A US law firm engagement survey is a confidential questionnaire that measures how committed, supported and likely-to-stay a firm's attorneys and staff actually are. The questions below cover the seven categories we've found matter most at US law firms specifically: workload, supervision, development, recognition, leadership, belonging and intent to stay. If you build only one section, build supervision and development — in our experience, that is where attrition at US law firms is decided.
At Survey Research Associates (SRA), we've designed confidential engagement and feedback surveys exclusively for US law firms since 1987. The question bank below reflects what we've learned surfaces real signal in a partner-leverage environment, not a generic corporate one.
Why can't a US law firm use a generic engagement survey template?
Because a US law firm isn't a company with billable hours bolted on. Generic templates ask about "your manager" and "the company" as if a firm has one clean reporting line. Associates report to different partners on every matter, their development depends on who staffs them, and the person they would most want to give feedback on controls their assignments, bonus and path to partnership.
A US law firm engagement survey has to account for that structure. The questions need to separate the firm from the partners, measure work allocation directly, and create enough safety that associates answer honestly about the people above them. We've written more on why this gap matters in Legal Employee Engagement: Challenges Unique to Law Firms. A template built for a software company produces a tidy score and misses the dynamics that drive a fifth-year out the door.
What are the 7 categories every US law firm engagement survey should cover?
A complete US law firm engagement survey covers seven categories, each mapping to a documented driver of attrition:
Here is a working question bank US law firms can adapt.
1. Workload and sustainability
- I can sustain my current workload without it harming my health or personal life.
- Work is distributed fairly across attorneys at my level.
- When my workload becomes unmanageable, I have a clear way to raise it.
- I am able to disconnect from work during time off.
- Staffing decisions on matters feel fair and transparent.
We put workload near the top deliberately. According to Bloomberg Law's 2025 Attorney Workload & Hours Survey (conducted January 2025 among 1,054 legal professionals; reported by Legal.io, June 2025), mid- and senior-level associates reported feeling burned out 51% of the time — higher than junior associates at 37% and partners at 40%. Those are the attorneys a US law firm has invested in most, and a survey that doesn't measure sustainable workload won't see them leaving until they're gone.
2. Supervision and feedback
- I receive feedback often enough to know where I stand.
- The feedback I receive is specific enough to act on.
- The partners I work for are invested in my development.
- I feel comfortable raising concerns with the partners I work for.
- I know what's expected of me on the matters I'm staffed on.
This is the highest-leverage category in the survey. According to Gallup's analysis "Fast Feedback Fuels Performance" (Gallup, 2024), employees who strongly agree they receive valuable feedback are meaningfully less likely to be job searching. At a US law firm, the supervision questions are also where you learn which partners build people and which quietly burn through them.
When this signal comes back weak, a firm-wide engagement survey can tell you there's a problem but not which partners are driving it. That's the point at which we'd run a dedicated upward review — confidential associate feedback on the partners who supervise them. → SRA Upward Reviews (see our primer, What Is an Upward Review at a Law Firm?)
3. Development and growth
- I am getting work that builds my career, not just work that needs covering.
- I understand what I need to do to reach the next stage at this firm.
- I have access to meaningful mentoring here.
- My professional development is a genuine priority for the firm.
- I can see a long-term future for myself at this firm.
4. Recognition and fairness
- Good work is recognized fairly at this firm.
- Compensation decisions are transparent and well explained.
- I trust that advancement decisions are made fairly.
- Credit for work is attributed accurately.
5. Leadership and direction
- Firm leadership communicates a clear direction.
- I trust the decisions firm leadership makes.
- Leadership acts on the feedback it collects.
- I understand how my work connects to the firm's goals.
6. Belonging and inclusion
- I feel I belong at this firm.
- People from all backgrounds have an equal opportunity to succeed here.
- I can be myself at work.
- Work and opportunities are allocated equitably across the group.
7. Intent to stay
- I expect to be working at this firm two years from now.
- I would recommend this firm as a place to work.
- In the last six months, how often have you considered leaving?
That second question — would you recommend the firm — is your eNPS anchor, and we encourage US law firms to track it as a standalone metric between full surveys. If you want that single question turned into a benchmarked score you can follow over time, that's what our eNPS program does. → SRA eNPS (background: What Is eNPS? A Law Firm Guide)
What's the one question most US law firms forget to ask?
The single most predictive question is rarely on the survey: "Is your current work helping you build the career you want here?" Most surveys measure satisfaction ("are you happy?"), which people answer diplomatically. Work-and-career fit measures something behavioral that actually predicts departure.
This matters because compensation is no longer the lead reason associates leave US law firms. According to BTI Consulting's Associate Satisfaction A-Listers 2026 study (summarized via XIRA, June 2025), only 9.4% of associates are in it for the money alone, down from 17.2% in 2022 — associates leave for job-experience failures and partner behavior, not pay. A survey that only measures happiness and salary will miss the actual cause, a point we develop in Why Culture Beats Pay for Retaining Mid-Level Associates.
How should US law firms handle open-text questions?
Add two or three open-text boxes after the rating sections, and keep them specific. "What's one thing that would most improve your experience here?" produces more usable signal than "Any other comments?" Open responses are where the why behind a low score lives — but they're also where attorneys are most identifiable, which is why how those verbatim comments are stored, and who can read them, directly affects how honest people will be.
This is the core of how we run every survey for US law firms: we hold raw responses, including open text, externally — outside the firm's systems — so attorneys can answer candidly. → SRA Firm Engagement Survey
How many questions should a US law firm engagement survey have?
Keep it to roughly 25 to 35 rating questions, answerable in 8 to 10 minutes, plus two or three open-text boxes. Use a consistent five-point agreement scale, hold a stable core of questions year over year so you can track trends, and add only a few firm-specific questions each cycle. We've consistently found it's better for US law firms to ask fewer questions more often than to run one exhausting annual survey — the reasoning is in Continuous Feedback at US Law Firms: Why It Beats Annual Reviews.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between an engagement survey and a satisfaction survey at a US law firm?
A satisfaction survey measures how people feel right now. An engagement survey measures commitment and behavior — whether people are invested, developing and planning to stay. Engagement predicts retention; satisfaction often doesn't.
Should a US law firm engagement survey be anonymous?
Yes, and at a US law firm anonymity has to be structural, not just promised. If associates believe a response could be traced back to them, they soften it. Where the raw responses are held determines how honest people are willing to be.
How often should a US law firm run an engagement survey?
Most US law firms run one full annual survey supported by shorter pulse checks through the year. One data point a year is too few to act on before a departure.
Can a US law firm add its own questions?
Yes. Treat the seven categories as the stable core, then add a few firm-specific questions each cycle, keeping the core consistent so you can compare year over year.
Who at a US law firm should receive the survey?
Typically all attorneys and often professional staff. Segment results by class year, practice group and office — firm-wide averages hide the groups most at risk.
Sources: Bloomberg Law, 2025 Attorney Workload & Hours Survey (conducted Jan 2025, 1,054 respondents), via Legal.io · Gallup, "Fast Feedback Fuels Performance" (2024), gallup.com · BTI Consulting, Associate Satisfaction A-Listers 2026, via XIRA.
SRA designs and runs confidential performance reviews, partner evaluations, upward review programs, 360-degree feedback, and firm engagement surveys exclusively for US law firms. We are not a legal AI vendor. We are the people-side partner that helps firms get performance, development, and retention right — which matters more, not less, as AI reshapes the work. Built for US law firms since 1987.
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Exclusively serving United States law firms since 1987.
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