The Legal Cheek 2027 Firms Most List is here đź’Ą
Legal Cheek’s definitive student guide to life as a solicitor at the UK’s leading corporate law firms is back with its brand new 2027 edition. Explore it here!
Trying to work out which law firms should be on your application shortlist? The 2027 Firms Most List brings together a record 113 firm profiles, giving aspiring lawyers the information and insider insight they need to compare some of the UK’s leading legal employers.
The new edition spans the Magic and Silver Circle, leading US firms in London, major UK-based international players, and a wide range of well-regarded national and specialist firms.
At the heart of the Firms Most List is Legal Cheek’s interactive benchmarking tool, which lets users compare firms side by side across the factors that matter most when deciding where to apply. These include trainee intake numbers, training and NQ salaries, SQE grants, average working hours and much more. You can also rank firms by the latest diversity data, secondment opportunities and even how much their partners are earning — because, hey, it’s always nice to have something to aim for!
But the numbers only tell part of the story. Every profile also includes a bespoke Legal Cheek View, offering insider insight into what life at the firm is really like, alongside our Insider Scorecard.
Firms are graded from A* to D across categories including training, quality of work, work-life balance, social life, and peer support. The ratings are based on feedback from thousands of trainees and junior lawyers across the UK, and feed directly into the annual Legal Cheek Awards.
@legalcheek The Legal Cheek Firms Most List 2027 is NOW LIVE 🎉👀 check it out in the link in bio 🔗
The Firms Most List can also help you turn your research into applications. Each profile includes key deadlines for vacation schemes, training contracts, open days, and other graduate recruitment opportunities, so you can quickly see what is coming up at the firms you are interested in.
These deadlines sync with our free iPhone and Android apps, sending alerts straight to your phone. You can also browse upcoming opportunities at any time through our dedicated Key Deadlines Calendar.
Whether you’re building an initial target list, comparing offers, or getting ready to submit applications, the 2027 Firms Most List is designed to make your law firm research faster, easier, and better informed. Explore it here!
Don’t miss your chance to connect with all the major law firms on this year’s list at the Legal Cheek UK Virtual Law Fair on Tuesday 6 October 2026. Register to attend.
Is it only me or has the number of TC’s dramatically reduced?
May the odds be ever in your favour.
Welcome to the era of AI.
Links with only 60 TCs?
Wait, why so few TCs this year?!?
Sam Altman
I would suggest it’s principally due to the following reasons:
1) The legal industry is generally in a challenging state currently. Many law firms seem to be cutting back staff numbers and NQ positions are fewer as firms employ a more risk-averse growth strategy to hedge against these challenging circumstances;
2) As just before and after the 2008 financial crisis, law firm TC numbers dramatically decreased in response to poor economic conditions. As growth in the UK stagnates, we are seeing such precursory behaviour from law firms again; and
3) As law firms continue to spend vast sums investing in AI, including developing bespoke models, the need for those to do the ‘grunt work’ decreases (hence recent redundancies of support workers too). As such, many law firms shall now require fewer trainees and NQs, but those who do get selected will likely be expected to get to grips with more complex work from the outset.
Swear the Paul Hastings entry hasn’t changed from last year? I recall the “PH doesn’t have any training, which objectively means “very poor”” quote from ages ago, unless they keep things from past years.