Bingham maintains £100k NQ salary
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Bingham McCutchen has confirmed it is maintaining its £100,000 newly qualified (NQ) lawyer salary following its latest salary review.
The news means that the firm’s NQ salary remains at the very top end of the remuneration packages paid by US firms to junior lawyers.
Firms Sullivan & Cromwell and Quinn Emanuel follow, offering their NQs £97,500 pay packages (20 January 2012).
Meanwhile, Kirkland & Ellis and Weil Gotshal & Manges recently bolstered their salaries for their London-based associates to £97,000 following their latest salary reviews (5 January 2012).
The findings highlight the continuing gulf between the wages paid at leading City firms and those at their US rivals, with magic circle pay only sitting between £61,000 and £61,500 for 2011-12 (7 June 2011).
Readers' comments (9)
Anonymous | 8-Feb-2012 3:59 pm
Only 61K ??Someone with 2 years experience and possibly only 6 months experience in their chosen field paid only 61K. As a client id be worried about this! 100k for someone this young is ridiculous. The lawyers go under the radar it appears in these harsh times......
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EC4 | 9-Feb-2012 0:43 am
Steady on Anonymous @3.59, 61K is really not that much to live off in London.
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Anonymous | 9-Feb-2012 1:18 pm
100k considering they probably don't really no that much is ridiculous. At 24-26 most would be happy to just get 40k
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Anonymous | 9-Feb-2012 1:50 pm
Yeh but I suppose in the firm's eyes it is their compensation for the NQ giving up their life for them - stupid hours, no weekends, nights...
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Anonymous | 9-Feb-2012 3:23 pm
City salaries look good on paper. The reality is that the employee is being compensated for unsociable hours, often having to work weekends, and the sky-high cost of living and commuting.
I would take £40K working a 9-5 in-house role in a small town, over double that salary in the City.
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Anonymous | 9-Feb-2012 3:36 pm
Word on the street is that only one of the four qualifiers in the past two years has stayed on to take advantage of that salary.
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Anonymous | 9-Feb-2012 3:51 pm
Begs the question why anyone works at a Magic Circle firm given you work similar hours for 60% of a US salary.
I think Silver Circle is the way to go - similar salary to MC and once you specialise for a couple of years there are no limits on moving to an MC or US firm (if that's the kind of life (or no-life) you're after).
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Anonymous | 10-Feb-2012 10:49 am
It is difficult, but not impossible, for an associate in the silver circle to move to a magic circle or US firm, particularly in this market. It's easier to move downwards.
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Sweat Shop | 10-Feb-2012 2:50 pm
It is always an interesting debate how much should a junior lawyer earn.
One thing that non lawyers fail to realise is it is quite amazing how intelligent individuals are prepared to work so many hours as they try to climb up the greasy pole.
The same applies to the different career grades, addleshaws by way of example seem to invent another one every week , every one is one further step away from equity.
The reality is the firms that are paying 100k will be sweating the asset to the maximum extent late nights and weekends will be expected and on a pro rata basis the 100k salary probably equates to around 60k.
Keep climbing the greasy pole and bill, bill , bill and If your clients grow with you and you work at a silver circle, the magic circle will be competing for you.
The reality is the rates are determined by the market and if major players started paying 50k, that would be quickly the accepted norm.
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