Exclusive: Spill the tea ☕
A departing lawyer at Clifford Chance has taken a swipe at the Magic Circle giant after leaving a number of “commemorative” mugs dotted around the office as she headed for the exit.
In a farewell email to colleagues last week, seen by Legal Cheek, the senior associate begins by reflecting fondly on her 20 plus years at the firm’s London office. She thanks the “fantastic” paralegals, trainees, practice assistants, and fellow associates she worked alongside during her time at the firm.
But the lawyer, who we aren’t naming, also alludes to some difficult experiences, writing that the partners had “taught me an awful lot”, including “how to lawyer and how (and how not) to conduct oneself”.
The email then turns to what she says young lawyers want from firm leadership.
“To the partners: you have taught me an awful lot — including how to lawyer and how (and how not) to conduct oneself,” she writes. “I have often been asked by you over the years what the associates are thinking. I can’t speak for anyone other than myself but, for what it is worth, most associates I know want to be paid fairly, treated with respect, recognised and genuinely thanked, given quality work including interesting pro bono work which means so much, so very much, to so many of us and should be regarded as something more than just “business development adjacent”) and a chance to develop and to be part of a vibrant progressive culture which values things other than partnership profit, which supports junior lawyers if they make mistakes, which offers courageous leadership and alternative career paths for those who do not want partnership (and the responsibility of bringing in business) and where people still feel able to laugh loudly. When partnership profit becomes the sole aim and metric of success, something special is irretrievably lost. And that is a shame.”
Explaining that she “didn’t have the heart” for leaving drinks, the lawyer ends her email by revealing that she had left some “commemorative” mugs around her department as a parting gift. In a photo sent to Legal Cheek showing what is believed to be one of the mugs, the message printed on the side reads: “‘An up or out’ business model is potentially discriminatory on the basis of sex.”
The reference to “up or out” appears to relate to a career progression system used by many professional services firms, including top law firms, where employees are expected to move up through the ranks and those who do not meet promotion criteria within a certain period are typically expected to leave. However, it’s often not a black and white thing, with many firms offering professional support and other roles to staff who don’t want to become partner.
The departing lawyer rounds off her email by revealing she had just one regret, telling her former colleagues: “[The mugs] could not be printed with curly commas.”
A spokesperson for Clifford Chance told Legal Cheek:
“We thank the individual for their contribution to the firm and wish them well.”