Virtual data rooms for Birmingham deals, audits and legal matters

What sets Birmingham's economy apart

Wholesale agents and brokers is where Birmingham is most unlike the rest of the country: 232 establishments, a share of local businesses 2.0 times the national one. Next come stone, glass and cement products (88 establishments, 1.8 times) and banking and lending (851 establishments, 1.5 times). No other metro on these pages has a higher concentration of wholesale agents and brokers, out of 61 with published figures.

Brokerage and agency businesses sell on the strength of their principal agreements and commission histories.

Quarry and building-materials deals look at mineral rights, permits and plant records. In stone, glass and cement products, Birmingham leads every metro on these pages.

How Birmingham compares

The Census Bureau estimated the Birmingham, AL metro's population at 1,192,583 in July 2024, up 11,983 or 1.0 percent on the April 2020 base of 1,180,600.

Measured against the 2023 estimate of 1,186,201, the same year as the business count, Birmingham has 59.7 offices of lawyers per 100,000 residents, 20th of the 59 metro areas on these pages against a median of 52.6; the nearest rates are Boston, MA at 59.7 and Orlando, FL at 61.1.

The metro with the closest number of law offices is Salt Lake City, UT, with 734; the metro closest in population, Hartford, CT at 1,169,048 residents, has 614 law offices and 416 accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll establishments.

Counted by accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll firms instead, Birmingham's nearest match is Boise, ID, with 453.

• Residents, July 2024: 1,192,583
• Residents, April 2020 base: 1,180,600
• Change since 2020: +11,983 (1.0 percent), 44th of 59
• Law offices per 100,000 residents: 59.7, 20th of 59
• Accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll per 100,000 residents: 37.9, 38th of 59
• Securities and investment per 100,000 residents: 27.2, 52nd of 59
• Managing offices per 100,000 residents: 15.3, 27th of 59
• Real estate agents and brokers per 100,000 residents: 37.2, 45th of 59
• Employees in offices of lawyers: about 5,200
• Employees in accounting, tax, bookkeeping and payroll: about 3,800

The courts and regulators behind Birmingham paperwork

When a Birmingham dispute reaches federal court, it goes to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, whose Birmingham courthouse is the Hugo L. Black United States Courthouse.

CPAs practicing in Alabama are licensed by the Alabama State Board of Public Accountancy.

At state level, securities offerings and investment advisers in Alabama answer to the Alabama Securities Commission, so a Birmingham fund raising money or an adviser facing an exam has documents to produce on request.

If personal information in a Birmingham deal, audit or case file is exposed, Alabama's data breach notification law sets who has to be told and when.