BigLaw’s battle for junior talent is getting expensive
The City law pay war is showing little sign of slowing down, with Legal Cheek’s latest research revealing an average NQ salary of around £119,000 across 113 of the UK’s top firms. Some 50 firms have increased salaries since 2026, while 64 now pay their London NQs at least six figures. Eleven firms have handed out £10,000 pay rises, suggesting competition for junior legal talent remains fierce across the market.
Legal Cheek writer Nadia Ismail sits down with editor Tom Connelly to unpack the findings from the 2027 Firms Most List and discuss what the numbers actually mean for aspiring lawyers weighing up where to begin their careers.
US firms continue to dominate the top of the market, with several now paying around £180,000. The Magic Circle, meanwhile, has held firm at £150,000, even as other parts of the market have moved around them. Firms with sizeable regional networks have also raised their London NQ rates, showing the salary race extends well beyond the very top of the City.
How much further can salaries realistically climb? Could the first £200,000 NQ salary be closer than we think?
And when firms are offering this much straight out of a training contract, what are they expecting in return? With AI also reshaping junior legal work, what might all this mean for the lawyers of the future?
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I find the suggestion that NQ salaries are becoming economically unsustainable interesting. If an NQ is generating £800,000 to £1.2 million in annual fees, paying them £180,000 is hardly an act of corporate generosity. Even after accounting for employer contributions, support staff, infrastructure and other overheads, the firm can retain a substantial margin.
There is also the issue of salary bunching, which rarely receives enough attention. Firms advertise these extraordinary NQ salaries to attract the best candidates, but the increases between subsequent PQE levels are often considerably less impressive. A £180,000 starting salary does not necessarily translate into equally generous salary progression.
Ultimately, these firms are commercial enterprises, not charities. They would not be offering £180,000 salaries if the underlying economics did not justify them. The more interesting question is not whether firms can afford to pay NQs £200,000, but how much of the revenue those solicitors generate firms are prepared to share with them.