Pros
I stayed three years too long after it was a pandemic wfh solution and had over a dozen engagements. They all were awful and would be for anyone with an ounce of self-respect and who does not want to work for the equivalent of a farm factory for lawyers. Axiom pairs you with a non-lawyer for the most part, some barely out of college, to be your "Talent Success Partner." This is a joke. Imagine the scenario of a 24 year old telling a 50 year old lawyer with a stellar career how they are to be a "success." It is demeaning. These reps all get a cut of your pay and you are only seen as their gravy train. Overall, they do not respect you, despite their rhetoric to the contrary. They do not care if the work on your engagement is terrible, or if the people at their "client companies" treat you terribly. Grin and bear it all is their motto. And, their client companies are always right and more valuable to them than you, one individual resource. The in-house lawyers you work for generally consider you inferior. Why are you at Axiom is the number one question you will always be asked. More often they will ask you to do the crap work they don't want to do. They also resent you because they think you are making three times more than you are as Axiom takes approximately 2/3 while you get 1/3 for doing all the work. It still dumbfounds me how they get away with having this business model, as it seems clearly a violation of professional rules for any jurisdiction. Sharing your fees with non-lawyers in this manner is just wrong, They are so careful to not call themselves a law firm, but they compensate themselves like one. I hope someone challenges them in court one day.
Cons
They never give you the hours you want as they have too many lawyers on their bench and waiting in the wings to sign on for this awful gig. And there, in between engagements, you too will wait, and wait, and wait, with no pay, despite there being many engagements for which you are qualified, all while they continue to advertise on every job board for more and more lawyers to sign up. Take this as a red flag. There is a lot of favoritism and stroking of backs to get the best engagements. The pay is low, but it seems lawyers don't mind making less than their plumbers or electricians. As long as there are lawyers lining up to work for their embarrassingly low hourly rate for highly experienced counsel, they will stay in business. So, the lawyers are supporting this model because they accept it. All of this is not good for the profession. The benefits, or lack thereof, aren't even worth commenting on.