Rise falls short of pre-pandemic rate
Norton Rose Fulbright (NRF) has bumped the salaries of its newly qualified (NQ) solicitors after cutting them last summer in response to the pandemic. The fresh uplift does, however, fall short of the firm’s pre-Covid pay level for its most junior associates.
NRF confirmed base rates for NQ lawyers now sit at £85,000, up £2,500 (or 3%) from £82,500. NQs do however have the potential to earn in excess of £100,000 with bonuses, the firm said in a statement.
Legal Cheek reported last summer that the firm had cut NQ rates by 6%, from £87,500 to £82,500, in a bid to curb the financial impact of the pandemic.
The move comes less than a week after Baker McKenzie reinstated junior lawyer pay to £90,000 following a 3% cut in June of last year.
Other firms to have returned junior lawyer pay packets to pre-Covid levels after implementing cuts include Clifford Chance, Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, Macfarlanes and Reed Smith. Meanwhile, Allen & Overy, Linklaters, and Slaughter and May failed to match their pre-Covid rates with recent rises.
