Further to last week's story about the partner cull at Linklaters, more names have emerged of corporate partners to be axed. And Links' associates got a talking to about speaking to the press.
It's certainly not a happy time to be a partner at the Magic Circle firm. 35 are being kicked out of the firm's London office, which has been deemed too top-heavy. RollOnFriday has been informed of the identity of two big name corporate partners to be given the chop.
It's also rumoured that the firm plans to merge all its departments into just two: Corporate and Finance. Litigation will be split, as will Real Estate, and it's rumoured that some less profitable departments may well be ditched altogether. So it's all change at the top.
And it seems that the rattled firm is desperately trying to batten down the hatches. During their weekly meeting corporate associates were apparently on the receiving end of a very stern warning against spilling any more names to the legal press. Looks like that worked well, spill all your beans here (anonymously of course).
A spokesman for the firm said that nothing had yet been decided and they had no further comment.
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It's certainly not a happy time to be a partner at the Magic Circle firm. 35 are being kicked out of the firm's London office, which has been deemed too top-heavy. RollOnFriday has been informed of the identity of two big name corporate partners to be given the chop.
It's also rumoured that the firm plans to merge all its departments into just two: Corporate and Finance. Litigation will be split, as will Real Estate, and it's rumoured that some less profitable departments may well be ditched altogether. So it's all change at the top.
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Linklaters' corporate department yesterday |
And it seems that the rattled firm is desperately trying to batten down the hatches. During their weekly meeting corporate associates were apparently on the receiving end of a very stern warning against spilling any more names to the legal press. Looks like that worked well, spill all your beans here (anonymously of course).
A spokesman for the firm said that nothing had yet been decided and they had no further comment.
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The deal used to be that you would slave away as an associate; but if you made partnership, as a part owner, you could slack off a bit and reap the benefits of the work done by the aspiring associates. Fair enough.
But now, even when you get made partner, you continue to work like an associate, and can instantly be axed by the powers that be if they decide you are not productive enough.
So who actually now owns these firms? And who benefits from all this? Is there an ever-shrinking cadre of partners making all the others work for them and getting ever larger shares? If so, is the logical conclusion that eventually we will see a sole partner equivalent of Louis XIV in charge?
And why do the other partners let this happen?
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I think that George Orwell's Animal Farm provides the answers you are looking for. Partnerships are really powerful organisational structures where the partner/owners are bound into the joint enterprise much more closely than corporate employees (albeit highly paid ones). Sadly, in LL it looks as if some partners have become more equal than others.
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