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Special Counsel

Full company profile

uuid000cr63

Namestring
Special Counsel
Websiteurl
specialcounsel.com
Company typeenum
Private
Founded yearint
1987
Descriptiontext

Special Counsel is a privately held legal staffing and talent placement firm headquartered in Jacksonville, United States, founded in 1987. The firm connects legal professionals with positions at law firms and corporate legal departments, operating in the specialized legal recruitment and contract staffing market. Its stated value proposition is positioning itself as a "pillar of strength in the legal community" by matching world-class talent with employers across the legal sector. The firm operates with 101-250 employees, indicating a mid-sized staffing operation likely spanning multiple practice areas (attorneys, paralegals, legal support, and potentially eDiscovery/contract professionals).

On the business model, Special Counsel generates revenue through legal staffing services — combining direct/permanent placement fees and contract staffing billings across attorney, paralegal, and legal support roles. Its go-to-market targets both the supply side (legal candidates seeking new positions or contract engagements) and the demand side (law firms and in-house legal departments seeking talent). In October 2016, the firm executed an inorganic expansion via the acquisition of D4, broadening its service capability into adjacent legal services commonly bundled with staffing engagements. Operationally, Senior Placement Director Stacey Neumann exemplifies the placement-team structure used to drive the firm's recruiter-led, relationship-driven service delivery. No technology platform, product roadmap, pricing model, customer logos, or financial details are disclosed in the available input.

Short descriptiontext

Special Counsel is a Jacksonville-based legal staffing and placement firm, founded in 1987, connecting attorneys, paralegals, and legal support professionals with law firms and corporate legal departments across the United States.

Operating statusenum
Operating
Ownership categoryenum
Headcount rangeband
101–250
akta.pro rankint
HeadquartersJacksonville, United States
HQ citystring
Jacksonville
HQ countrystring
United States
HQ regionstring
North America
Markets served

Serves global market

Keyword5 values
legal staffing, legal talent placement, attorney recruitment, legal workforce solutions, paralegal placement
Industry2 codes
1Legal & Compliance Direct Hire
CodeBPACAFAJPrimaryYes
2Litigation Support & Expert Witness Services
CodeBPAHALAGPrimaryNo
NAICS code1 code
  • Other Legal Services54119
SIC code1 code
  • Services-Employment Agencies7361
Product category
Legal Staffing Services
Cost components4 values
Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D
GTM typeB2B
B2B
Offering typeServices
Services
Core offering1 text field

Special Counsel is a legal staffing and talent placement firm that connects world-class legal professionals—including attorneys, paralegals, and legal support staff—with job openings at top law firms and corporate legal departments. The company provides both permanent placement and temporary/contract staffing solutions tailored to the legal industry.

Differentiator
Functional benefit
Problem solved
Product and service1 record
1Legal Staffing and Talent Placement
CategoryLegal Staffing Services
Recent move1 record

Each record includes

Date, Type, Title, Description, Source

Expansion highlight2 records

Each record includes

Type, Description

Peers10 records
1Robert Half Legal
TypeDirect peer
Description

Direct competitor in legal staffing and direct-hire placement, serving law firms and corporate legal departments with temporary, contract, and permanent placement services — closely overlapping Special Counsel's core offering.

2Hire Counsel
TypeDirect peer
Description

Legal staffing and managed review provider serving law firms and corporate legal departments with contract attorneys, paralegals, and document review services — direct overlap with Special Counsel's staffing and D4 eDiscovery offerings.

3Major, Lindsey & Africa
TypeDirect peer
Description

Specialist legal search firm placing partners, associates, and legal executives at top law firms and in-house departments — competes directly for the higher-end direct-hire mandates that Special Counsel pursues.

4Solomon Page Legal
TypeDirect peer
Description

Legal staffing arm of Solomon Page placing attorneys, paralegals, and legal support professionals on temporary and direct-hire bases — direct peer in the same legal talent placement vertical.

5BCG Attorney Search
TypeDirect peer
Description

Legal recruitment firm focused on attorney placement at law firms and corporate legal departments — competes directly with Special Counsel for associate and partner-level permanent placements.

6Kelly Legal
TypeDirect peer
Description

Legal staffing division of Kelly Services placing attorneys, paralegals, and legal support staff — operates in the same niche with a similar staffing-conglomerate parent backing.

7Adecco
TypeBroad incumbent
Description

Global staffing conglomerate and reported parent organization of Special Counsel — provides corporate scale, shared services, and cross-sell infrastructure underpinning Special Counsel's operating model.

8Axiom Law
TypeEmerging player
Description

Alternative legal services provider offering on-demand legal talent and managed services to corporate legal departments — represents the structural shift toward flexible legal staffing that both pressures and creates opportunity for traditional recruiters.

9Hays
TypeBroad incumbent
Description

Global staffing firm with a legal and HR services practice placing professionals across multiple verticals — broader incumbent whose legal arm competes for cross-border and senior legal placements.

10Beacon Hill Staffing Group
TypeDirect peer
Description

Specialized staffing provider with a dedicated legal division placing attorneys, paralegals, and legal support professionals — closely comparable niche-focused legal staffing peer.

Market position
Strengths4 records

Each record includes

Headline, Details, Source

Weaknesses4 records

Each record includes

Headline, Details, Source

Competitive moat3 records

Each record includes

Type, Details

Key risks5 records

Each record includes

Headline, Details, Source

Key highlights5 records

Each record includes

Headline, Details, Source

Customer concentration

Classification, Details

Ideal customer profile1 record

Each record includes

Profile, Firmographic size, Sales motion, Sales cycle length, Buying structure, Purchase trigger, Buyer persona, Geography, Industry vertical, Primary use case, Description, Pain points, Evidence proof points, Target buyer

Technology focused
No
API detail
Has APIbool
No

Docs URL, Description

AI maturity
App detail

Has app

Core technology
Revenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Number of profiles
Profiles1 record

Each record includes

Name, Designation, Designation category, Overview, Profile commentary, Source

No data
No data
Funding overview

Funding stage, Last funding date, Total funding USD

Funding rounds

Each record includes

Round, Amount USD, Date, Pre money valuation, Total investors, Investors, News

Investors

Each record includes

Name, Type, Date of entry, Rounds participated, Website

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Each record includes

Name, Acquisition type, Announced date, Completed date, Status, Website, News

Investment

Each record includes

Name, Round, Announced date, Lead investor, Website, News

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Special Counsel

Legal Staffing Servicesspecialcounsel.com

Special Counsel is a Jacksonville-based legal staffing and placement firm, founded in 1987, connecting attorneys, paralegals, and legal support professionals with law firms and corporate legal departments across the United States.

What Special Counsel does

Special Counsel is a privately held legal staffing and talent placement firm headquartered in Jacksonville, United States, founded in 1987. The firm connects legal professionals with positions at law firms and corporate legal departments, operating in the specialized legal recruitment and contract staffing market. Its stated value proposition is positioning itself as a "pillar of strength in the legal community" by matching world-class talent with employers across the legal sector. The firm operates with 101-250 employees, indicating a mid-sized staffing operation likely spanning multiple practice areas (attorneys, paralegals, legal support, and potentially eDiscovery/contract professionals).

On the business model, Special Counsel generates revenue through legal staffing services — combining direct/permanent placement fees and contract staffing billings across attorney, paralegal, and legal support roles. Its go-to-market targets both the supply side (legal candidates seeking new positions or contract engagements) and the demand side (law firms and in-house legal departments seeking talent). In October 2016, the firm executed an inorganic expansion via the acquisition of D4, broadening its service capability into adjacent legal services commonly bundled with staffing engagements. Operationally, Senior Placement Director Stacey Neumann exemplifies the placement-team structure used to drive the firm's recruiter-led, relationship-driven service delivery. No technology platform, product roadmap, pricing model, customer logos, or financial details are disclosed in the available input.

Special Counsel firmographics

Firmographics
Name
Special Counsel
Website
https://specialcounsel.com
Company type
Private
Founded year
1987
Operating status
Operating
Headcount range
101–250 employees
Short description
Special Counsel is a Jacksonville-based legal staffing and placement firm, founded in 1987, connecting attorneys, paralegals, and legal support professionals with law firms and corporate legal departments across the United States.
Ownership category
akta.pro rank

Special Counsel industry classification

Industry
Product category
Legal Staffing Services
NAICS
Other Legal Services (54119)
SIC
Services-Employment Agencies (7361)
akta.pro primary industry
Legal & Compliance Direct Hire (BPACAFAJ)
akta.pro secondary industry
Litigation Support & Expert Witness Services (BPAHALAG)

Keywords

  • Legal staffing
  • Legal talent placement
  • Attorney recruitment
  • Legal workforce solutions
  • Paralegal placement

Where Special Counsel is headquartered

Location

Headquarters

HQ city
Jacksonville
HQ country
United States
HQ region
North America

Markets served

Special Counsel business model

Business model
GTM type
B2B
Offering type
Services
Cost components
Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D

Special Counsel product offering

Product offering

Core offering

Special Counsel is a legal staffing and talent placement firm that connects world-class legal professionals—including attorneys, paralegals, and legal support staff—with job openings at top law firms and corporate legal departments. The company provides both permanent placement and temporary/contract staffing solutions tailored to the legal industry.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

  • Legal Staffing and Talent Placement

Companies that use Special Counsel

Customer profile

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Special Counsel technology and API

Technology

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API
No
API docs
API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Special Counsel partnerships and signals

Strategic signal

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights2 records

Special Counsel competitors and assessment

Company assessment

Direct peers

  • Robert Half Legal: Direct competitor in legal staffing and direct-hire placement, serving law firms and corporate legal departments with temporary, contract, and permanent placement services — closely overlapping Special Counsel's core offering.
  • Hire Counsel: Legal staffing and managed review provider serving law firms and corporate legal departments with contract attorneys, paralegals, and document review services — direct overlap with Special Counsel's staffing and D4 eDiscovery offerings.
  • Major, Lindsey & Africa: Specialist legal search firm placing partners, associates, and legal executives at top law firms and in-house departments — competes directly for the higher-end direct-hire mandates that Special Counsel pursues.
  • Solomon Page Legal: Legal staffing arm of Solomon Page placing attorneys, paralegals, and legal support professionals on temporary and direct-hire bases — direct peer in the same legal talent placement vertical.
  • BCG Attorney Search: Legal recruitment firm focused on attorney placement at law firms and corporate legal departments — competes directly with Special Counsel for associate and partner-level permanent placements.
  • Kelly Legal: Legal staffing division of Kelly Services placing attorneys, paralegals, and legal support staff — operates in the same niche with a similar staffing-conglomerate parent backing.
  • Beacon Hill Staffing Group: Specialized staffing provider with a dedicated legal division placing attorneys, paralegals, and legal support professionals — closely comparable niche-focused legal staffing peer.

Broad incumbents

  • Adecco: Global staffing conglomerate and reported parent organization of Special Counsel — provides corporate scale, shared services, and cross-sell infrastructure underpinning Special Counsel's operating model.
  • Hays: Global staffing firm with a legal and HR services practice placing professionals across multiple verticals — broader incumbent whose legal arm competes for cross-border and senior legal placements.

Emerging players

  • Axiom Law: Alternative legal services provider offering on-demand legal talent and managed services to corporate legal departments — represents the structural shift toward flexible legal staffing that both pressures and creates opportunity for traditional recruiters.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

Special Counsel social profiles

Digital presence

Special Counsel financial estimates

Financial estimate

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Special Counsel leadership team

Management profile

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Special Counsel funding detail

Funding detail

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Special Counsel M&A and investment

M&A and investment

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Special Counsel

What does Special Counsel do?

Special Counsel is a legal staffing and talent placement firm that connects world-class legal professionals—including attorneys, paralegals, and legal support staff—with job openings at top law firms and corporate legal departments. The company provides both permanent placement and temporary/contract staffing solutions tailored to the legal industry.

When was Special Counsel founded?

Special Counsel was founded in 1987. It employs 101 to 250 people.

Where is Special Counsel based?

Special Counsel is headquartered in Jacksonville, United States, in the North America region.

Who are Special Counsel's main competitors?

Direct peers on record are Robert Half Legal, Hire Counsel, Major, Lindsey & Africa, Solomon Page Legal, BCG Attorney Search, Kelly Legal and Beacon Hill Staffing Group. Broad incumbents are Adecco and Hays. Axiom Law is listed as an emerging player.

Does Special Counsel have an API?

No public API is recorded for Special Counsel.

What industry is Special Counsel in?

Special Counsel's product category is Legal Staffing Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPACAFAJ, Legal & Compliance Direct Hire, with a secondary code of BPAHALAG, Litigation Support & Expert Witness Services. Its NAICS code is 54119 and its SIC code is 7361.

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Live signals
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Kim Yong-dae, former chief of the Drone Operations Command, was removed from office on Thursday following disciplinary action by South Korea's defense ministry over his alleged dispatch of drones to North Korea in October 2024. Kim was indicted in November on charges of obstructing official duties and soliciting the drafting of false official documents by a special counsel team investigating the matter. The special counsel concluded the drone operation was aimed at inciting North Korean retaliation as a pretext for former President Yoon Suk Yeol's martial law declaration two months later.