Come out, come out wherever you are

Smoke, mirrors...

The top firms are all well acquainted with these highly specialised techniques of making their average profit per equity partner (PEP) figures look better (or sometimes worse) than they really are.

It's hard to prove, of course, but then catching them at it is half the fun.

Which is why today's (13 August) feature is so necessary. In case you haven't seen it yet, the article reveals some of the truth behind this year's market-busting PEP figures (see story)

By adding in the money that goes to paying salaried partners, our groundbreaking set of figures levels the playing field. They show what a more accurate average would be if all partners were included, not just the occasionally tiny proportion that share fully in the equity.

Those firms with increasingly tight equities (you know who you are) should rightly worry that they might see a partner exodus as the veil is pulled away.

As headhunter Penny Terndrup of Boyden said today in response to the piece: "That'll put the cat among the pigeons."

Let's hope so.

The full list for all top 100 firms will be published on 3 September in The Lawyer UK 200 Annual Report. Plenty of time for disgruntled partners to start calling a few recruiters.