Slaughter and May lets lawyers clock out of emails from 10pm to 8am October 30, 2022 Magic Circle law firm Slaughter and May is set to let its lawyers log out of their emails after 10pm in a bid to prevent “unnecessary incursions” on its employees’ work-life balances. However, lawyers at the elite London firm must still be “reachable by phone” and may still be required to check emails past 10pm [...]
City law firms have youngest partners, new research shows August 31, 2022 The City’s high-paying corporate law firms have more young partners than those working in any other sector of the legal business, new research from legal sector accountancy firm Hazelwoods shows. Almost two fifths (38 per cent) of partners at City of London firms are now under the age of 44, as young lawyers are [...]
Payday: City law firm hikes starting salary for junior lawyers to £120k July 2, 2022 Square Mile law firm Herbert Smith Freehills has boosted its starting salary for junior lawyers to £120,000, as the City pay battle wages on. The firm has hiked pay for junior lawyers by 24 per cent, in a bid to compete with other law firms also increasing staff pay. The increase comes as Bank of [...]
London’s elite Magic Circle law firms promote record number of partners as talent war rages on May 9, 2022 London’s prestigious Magic Circle law firms have promoted a record number of partners this year, in a sign the battle for talent is raging on at the most senior levels of the UK’s top firms. London’s five Magic Circle law firms – Clifford Chance, Freshfields, Slaughter and May, Linklaters, and Allen & Overy – promoted [...]
‘Appalling’ war prompts Linklaters to pull out of Russia and close down its entire Moscow office after 30 years March 7, 2022 Legal giant Linklaters confirmed to City A.M. it is closing down its entire Russian operations, after a presence of more than three decades. In an email, the Magic Circle law firm said that, after careful consideration and “as the appalling war in Ukraine continues, we will wind down our operations in Russia and close our [...]
Linklaters changes pay structure to reward ‘exceptional’ partners as bidding war for talent rages on December 16, 2021 Linklaters plans to shift its traditional pay model for partners so “exceptional” individuals can be held on to with larger salaries. Senior partner Aedamar Comiskey confirmed in a statement that the move, which will apply globally, was backed by Linklaters’ 500 partners through a vote. The main changes include the ability to offer more money [...]
Magic Circle: Slaughter & May poaches first COO from Freshfields amid executive reshuffle December 1, 2021 Slaughter & May have nabbed Jill Hoseason, the global chief operating officer of their magic circle rival Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, as their first ever COO, in a leadership shakeup. Earlier this year Slaughter and May, which boasts more FTSE 350 clients than any other law firm, announced plans to restructure its management team, a move it said [...]
Slaughter & May adopts different working rules for junior and senior staff May 30, 2021 Law firm Slaughter & May is planning separate rules for its junior and senior lawyers that will see those in higher positions able to work from home more often. Trainee lawyers, newly qualified associates and new recruits will be required to work from the office four days a week on average from September, the Telegraph [...]
Freshfields tries to distance itself from ‘Magic Circle’ label April 22, 2021 Top brass at elite London law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer would prefer it not to be labelled a ‘Magic Circle’ firm, after it aggressively expanded into the US in recent years. “I don’t think the Magic Circle is a correct reference, and, at the same time, we do more than our US competitors as well,” [...]
Freshfields to take on students from racially diverse and poorer backgrounds February 4, 2021 Magic circle law firm Freshfields will take on hundreds of students from lower socio-economic and racially diverse backgrounds, in a push to promote social mobility and racial equality in professional careers. For the next three years Freshfields will take on 100 students per year, aged 16 – 17, as part of a UK-wide programme to [...]