City law juniors haul in Premier League footballer-level money
The growing chasm between corporate law and the rest of the legal profession has been underlined by a report that Sidley Austin is paying signing on fees of £100,000 each to a bunch of rookie solicitors.
Significantly, the London office of the US giant has declined to comment on the news — rather than deny it.
The news first appeared in The Lawyer magazine (registration required) in what was originally thought to be an April Fool. Indeed, the magazine’s reporters had to take to Twitter to insist that it was true.
Despite calls to the newsdesk to the contrary, I can confirm this is (sadly) NOT an April Fool's… https://t.co/Gf97cszv8L
— Tabby Kinder (@TheLawyerTabby) April 1, 2016
So what do we know about the lucky seven junior lawyers who’ll be on the receiving end of these mega payouts?
Well, they are following six partners who specialise in private equity from another US firm, the mighty Kirkland & Ellis, which has the highest billing target in Britain. Kirkland requires associates to bill 1,900 hours per year — check out the Firms Most List for the full rankings. So they chose their practice area well and have plenty of stamina.
Oh, and they are already pretty rich — Kirkland’s newly qualified (NQ) solicitors earn £100,000. Plus they are used to plush office space: Chicago-based Kirkland’s London office is famously located across the 22nd and 23rd floors of the Gherkin.
Sidley — which is the firm at which President Obama met wife Michelle while doing a vac scheme — only pays its NQs £90,000. But that soon shoots up as associates progress through the ranks. Its offices, in an unlovely bit of the City just down from Moorgate Tube, are much less flash though.
The news comes amid a wave of recent City law pay rises that have seen to the formation of an elite ‘100 Club’ of US firm London offices which pay their NQs £100k or more. The magic circle — which used to lead the way on pay — have responded by increasing their junior lawyer salaries to the £70-£90k range. Where will it all end?