Q3 2025 paints a nuanced picture of a Knowledge Lawyer market that continues to evolve and diversify. This quarter saw 24 moves in total, with 18 new roles and 6 promotions — reflecting steady, healthy activity across firms as they continue to balance internal development with targeted external hiring.
Notably, a portion of the new roles this quarter came from fee-earners transitioning into Knowledge Lawyer positions within their existing firms. This trend reinforces the growing recognition that Knowledge roles offer meaningful, long-term career development opportunities for lawyers with strong technical and strategic skillsets.
Overall, while the number of moves is slightly lower than in Q2, the market remains strategic rather than reactive — firms are building depth in core practice areas, but also showing agility by integrating knowledge expertise in emerging areas like ESG, innovation, and energy. The emphasis on structured growth and senior capability persists, but the increasing movement of fee-earners into knowledge roles suggests a subtle but significant shift: lawyers are starting to see Knowledge Management not as a “step down”, but as a distinct, high-impact career path within the legal ecosystem.
Firm Type Overview
Activity in Q3 2025 was spread across a healthy mix of firm types, with international firms continuing to dominate hiring and promotion activity, accounting for the majority of moves this quarter. Firms such as CMS, RPC, and Norton Rose Fulbright were particularly active, each making multiple appointments that reinforce their ongoing investment in strengthening and expanding their Knowledge Lawyer infrastructure.
Mid-Market firms also showed a strong presence this quarter, with moves across firms such as Browne Jacobson, Burness Paull and Shakespeare Martineau. This reflects a continuing trend from earlier in the year — mid-sized firms are continuing to develop their dedicated knowledge capability to improve efficiency, consistency, and client service.
Among the US and Magic Circle firms, activity was more selective but still notable, with Paul Hastings, Paul, Weiss, and A&O Shearman each adding new Knowledge Lawyers to their ranks. These appointments highlight an ongoing focus on embedding specialist support in high-value, cross-border practice areas, particularly in corporate and finance.
Interestingly, this quarter also saw movement outside of private practice, with a Knowledge Lawyer transition into a role at Ofgem — signalling the growing recognition of knowledge management’s value across regulatory and public sector environments outside of traditional law firms.
Taken together, the data suggests that while international firms continue to lead in volume, the market for Knowledge Lawyers is maturing across all firm types. There’s a clear move toward building structured, well-resourced knowledge functions — not just at global firms, but across the mid-tier as firms of all sizes recognise the value of formal knowledge infrastructure in delivering competitive advantage.
Seniority Overview
Q3 2025 continued the long-running trend of Senior Knowledge Lawyers (10+ PQE) driving the majority of market activity, accounting for 20 out of 24 total moves this quarter. This sustained dominance of senior-level transitions reinforces a consistent theme seen throughout 2025: firms continue to prioritise deep expertise, autonomy, and strategic contribution when hiring or promoting within their Knowledge functions.
At the mid-level (6–9 PQE), movement remained relatively limited, with only two recorded moves this quarter. Similarly, just two junior Knowledge Lawyers (0–5 PQE) changed roles — mirroring Q2’s data and underscoring the ongoing scarcity of opportunities at the more junior end of the market.
The continued focus on senior appointments reflects firms’ preference for individuals who can lead initiatives, mentor teams, and deliver immediate value without a long ramp-up period. However, the minimal movement at junior and mid-levels once again raises an important question about the future pipeline of Knowledge talent.
In essence, while the senior end of the market remains robust and in demand, the data suggests a pressing need for firms to think more strategically about how they attract, train, and retain the next generation of Knowledge Lawyers.
Moves by Sector Overview
Activity was led by Banking & Finance, which recorded the highest number of moves, reflecting ongoing demand for Knowledge lawyers with specialist finance expertise across corporate and transactional matters. Commercial/Tech, Employment, and Litigation also saw significant movement, underscoring the continued focus on supporting high-growth sectors, complex workforce matters, and dispute resolution.
In contrast, Corporate, Corporate Finance, Energy & Infrastructure, FS/Reg, and Private Client experienced fewer moves, suggesting stability in these areas but limited lateral hiring opportunities. These sectors remain more niche, with firms typically recruiting selectively for senior or highly specialised Knowledge roles.
Overall, the pattern of moves this quarter highlights that firms continue to prioritise investment in finance, tech, employment, and litigation knowledge, while maintaining a more strategic, selective approach in other specialised sectors.
Promotions vs New Roles
Q3 marked a subtle shift back toward hiring, with 18 new roles compared to 6 promotions. This contrasts with earlier quarters where internal advancement dominated, indicating that firms are now actively investing in new talent to strengthen their Knowledge function.
This represents a slight reversal of the trend seen earlier in the year, when many firms focused more heavily on promoting existing team members. The data suggests that firms are now looking outward again — expanding their Knowledge capability through targeted new appointments rather than solely relying on internal team progression.
Interestingly, a number of the new roles this quarter involved fee-earners transitioning into Knowledge Lawyer positions within their current firms. This reflects a growing recognition of Knowledge roles as an attractive and viable career path for experienced lawyers who want to remain close to the law, while stepping into more strategic, developmental, and collaborative work.
Outlook
As 2025 moves into its final quarter, the Knowledge Lawyer market remains steady, strategically focused, and more visible than ever. Firms are investing in talent that can lead, innovate, and deliver impact from day one, while the profile of Knowledge roles continues to evolve- from being seen as a niche function to becoming a recognised pillar of firm-wide strategy.
In short, Knowledge roles are no longer the “back office” of law — they’re fast becoming a core driver of competitive advantage, shaping how firms deliver value in a complex, evolving legal landscape.
Knowledge Lawyer Market Moves Q3 2025
Anti-trust / Competition
Ruth Allen has been promoted to Senior Knowledge Counsel at CMS from their previous role as Professional Support Lawyer.
Kate Davies has been appointed to Senior Expert Lawyer, Knowledge & Innovation at Ofgem from their previous role as Head of Ofgem Strategy.
Banking/ Finance
Brittany Jones has been appointed to Fund Finance Knowledge Lawyer at A&O Shearman from their previous role as Knowledge Lawyer; Banking & Finance at Simmons & Simmons.
Maria Staiano-Kolaitis has been appointed as Knowledge and Innovation Attorney at Paul Hastings from their previous role as Counsel at Ashurst.
Lucy Martone has been appointed to Knowledge Counsel at CMS from their previous role as Senior Legal Counsel (Tesco Bank) at Barclays.
Charlotte Walden has been promoted to Knowledge Counsel (Banking) at CMS from their previous role as Professional Support Lawyer.
Commercial/Tech
Katie Gordon has been promoted to Director of Knowledge at Carpmaels & Ransford from their previous role as Head of Knowledge.
Praveeta Thayalan has been promoted to Senior Knowledge Lawyer at RPC from their previous role as Knowledge Lawyer.
Ailsa Carter has been appointed to Knowledge Lawyer / PDL (IP) at Browne Jacobson from their previous role as Professional Support Lawyer, IP at Gowling WLG.
Corporate
Alfred King has been appointed to Senior Knowledge Lawyer (Public M&A) at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP from their previous role as PSL Counsel (Corporate /Takeovers) at Slaughter & May.
Corporate Finance
Annie Ulfsson-An has been appointed as Professional Support Lawyer at Maples Group from their previous role as Senior Legal Counsel at Caxton Associates.
Employment
Rose Lim has been appointed as Knowledge Lawyer at BDBF LLP from their previous role as Legal Counsel (Employment) at Harrods.
Jessica Scott-Dye has been promoted to Knowledge Lawyer (Legal Director) at VWV from their previous role as Knowledge Lawyer (Senior Associate).
Sophie Cameron has been appointed as Managing Knowledge Lawyer at Lewis Silkin from their previous role as Senior Knowledge Lawyer at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.
Energy & Infrastructure
Georgina O’Sullivan has been appointed to Senior Knowledge Counsel at CMS from their previous role as Senior Knowledge Lawyer at Norton Rose Fulbright.
FS/Reg
Charlotte Carnegie has been appointed to Senior Knowledge Lawyer at Norton Rose Fulbright LLP from their previous role as Lead Associate Lawyer at Financial Conduct Authority.
Litigation
Charlie Hennig has been appointed as Associate in Product Regulation at Osborne Clarke LLP from their previous role as Knowledge Lawyer.
Sally Lord has been promoted to Knowledge Counsel- Insurance & Litigation at RPC from their previous role as Knowledge Lawyer.
Christopher Wheatley has been appointed as Knowledge Lawyer at RPC from their previous role as Senior Associate.
Private Client
Caroline Belam has been appointed as Knowledge Development Lawyer at Charles Russell Speechlys from their previous role as Partner at The Burnside Partnership.
Real Estate
Aedryan Chklar has been appointed as Knowledge Management Lawyer at Shakespeare Martineau from their previous role as Associate Solicitor at Stephenson Harwood LLP.
Yvonne Allan has been appointed as Knowledge and Development Lawyer at Burness Paull LLP from their previous role as Senior Associate at Harper MacLeod LLP.
Tax / Pensions
Hannah Jones has been promoted to Associate / Knowledge Counsel at CMS from their previous role as Associate / Assistant Professional Support Lawyer.
Kim Muddimer has been appointed to Knowledge Lawyer – Principal Associate (Pensions) at Gowling WLG from their previous role as Pensions Professional Support Lawyer at Shoosmiths.
