Erin Ryce

Erin is the founder of BlackByrd Partners, a legal recruiting and talent consulting firm that specializes in lateral acquisitions and law firm growth strategies. She has represented over $100M in aggregate books of business, helping firms execute office openings, multi-market group moves, and strategic individual hires.

What sets Erin apart is her experience on both sides of the table. Before launching BlackByrd, she spent years managing recruitment and development for a global Am Law 100 firm, overseeing a range of initiatives, including associate and partner hiring, mentoring programs, diversity initiatives, and the attorney review process. She also served as Practice Manager for a global legal talent services company, where she managed the Charlotte office and interim-managed the e-Discovery division in London—overseeing multi-million-dollar practices focused on direct placement and managed review services.

This background provides her with a unique understanding of what firms actually need and what candidates truly want. She knows the people, the processes, and the business realities that drive talent decisions. Whether she's advising a firm on a retention strategy or helping an attorney navigate a career transition, she brings both market intelligence and genuine insight into what makes placements succeed in the long term.

Erin is an active member of NALP and NALSC, where she served on the New Career Models Task Force and helped draft the first "NCMTF Resource Guide." She has presented on lateral hiring strategies and continues to contribute to conversations about how law firms can build stronger, more sustainable talent practices.

Erin holds a bachelor's degree in Communications Design from La Roche University and is a Certified Human Behavioral Consultant and Certified Six Sigma Green Belt.

Colin Petersen

Colin is a Managing Director with BlackByrd Partners. Having interviewed candidates for his previous law firms and gone through a lateral move, Colin understands the client and candidate perspective. He uses this experience, along with deep market knowledge, to thoroughly understand all party’s needs in order to make lasting matches. 

Prior to joining BlackByrd Partners, Colin was an associate in the banking & finance group of an international law firm, where he worked on a wide variety of structured finance and lending transactions. After spending two years in banking & finance, Colin lateralled to the corporate group of an AmLaw 200 regional firm, where he focused on a variety of general corporate matters, including mergers and acquisitions, private equity investments, corporate finance transactions and advising clients on corporate governance issues.

Colin received his Bachelor of Arts in political science, graduating summa cum laude, from the University of South Carolina and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. Colin received his Juris Doctor from Emory University School of Law and graduated Order of the Coif.

Morgan Fey

Morgan is a Managing Director with BlackByrd Partners. Before joining BlackByrd, she served as the Director of Talent Acquisition for an NLJ 500 firm, where she drove firm-wide recruitment efforts. In that role, Morgan managed the strategic conception, integration, and execution of the firm’s growth and recruitment initiatives. Through her experience overseeing all aspects of the firm’s recruiting efforts, from entry-level associates to partners, Morgan has a deep understanding of the client perspective. She uses this knowledge, along with her strong market connections and relationship-based approach to make lasting matches.

Before entering the talent acquisition space, Morgan practiced as a litigator with an international law firm where she represented institutional clients in financial services litigation. At the beginning of her law career, Morgan worked with a boutique litigation firm where her practice focused on complex commercial litigation in the areas of financial servicing, professional negligence defense, risk management, and product liability claims. 

Morgan received her bachelor’s degree in business from the University of Western Ontario and her Juris Doctor from New England Law | Boston, where she graduated cum laude. While in law school, Morgan was the managing business editor of the New England Journal on Criminal and Civil Confinement.

Maggie Brewer

Maggie is a Director with BlackByrd Partners. Before joining BlackByrd, Maggie oversaw firmwide recruitment and development for a global Am Law 100 firm and an Am Law 150 regional firm, where she managed associate and partner hiring and handled associate mentoring and development. Maggie's experience shepherding practice leaders, associate candidates, and partner candidates through the recruitment and integration process gives her a comprehensive understanding of clients' and candidates' needs, allowing her to add unparalleled value.

Maggie has an extensive network of hiring partner and recruiting manager contacts and served as a member of the Atlanta Legal Recruiter Association (ALRA), NALP's Atlanta chapter of recruitment professionals for Southeastern and international law firms. Maggie leverages her strong relationships to facilitate the best matches for her clients and candidates. 

Maggie received her Bachelor of Arts in History from the University of Georgia.