Many young lawyers in the United States are picking up the pieces and trying to sort out their next career moves after the 2009 recession left them with deferred start dates at big firms or, worse, jobless. “As the profession lurches through its worst slump in decades, with jobs and bonuses cut and internal pressures to perform rising, associates do not just feel as if they are diving into the deep end, but rather, drowning,” according to a recent article in The New York Times that detailed new associates’ drastically pared down expectations of their chosen careers.

But for lawyers who choose to begin their careers in Asia, the outlook is much more upbeat. First, the economic boom that gave rise to the high legal times of the mid-2000’s, right up to 2007, happened later in Asia. And Asia is recovering more quickly from the recession as well.

CNN recently reported that the People’s Republic of China and India are leading the recovery in Asia, and that the numbers in Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea are encouraging as well. China, in fact, continues to pass laws and regulations that should provide new practice areas for lawyers. For instance, at the end of 2009, the PRC passed a tort liability law that addresses compensation for injuries caused by defective products, unruly animals and collapsing buildings.

Also, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act is providing a fertile practice area for lawyers in China. If predictions come true that the PRC is stepping up its regulatory enforcement in a variety of laws, especially against foreign companies - like those that young associates might represent for their U.S.-based firms - that means more work for those lawyers.

Young associates or lawyers new to practicing in Asia may also avoid many of the problems their U.S.-based colleagues face because the culture that gave rise to the astronomical starting salaries and bonuses - and their attendant grueling hours - has not developed the same way in Asian countries. U.S. firms have set up offices there that are smaller than their European or stateside offices, and those smaller offices offer a more team-oriented approach to practicing. The infamous hierarchies of U.S. firms are not as present in Asia.

A recent article from the ABA’s Law Practice Management Section gathers impressions from American attorneys working abroad. In Japan, said one, the pressure is not as great to “pull your own weight” - a scary proposition for young lawyers who are still learning how much they can carry, especially in a new culture. Others commented on the team culture in Japan in particular, as well as more opportunities for socializing outside the firm.

While associates are certainly working harder in Asia to keep their jobs, just like here, layoffs didn’t hit those offices as hard, and thus morale tends to be higher in the Asian offices of U.S. firms. Over the last two months, firms with offices in Asia are experiencing dramatic increases in workloads and interest in associate candidates in all practice areas, but especially in private equity, M&A, and cross-border capital markets.

And U.S. firms continue to open offices in Asia, providing more opportunities for associates to find work overseas. On January 19, for example, K&L Gates announced an office opening in Tokyo, its sixth office in Asia. Latham & Watkins announced on January 4 that it has opened its fifth office in Asia, in Beijing.

Given all these opportunities for new associates in Asia, building a practice overseas has never looked better.

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