Hudson Legal Salary Survey 2011

2011salaryguideFOREWoRDBy Martin Piers, Global Head of Legal, Hudson Legal2011 has started positively in almost all legalmarkets worldwide. The cautious optimismexpressed at the latter end of 2010 hasdeveloped into a more expansive strategyat the majority of international and nationallaw firms. Only time will tell whether thischange in sentiment and approach proves tobe justified by the economic realities of thebusiness world which such firms serve.As one would expect the position differsfrom region to region.We have seen a new impetus to the marketin Singapore – both in terms of in-house(where Singapore is chosen as the regionalhead office) and Law firms (either expandingtheir Asian networks or using Singapore astheir hub). This trend is further emphasisedby the growing importance of the Dubaicorridor – stretching from the Middle Eastthrough India to Singapore.Not withstanding the rise of Singapore it isapparent that it has not detracted from thesolidity of the Hong Kong market. HongKong seems to be able to work seamlesslywith Shanghai and belting across most workfronts (i.e. not just the capital markets). Theresilience of the local economy underpinsthat strength.The Australian market has witnessed somefundamental restructuring. Having boasted ahost of top tier commercial law firms for quitesome time, the global financial crisis failed toinflict material damage – not least becauseof the inherent strength of the economyand the continuing boom in commodities.However, the major firms had failed toextend to the international stage (save forsome representation in Asia) – as they foundthe landscape already dominated by the UKand US global players. The move from bestfriend relationships to international mergerswas perhaps inevitable but nevertheless tookmany by surprise at this stage.In the Middle East not only did the salaryfreeze thaw, but the legal market expandedrapidly. Dubai has recovered some ofits strut, Abu Dhabi has consolidated itsstrong position and markets such as Saudi,Jordon, Kuwait, Qatar and Egypt have cometo prominence. Despite the unrest anduncertainty in the region, the Legal marketslook set to continue to prosper.So far as continental Europe is concerned,certain trends have continued – such as therise in importance of the German market(reflecting the countries status as aneconomic powerhouse), the relative isolationof Paris, the Spanish market bucking thedownwards spiral of the local economy (inpart because of the market going greatguns) and Moscow, despite its problems,consolidating its position as a crucialregional hub. Most of the CEE has beenseen to be treading water (at best) and manyinternational players have lost interest inbeing on the ground there.There has been a flood of activity in Brazil –mainly from the big American players. Therestrictions on the market are not dissimilarto those of India, a fellow BRIC member.US Law firms continue to post great profits –supported in part by the size and profitabilityof their dispute resolution practices. Manycontinue to flirt with the idea of transatlanticmergers whilst those already betrothedseek to integrate and consolidate – aconsequence of which has been a smallexodus of partners and associates on bothsides of the pond.As far as London is concerned the magiccircle continues to pull away. A number ofUS firms are making large inroads and manymid-sized firms are considering merger asa defensive play. Some UK stalwarts haveseen profits collapse whilst others arebenefiting from their prudent pruning andinvestment over the last two year. Finallythe willingness of partners and associatesin London to consider a move has probablynever been higher so the market will remainvolatile for some time to come.2 legal | Salary Guide 2011