Have you been seeing some new faces in the halls of your law firm recently? It’s the time of the year when new classes of lawyers, fresh from law school or clerkships, are joining their first law firms. My team and I just recently finished up a project drafting bios for 20 newly minted lawyers. We’ve also been working on a number of bios for lateral hires—more senior associates and partners, most coming from other firms, although a few returning to private practice after serving as in-house counsel.

Each of these bios, drafted for lawyers at different stages of their careers, has its own unique set of challenges. Bios for newer lawyers tend to be short, cookie-cutter and lacking in distinguishing detail, while the bios of more established lawyers can grow lengthy and unwieldy if not carefully maintained. Transitions—not only from one firm to another, but also in title or level, for example, from associate to partner—also merit new bios or thoughtful revisions of current bios.