Note- I am genuinely interested in bringing some transparency and information about the pay at English law firms. Please comment only if you have authentic information.

Hi,

I know most of us are very much intrigued by the idea of settling abroad and everyone would love to migrate to London especially if you get an offer to work at a Magic circle law firm. I am a senior associate at a T1 law firm in India and I was planning the same. However, I wanted to get some information about the financial prospects in london and I found that even though, the salaries of Newly qualified solicitors may seem very high at MC firms, the rise in salary isn't great. At Linklaters, the salary structure is broadly as follows-
– NQ: 105.5k
– 1PQE: 115k
– 2PQE: 130k
– 3PQE: 140k
– 4PQE: 150k
– 5PQE: 160k

Also, 5 PQE in an MC firm is equivalent to 8 PQE in Indian firms because of the gap year as well as the years spent in the training contract.

So, after tax, an 8 PQE at Linklaters would take around 100k home (160k- gross income). As per the living standard conversion, 100k in London is equal to around 32 lakhs in Mumbai and 23 lakhs in Delhi. Isn't this way too less for an 8 PQE? In India, he/she would definitely be making double of this figure, if not more. At 8 PQE, some people in Trilegal/SCAM/Khaitan are making north of 80 Lakhs, and even after tax, they take home north of 70 Lakhs.

Does a shift to a London law firm make any financial sense? I understand that it finally boils down to an individual's preference and nothing can compare to the lifestyle in London, but speaking from the financial point of view, does it make any sense to migrate to London through Training contracts or vacation schemes? Why do people in NLUs not research the salary figures before accepting TCs from such firms? Most people just assume that it is obviously more prestigious working in an MC firm, so they migrate to London without even considering the long term prospect.

(I know US law firms in London pay very handsomely. However, jumping ship to a US firm isn't easy especially for Indian grads as they recruit in smaller numbers and have a significant preference for Oxbridge grads. Also, if people return to India after spending a couple of years in London, most T1 firms end up discounting their PQEs, especially the years spent in Training contract.)

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer payscale – newly massively boosted bonus pot from next FY on- assuming standard bonus @1800 hrs and normal ratings, and standard speed (one promotion every 12 months) profession through the “Career Milestones”:

NQ: 125,000 + 13,000
1PQE: 130,000 + 18,000
2PQE: 140,000 + 38,000
3PQE: 150,000 + 56,000
4PQE: 160,000 + 84,000
5PQE: 165,000 + 102,000
6PQE / senior associate: 175,000 + 116,000

If you do the sums you’ll see that this is benchmarked against the Cravath scale (sans Cravath bonuses)


This is from a Legal Cheek thread: https://www.legalcheek.com/2022/04/open-thread-what-uk-firms-are-really-paying-associates-beyond-nq-level/

I do not think your figures are correct bro/sis cos tu bonus miss kar raha hai and London ki baat alag hai, - dunia bohot badi hai - mayanagri ke champ

bro baat sirf aur sirf self development ki hai - tu vahan jake bolna chalna sab naye sire se seekhega especially if u do the TC - and jo log isko overrated kehte hai unke paas bachpan se bohot paisa hai to London unke liye itni badi baat kabhi thee hee nahi but tu middle class hai to bhai vibe toh bahar hee hai

Did the foreign firm thing and returned to India, kaam same hai. Cost of living is very high so they have to pay more, savings in terms of cost of living is almost the same, if not less. US prefers people with a US degree and bar qualifications. Write QLTS if you want to work in the UK. Foreign PQE (not training contract - full time employment) is discounted to some extent if you return, but not entirely. TC is not counted at all. Promotion is slower abroad (at least in the UK-i don't know about other jurisdictions).

The "reality" of working with foreign law firms is that you work with more sane, non-hierarchical human beings who understand that (1) everyone is in this for the money and benefits and (2) not everyone wants to make partner (which is a feature of the model, not a bug). No boot licking "maam" "sir" bs, no you can be replaced with better talent in 10 seconds. The "reality" of working in a more liberal environment is that you don't need to hide your sexual orientation or any other feature that makes you diverse. On the contrary, you're celebrated for it. Money and standard of living aside, as someone who has worked in both worlds, the "reality" is that I would rather do this meaningless job in a better environment with actual qualitative and quantitative benefits - even though your monetary point is bs, I make more as a 5th year associate in big law than any salaried partner in India and I can spend it on better shit too (not servants that only serve our feudal social setup). And enough people agree or they wouldn't be lining up to give up all their years of work ex to re-start as a first year in another firm.

Hey, are you someone who moved laterally? Could you share your experience of how you approached the market (I know it was 5 years ago, that was a tougher time than the hiring situation right now) and any suggestions for lawyers in India who are trying to move? I’m one of them and I have a foreign law qualification. Should I take the first part of the SQE to substantiate to prospective employers that I’m serious about this?