Mayer Brown announces 100% trainee retention as it opens applications for earn-while-you-learn

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By Thomas Connelly on

Global giant with dual route to qualification keeps 2016 kids

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International law firm Mayer Brown has announced that all four of its newly qualified (NQ) lawyers will remain at the firm, resulting in a perfect 100% retention score.

Each member of the quartet was offered a permanent associate role — and accepted.

Mayer Brown confirmed back in 2014 that it was undertaking a period of consolidation with regards its trainee intake, in an attempt to curtail a series of poor retention performances.

The firm now offers around 15 training contracts annually in London. Alongside this it runs an earn-while-you-learn school leaver programme that combines working at the firm with a part-time law degree at the University of Law, and leads to qualification as a solicitor. Mayer Brown will be recruiting for one legal apprentice this year, with applications opening today.

Mayer’s qualifying NQs — who have all come through the traditional training contract route — will start on a recently improved pay packet of £69,000. They will be spread across several of Mayer Brown’s key practice areas, including corporate and securities, construction & engineering and antitrust & competition.

Will Glassey, Mayer Brown’s training principle, said:

I’d like to congratulate our trainees and wish them every success in the practices that they have chosen to qualify into. We invest in our trainees to give them the best possible start to their legal career and an opportunity to build a long term career at the firm. We are delighted that our retention rate reflects this.

With today’s announcement marking a whopping 45 percentage point increase on the firm’s disappointing autumn 2015 performance, Mayer Brown has continued a series of strong retention results across the City so far in 2016.

New York-headquartered outfit Weil Gotshal & Manges also bagged itself a perfect UK retention result of 100% earlier this month. However just this week, fellow US outfit White & Case — which has a recent history of perfect results — could only manage 87%. Meanwhile, national outfit Trowers & Hamlins, revealed an 88% rate; a result narrowly beaten by City outfit Nabarro, which posted 88%, keeping eight out of nine of its qualifying trainees.

Herbert Smith Freehills continued its impressive run of retention form by posting a 94% rate last week, with magic circle player Slaughter and May having got the 2016 spring retention round under way with a strong 95% performance.