Top magic circle partner makes switch to investment banking
Linklaters ➡️ JP Morgan

A top magic circle partner is making the switch from a life in law to one in investment banking.
Charlie Jacobs, the senior partner at magic circle firm Linklaters, is set to join global investment bank, JP Morgan. According to a statement by the mega-bank, Jacobs will assume the role of co-head of UK investment banking.
The somewhat unusual move to finance comes after South African-born Jacobs recently celebrated 30 years at the elite law firm. He made partner in 1999 and was elected to senior partner in 2016.
At JP Morgan, Jacobs will reportedly advise blue-chip UK companies on the challenges arising from a post-Brexit market and recovery from the COVID-19 crisis. The M&A specialist will reportedly take up his new banking gig later this summer.
A Linklaters spokesperson said:
“We can confirm that, once his term as senior partner ends, Charlie Jacobs will be taking on a new role as co-head of J.P. Morgan Cazenove’s U.K. investment banking operations. Whilst Charlie will not be starting at J.P. Morgan until later in the year, we look forward to staying in touch with him once he begins his new role.”
News of the move comes just a week after JP Morgan announced the appointment of City solicitor turned politician Chuka Umunna as its head of environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
20 Comments
Observer
Ouch.
Hello
Imagine the millions whew.
Anon
Why would he bother? It’s just one dazzlingly well-paid corporate blackhole to the next.
JPM
7 figures to 8 figures annually that’s why
GS MD (FIG)
Phat dollar power move, sh*tting all over his previous drawings at Links most likely. This is where the money is kids, not at K&E 😀 😀 😀
Steve
I used to love supermarket sweep.
MASSIVE BALLER MOVE
MD drawings at JPM: low tens of millions
partner drawings at K&E/Latham/whatever hype firm is fashionable this year: low single digit millions
suck that lambo bois
Commercial awareness
Hahaha you seriously think an average MD at JP, or any bank, is making 10’s of millions??
Someone’s been watching Wolf of Wall St a few too many times
Average MD will be on about 3-4m
JPMC VP
You’re talking utter shyte if you think top investment bankers won’t bag north of £7m-£10m in total comp in a good year. Law firm partners are our bitches and will beg for work on a tenth of that wadd in their annual “drawings” lmao.
Stay ignorant and keep serving us, little simp.
CEO of Walmart
Meanwhile you’re just the bitch of the real corporate overlords who actually affect the economy and drive forward innovation.
Hope you enjoy spending life as a spreadsheet money.
Anonymous
While you peasants are slaving your life away at the desks, we get to finish work at 5pm every day because we hardly ever have to do work! #Worklifebalance
Henry
Yeah I’m feeling pretty burned out too- thinking of opening a dry cleaners
Anon
An easy switch as he wasn’t really a lawyer anyway. Corporate “lawyers” have nothing to do with black letter law and just cobble together boilerplate documents for deals.
flourpour
It’s a lot of money to pay for someone to just draft board minutes and shareholder resolutions but the banks can pay what they want.
Hey dumbo
That’s precisely what makes it an attractive profession. Personally, I want to stay as far away from the tedium of poring over “black letter” law, and, even worse, presenting it to some judge to argue over idiotic interpretations of statutes and caselaw (*gag*).
Equally, I hate the maths associated with IB. So spitting out documents for a 6-figure salary while WFH and enjoying time with family and friends, eventually switching to in-house to do more of the same just with a more normal schedule and more free time, is paradise in comparison to, well, just about any other profession I could think of.
Lol you arent a big boi
Hahaha – you clearly arent at a top firm (either US or MC) if you are enjoying time with your friends and family, and WFH has nothing to do with being a laywer, its the pandemic…dumbo!
Dumbo 1 and dumbo 2
Do you hear yourself? “You clearly aren’t X if you are enjoying time with your friends and family”… no, I’m not, and thank goodness for that. SC still provides a very hefty salary, and one which I’m more than happy to spend with, you guessed it, friends and family. Not sure if that’s a concept the MC / US lot is too familiar with.
And yeah WFH is due to the pandemic, but it’s a blessing, and one which I hope will have as big a role as possible in the post-pandemic world (and, seeing how many firms are already incorporating it into their future working strategies, office space, etc., I’d bet it will).
L&W 4pqe
Says the guy posting at 3.07am
anon
It’s OK. Everyone finds their level. If you had a decent intellect, you would be dealing with black letter law and presenting cases to judges.
HiHowAreYou
An aspiring lawyer who doesn’t like law, only money. Typical and one of the reasons I left the industry.