Linklaters completes magic circle’s spring retention season with solid 86% result

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By Thomas Connelly on

The outfit’s new associates will be based in London, Hong Kong and Dubai

Magic circle titan Linklaters has revealed 44 of its 51 newly-qualifying lawyers (NQs) have committed their future to the firm.

Offering around 110 training contracts annually, more than any other City firm, Linklaters has today posted an 86% spring retention result with all but seven trainees opting to stick around post-qualification. The outfit confirmed that 48 associates-to-be had applied for full-time positions, with 44 staying on.

Linklaters’ latest recruits — who will pocket a very tidy £77,500 a year according to Legal Cheek’s Most List — will be spilt across the firm’s London, Hong Kong and Dubai offices.

Richard Hodgson, Linklaters’ training partner, said:

We are thrilled to announce such an impressive retention rate from our March qualification round. This figure demonstrates our consistency in producing great results when it comes to developing and retaining the future of our firm.

Linklaters — which scored A*s for its training, perks, canteen and secondment opportunities in Legal Cheek’s 2016 Trainee & Junior Lawyer Survey — is the final magic circle outfit to reveal its spring 2017 result.

Kicking off another retention season back in December 2016 (yes, you read that correctly), Slaughter and May trumpeted a perfect 100% result, hanging on to all 25 of its NQs. Elsewhere, Clifford Chance raised eyebrows across the City when it posted a disappointing 67% figure last month, retaining just 31 of its 46 newbies.

Allen & Overy — which offers around 90 training contract positions each year — was next up. Earlier this month it confirmed an 82% result, with 31 of its 38-strong intake opting to stick around post-qualification. Meanwhile, Anglo-German giant Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer posted a solid score of 84%, confirming last week that 31 of its 38 March qualifiers had put to pen to paper on full-time deals.

Spring 2017 magic circle retention standings:

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