Eames Consulting ends global insurer’s three-year search for employment attorney

Our client is a leading global provider of commercial and personal property and casualty insurance, personal accident and supplemental health insurance, reinsurance and life insurance to a diverse group of clients. 

The challenge 

“The client’s search for an employment attorney had been going on before I arrived at the company, so it was a challenging engagement to come in on. But with my knowledge of the legal market and the network I’ve built over seven years, I was able to connect them with a highly experienced attorney who ticked all their boxes.” - Austin Clifford, Senior Consultant, New York

The insurer had been looking for an employment attorney for a considerable time, during which they’d withdrawn and reposted the role on a number of occasions. After struggling to find the right candidate over three years, they approached Eames Consulting in early 2025, having worked with us on actuarial and claims roles in the past. 

The solution 

“Thanks to Austin's faith in the right candidate and his persistence in working with the client to ensure the salary on offer was in line with market expectations, a role that had been vacant for three years was filled within a matter of weeks.” - Wise Stine, Manager, New York

With a detailed knowledge of the legal recruitment market, Austin Clifford, senior consultant for specialist disciplines in our New York office, felt that the salary of $200,000 might not be sufficient to attract an attorney with the required 15-20 years’ experience. Supported by Wise Stine, manager of specialist disciplines, Austin dipped into his network of experienced legal professionals and quickly found a suitably qualified attorney with considerable experience in the Californian legal market. The candidate successfully completed the recruitment process and was offered the role, but initially declined it due to the salary on offer. 

Strongly feeling that this candidate was the right person for the role, Austin had to adopt a slightly different approach in order to align the client and the candidate's expectations on salary. This meant demonstrating that the proposed salary was severely restricting the client’s ability to attract the right talent. Over the next few weeks, he continued sending profiles to the client to help create a picture of prevailing market expectations and advised them to adjust the salary accordingly. 

The result 

Throughout the process, the candidate who'd initially rejected the role remained the most suitable candidate. Having gained a clearer understanding of the prevailing salaries being paid to experienced employment attorneys within the insurance market, the insurer at last came back to the candidate with an offer of $250,000 in March 2025, and the candidate accepted.  

The future 

Following our successful placement of an employment attorney, we’ve since helped the client hire a senior internal auditor. Our relationship with them has expanded from actuarial to claims to legal and now underwriting, and we continue working with them to understand where else we can support their talent needs across the business. 

If you are looking for a new opportunity or need support in your next business objectives, please reach out to me for a confidential discussion at wise.stine@eamesconsulting.com