Hudson Legal Salary Survey 2011

2011salaryguideEnglish RegionsPrivate Practice - AssociatesThe salaries for the English Regionsherein reflect earnings for solicitors withincommercial firms as well as information forsmaller, regional practices.Following a challenging 2010, theregional legal market has began to regainconfidence. Most firms in the first halfof 2011 have reviewed, or will reviewtheir structures, budgets, headcount, andrecruitment strategy. We expect an increasein the number of new vacancies beingreleased. The NQ market is showing signsof a recovery in terms of retention, andopportunities for assistant solicitors andassociates are increasing at an optimisticrate as the market continues its recovery.Partners with quantifiable followings as everhave remained in demand, as firms lookto beef up their key offerings and protectrevenue.Whilst we cannot say with any certaintythat the market has fully turned the corner,we are seeing signs of optimism andconfidence returning. Over the course of theearly part of 2011, there was an increaseddemand for solicitors in almost every areaof law, including commercial, IP/IT, as wellas corporate and real estate which weretypically the hardest hit during the recession.Other areas which have remained fairlyconstant in terms of candidate demandand client confidence include private client,employment, insurance and niche areas oflitigation.The regional market has also seen a rise inmerger activity as firms look to expand, growand in some cases simply survive throughtakeover, bolt-ons or selling practices. Wesee this trend continuing particularly givenchanges to the SRA and the up-coming shiftin alternative business structures.24 legal | Salary Guide 2011