Baker McKenzie keeps 13 out of 18 spring qualifying trainees

One on fixed-term deal

The London office of international law firm Baker McKenzie is keeping 13 of its 18 newly qualified (NQ) lawyers.

From a spring qualifying cohort of 18, Bakers made 16 offers, 13 of which were accepted. With one new recruit on a fixed term deal, Bakers scores a retention rate of 72% or 67% depending on your reading of the numbers.

Four NQs join the firm’s corporate team, a further two qualify into employment and IP & technology also gains two. The remaining five will join structured capital markets, tax, financial services regulatory, disputes and, competition, trade & foreign investment.

Stephen Ratcliffe, training principal at Bakers, commented:

“Attracting, retaining and developing the very best talent is at the heart of our people strategy and we are delighted to welcome another strong cohort of lawyers to our permanent ranks in London. We pride ourselves on not only offering a competitive salary and an extensive package of benefits but also fantastic career development for our junior lawyers; we look forward to watching this group of newly qualified solicitors thrive in their careers with the Firm over the coming years.”

The Legal Cheek Firms Most List shows the new recruits will start on a salary of £110,000, up from a year two trainee rate of £55,000. The firm hands out around 40 TCs each year.

In addition to introducing a new grant for students completing the Solicitors Qualifying Examination, Bakers increased its financial support for trainees pursuing the Graduate Diploma in Law and Legal Practice Course last year to £12,500. The firm also unveiled a separate grant to help students who are struggling financially.