Acumen+giving+you+the+edge

DLA Piper lambasted by staff over payoffs

11 March 2009

  • Print
  • Comments (33)

Related Articles

Kit Chellel

The scale of unrest at DLA Piper has been revealed in the minutes of a meeting between senior staff and employee representatives regarding the firm’s redundancy programme.


The meeting was held shortly after the firm last month announced that it was to lose 30 lawyers and 110 support staff in the latest round of cuts.

A transcript seen by The Lawyer shows office managing partner Catherine Usher fielding angry questions about the size of the redundancy package being offered. Unlike firms including Linklaters and Clifford Chance, DLA Piper is offering the statutory minimum compensation to departing staff.

One employee at the meeting described the package as an insult, saying: “I’m not sure you appreciate the level of anger on the floors”. Others asked why partners had not been affected.

A staff member said: “If as a result of the packages on offer I see people potentially losing their homes … no amount of nice drinks with my boss will make up for it.”

Those who take voluntary redundancy receive their contractual notice period, statutory redundancy payment plus one month’s salary.

The minutes also reveal that the firm is hoping to save £12m in costs through the redundancies and that a recruitment freeze has been in place since June 2008. The hiring freeze is understood to exclude newly-qualified lawyers and ‘essential roles’.

Human resources staff told the meeting that since June last year 100 employees had left the firm with only 26 per cent of vacancies being filled in a bid to lower costs.

Some seven to eight per cent of partners have left the firm during the last year, according to the meeting notes, but it was not revealed how many had joined during this time.

One London-based DLA Piper associate told The Lawyer: “Morale is very low. There is a fear this is going to be repeated in three-month cycles.”

It has also emerged that the firm considered moving to a four-day week but decided this did not suit its business model.

The 30-day consultation ends on 20 March. A spokesman for DLA Piper declined to comment on the content of the meeting, but said: “We’ve engaged in a thorough process which in two of our offices has included a formal collective consultation process including the election of workplace representatives. The representatives have added to the debate and we would like to thank them for their contributions.

“We’ve responded to the questions put to us by elected representatives in an open and detailed manner because we felt this was the right thing to do.”

See all Related Jobs, Briefings & CPD/Events

Readers' comments (33)

  • Anonymous | 12-Mar-2009 4:22 pm

    Plus ca change plus le meme chose

    In times of stress most organisations reveal their true colours. DLA have missed an opportunity to treat their outgoing staff better than the statutory minimum. They are likely to lose any residual goodwill those "alumni" may have had for the firm. Their loss will no doubt be other's gain. There are some of us in the legal profession who believe in excellence and deliver it, who don't chase the last ounce of profit, who believe in client service above all and work collegiately and supportively through good times and bad.
    There is another way!

    Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment

  • Anonymous | 12-Mar-2009 7:10 pm

    Trouble with ungrateful employees is....

    It sickens me to hear people who aren't even smart enough to understand that times are tight for all law firms calling for more appreciation and thanks and a better redundancy package. Hunting animals seems easy in comparison to explaining this to some people.

    Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment

  • Jim | 13-Mar-2009 8:46 am

    DLA

    How many Ferraris does Sir Senior Partner have?

    Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment

  • Anonymous | 13-Mar-2009 1:22 pm

    Surprising.... NOT!

    From their early days when they were trying to break into the London legal big time right up to the present day, they are the most tight fisted law firm I ever worked for. Doesn't surprise me at all that a firm who gives £50 Xmas bonus to staff (in the good times!) would treat them just as shabbily in a redundancy situation. Who would want to work there?

    Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment

  • Billy Better off out of it | 13-Mar-2009 2:27 pm

    Dont be so precious

    As a former partner of a major international law firm, I have seen first hand how all larger firms gravitate to the same “Stepford Wife” model for partners. In this case, however, they are target-driven, thrusting, money and status worshipers. It used to amuse me to see the lengths others would go to get their names on my files, as the originator of the work or the partner responsible for the work. There is no place in these organisations for people who do not want to fight to be king of the dung-heap. The associates now complaining ought to stop and think: Did you join DLA (indeed, can you join any large law firm nowadays) because you thought that the culture was something akin to John Lewis? Of course not. So do not be surprised when the dog you lay down with gives you a dose of fleas. Keith’s point below is well made. If you want security of tenure, quality of life and a truly enjoyable work culture, you should be prepared to look at the “those firms” you may previously have been turning your nose up at, but who have quietly been humouring you. You may be paid a little less, but you will live longer.

    Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment

  • Anonymous | 13-Mar-2009 3:01 pm

    No surprises

    I used be a solicitor with DLA and got out long ago to a much happier position with an employer who cares. At least you could say their selfish greed has always been a consistent trait. Those still working there should have jumped ship in the good times. The greed and disregard of the partners for anybody but themselves has always been clearly apparent for those with their eyes open. I can still recall the £50 bonus Christmas as a trainee....cheap and stingy then cheap and stingy now.

    Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment

  • Anonymous | 13-Mar-2009 7:18 pm

    The Fist of God

    Looks like management are making a good fist of it

    Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment

  • manalive | 14-Mar-2009 4:28 pm

    oh dear

    oops. I can only presume that sir nige doesn't think they will be needing laterals for a few years... As for those made redundant, will they be instructing Dibbs when they turn up in-house 2 years from now?

    Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment

  • Anonymous | 15-Mar-2009 10:32 pm

    DLA Piper

    It is never fund to be made redundant but a more balanced article would have mentioned that if the DLA lawyers were working as in-house lawyers in financial institutions they would be lucky to get one month on top of the statutory pay.

    If this is a way to protect the greater number of jobs, it was no doubt a hard but very necessary decision for the Managing Partner.

    Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment

  • Santa Clause | 16-Mar-2009 3:54 pm

    Dumb Lawyers Association

    DLA suffer from a massive perception problem in the city. What continues to amaze me is their ability to make this worse at every turn. Own goal, own goal, and now another own goal. Well done to the DLA PR machine.

    Unsuitable or offensive? Report this comment

View results 10 per page | 20 per page | 50 per page

Have your say

Mandatory Required Fields

  • Print
  • Comments (33)

Most popular

Most commented

Most emailed