Watson Farley & Williams and DLA Piper are among firms that have handed their lawyers a pay boost.
First-year trainees at Watson Farley, previously paid £42,000, will now be paid £43,000.
Second-years will still be paid £46,000, but newly-qualified (NQ) solicitors will take home £70,000, up from £68,000.
DLA Piper also has increased its salaries for trainees.
London-based trainees were previously paid £42,000 in their first year, rising to £47,000 in their second year and £70,000 on qualification.
They will now be paid £44,000 in their first year, rising to £49,000 in their second year and £75,000 on qualification.
In the rest of England, DLA handed out £27,000 to first year trainees, £30,000 to second years and £41,000 to NQ.
Regional trainees still take home the same, but NQs have been handed a £1,000 pay rise to £42,000.
The pay has been backdated to May. UK managing partner Sandra Wallace said: “We consistently recognise the contributions of our people and want to reward them competitively. With that in mind, delaying our associate salary review was the right decision to make; it’s meant that we are now better positioned in the market – both in London and the rest of England.”
Holman Fenwick Willan has handed its NQs a £4,000 boost – from £58,000 to £62,000. Trainees at the firm get a £1,000 uplift, with first-years’ pay increased from £36,000 to £37,000 and second-years being bumped from £38,000 to £39,000.
At Ince & Co, first year trainees were previously paid £37,000 – that has been increased to £37,750. Second-years got £41,000 and have seen an increase to £41,800, while NQs see salaries rise from £62,000 to £63,250.
And Kingsley Napley has raised salaries by £1,000 for first-year and second-year trainees and NQs alike. They will now take home £32,000, £34,000 and £56,000 respectively.
