Norton Rose Fulbright has increased trainee and NQ salaries.

Newly qualified lawyers see their salaries jump from £63,000 to £65,000, backdated to May. That's not quite up there with Freshfields, where NQs can take home anything from £67,500 - £77,500. And Clifford Chance NQs are sitting on £67,500 with their recent salary hikes. But it's the same as Linklaters and Slaughter and May pay, and a grand up on A&O. OK, NRF's brand isn't as sky high as the Magic Circle firms, but then neither presumably are the hours its lawyers are expected work.

First year trainees are now paid £39,500 (up from £38,000), which rises to £44,500 in the second year. Again, these figures are backdated to May. The rises coincide with a 4% increase in the firm's global revenues to £1,152m. So it looks like partners will be earning more too, although the firm hasn't reported its profits.

    A Norton Rose Fulbright NQ relaxing at home yesterday


For lawyers beyond NQ level Norton Rose moved towards a merit-based system a few years ago so would not comment on pay rises. A spokesman said that salaries are determined by a number of factors, one of which is individual performance and contribution.

A spokesman said “it is essential that we attract and retain high quality people, and ensuring our salaries are competitive is one of the ways to achieve this goal”.

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Comments

Anonymous 17 March 15 13:16

They may have increased the lawyers' salaries but they certainly haven't increased the support staff!