Yes the legal hiring process is long and complicated. But check out what NASA does!

• NASA hires new astronauts about once every 4 years. 18,000 people applied for 12 spots a few years ago!
• Candidates must have a master’s degree in a science, engineering, or math field and a minimum of two years of relevant professional experience. (What is considered “relevant” I wonder?)
• Candidates must also have soft skills, including “leadership, followership, agility, and the ability to react quickly under pressure.” They have to work well in a group. NASA selects for a small team, not just a couple of individuals, and takes into consideration “the diversity of the team as well as how well the individuals on the team work together.”
• Candidates have to pass a physical and undergo psychological assessments.
• An astronaut selection board then conducts interviews, checks references, and winnows down candidates further.
• Final stage candidates move on to an on-site evaluation at HQ (Houston) lasting 4-7 days for more interviews and exercises to evaluate strengths and weaknesses. The manager of astronaut selection says, “We plan activities that immerse them in what they might experience if they were an astronaut” and assess how candidates “respond to real-life scenarios” like: (i) being “chosen to be team leader for an exercise and then suddenly be asked to give up that role and defer to a different candidate. How does each person respond to the change in roles?” and (ii) being “given 30 minutes to complete an assignment and midway through, the time allotted to complete the task would be cut in half.” (Hm, these sound very realistic and applicable to the legal team too, not that I am trying to give anyone ideas.)