less history than this, keep the same structure and let projects or coursework carry the relevant evidence.
What certifications help an Attorney get hired?
Bar admission with jurisdictions and years, plus any court admissions, paralegal certification such as NALA or NFPA, or notary commission. List them where they are read in the first pass rather than at the foot of the page, and include the issuing body and date so nobody has to ask whether they are current.
Matching cover letter
Attorney cover letter example
Pair this resume with a cover letter written for the same role.