December Market Update
December Market Update
Anthony Matthews
13 December 2023
The 2023 London legal recruitment market has been the quietest since the pandemic with deal levels in the traditionally busiest areas, corporate and finance, slowing down significantly. That being said, we have still been moving exceptional lawyers both internationally and domestically and the demand for quality associates remains across a range of firms in London.
In New York City and the US, international recruitment remains slow, mainly due to recruitment often being in corporate and finance. Although at a slower rate than London, firms (especially in New York and Texas) have still been hiring a small number of Australian qualified lawyers.
We have seen a slight uptick in the last three months and would expect this to continue in the first three months of next year. If you would like to discuss the market or any roles that we are working on e-mail – anthony.matthews@matthewsandcarter.com or find me on LinkedIn.
Changes in the Market
Since our last update (September ’23) we have seen some significant changes in the London market. Firstly, the mega merger of Shearman & Sterling and Allen & Overy has now been voted through as expected - https://www.reuters.com/legal/transactional/allen-overy-shearman-partners-approve-law-firm-mega-merger-2023-10-13/ - with the firms expected to officially merge in May 2024. I expect that this merger will also be prominent in the next market update when news starts to filter through regarding remuneration and how the firms will line up with each other.
The most fascinating story of the last three months in London involves one man, Neel Sachdev - https://www.ft.com/content/44ae74d1-53c5-4674-b7db-433e1d0a0279- Sachdev’s move to Paul Weiss alongside a number of partners and associates from Kirkland & Ellis and a partner from Linklaters has completely reshaped the way that people look at the US firms in London and it will be fascinating to see how this reshapes the balance of power, especially on the private equity and leveraged finance side of things. For more of a background read on how this happened, I recommend the following article from the Financial Times dubbed ‘Project Springsteen’ - https://www.ft.com/content/5e430125-c107-4cc6-866b-478f7d84b7aa. If law doesn’t work out for Neel, I’m sure he’d do very well on the recruitment side of things however I’m not sure that we would be able to stretch to his reported $20 million a year salary!
With Cravath, Cahill Gordon and other more traditional Wall Street US firms making big investments in the London market, the presence of US firms in the City shows no sign of stopping even in a challenging transactional market.
Salaries
In New York City, Milbank have continued to try and dethrone Cravath as the market influencers when it comes to salary - https://abovethelaw.com/2023/11/milbank-raises-associate-salaries-and-announces-year-end-bonuses/. Cravath have responded by slightly outdoing Milbank at more of a senior level which most US firms seem to be replicating. As such, the New York salary scale is now the following:
Class of ’23: $225,000 ($15,000 bonus)
Class of ’22: $235,000 ($20,000 bonus)
Class of ’21: $260,000 ($30,000 bonus)
Class of ’20: $310,000 ($57,500 bonus)
Class of ’19: $365,000 ($75,000 bonus)
Class of ’18: $390,000 ($90,000 bonus)
In London, Slaughter and May have joined the rest of the magic circle by upping NQ salaries to £115,000 - https://www.rollonfriday.com/news-content/exclusive-slaughters-hikes-nq-pay-ps125000. This has resulted in some bunching in the other PQE bandings as well however by our data, it seems that mid-level associates at Slaughter and May only get paid marginally less than their magic circle counterparts.
Australia/New Zealand Recruitment
I am currently in Australia sporting a very British sunburn from my weekend on the Gold Coast!
As always, there are a number of lawyers who I am meeting across a range of practice areas. General feedback that I am getting, especially from transactional lawyers, is that of frustration in how long processes can take. This is especially true when we think of the days of 2021 where processes happened very quickly and people moved internationally very quickly. The advice that I give to those looking overseas is to be patient, think of things in longer terms (i.e look at starting a position in 6-8 months rather than 4-6 weeks) and be prepared to compromise.
Although the London and US markets remain quite quiet, across the Irish Sea in Dublin, firms are busy and are an attractive option for Australian lawyers. Although the salaries aren’t that of London, the work can be high quality and it can be a great stepping stone for a move to the London market when things are busier. Get in contact with us if you’d like to discuss Dublin options.
Long awaited visa changes come in for Australian from the end of January next year. From the 31st January 2024 Australian citizens will be able to apply for a Working Holiday visa between the ages of 18 and 35 years inclusive. This is a five year increase from the current maximum age of 30 years inclusive and applicants can extend their visa for a third year if they choose.
Practice Areas
We have seen a strong demand in TMT, projects and disputes (especially competition) over the last quarter and we’d expect this to continue into the new year, especially in specialised disputes. Funds always remains a busy area and can provide good opportunities with UK and US firms. Corporate and finance remains quiet with most roles in these areas arising with US firms.
Tour Dates
Come see me in concert/discuss options over a coffee. I’ll be in the following locations over the next 6 months. Contact – anthony.matthews@matthewsandcarter.com and we can try and set something up
SYDNEY: 4th – 7th December
PERTH: 8th December
MELBOURNE: 11th & 12th December
AUCKLAND: 13 – 15th December
DUBLIN: 9th – 12th April
BIRMINGHAM: 13th May
LEEDS: 14th May
EDINBURGH: 15th May
GLASGOW: 16th May
I’d like to thank all candidates and clients that we have worked with across the globe this year and I wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Anthony P Matthews
Director, Matthews and Carter Associates
The 2023 London legal recruitment market has been the quietest since the pandemic with deal levels in the traditionally busiest areas, corporate and finance, slowing down significantly. That being said, we have still been moving exceptional lawyers both internationally and domestically and the demand for quality associates remains across a range of firms in London.
In New York City and the US, international recruitment remains slow, mainly due to recruitment often being in corporate and finance. Although at a slower rate than London, firms (especially in New York and Texas) have still been hiring a small number of Australian qualified lawyers.
We have seen a slight uptick in the last three months and would expect this to continue in the first three months of next year. If you would like to discuss the market or any roles that we are working on e-mail – anthony.matthews@matthewsandcarter.com or find me on LinkedIn.
Changes in the Market
Since our last update (September ’23) we have seen some significant changes in the London market. Firstly, the mega merger of Shearman & Sterling and Allen & Overy has now been voted through as expected - https://www.reuters.com/legal/transactional/allen-overy-shearman-partners-approve-law-firm-mega-merger-2023-10-13/ - with the firms expected to officially merge in May 2024. I expect that this merger will also be prominent in the next market update when news starts to filter through regarding remuneration and how the firms will line up with each other.
The most fascinating story of the last three months in London involves one man, Neel Sachdev - https://www.ft.com/content/44ae74d1-53c5-4674-b7db-433e1d0a0279- Sachdev’s move to Paul Weiss alongside a number of partners and associates from Kirkland & Ellis and a partner from Linklaters has completely reshaped the way that people look at the US firms in London and it will be fascinating to see how this reshapes the balance of power, especially on the private equity and leveraged finance side of things. For more of a background read on how this happened, I recommend the following article from the Financial Times dubbed ‘Project Springsteen’ - https://www.ft.com/content/5e430125-c107-4cc6-866b-478f7d84b7aa. If law doesn’t work out for Neel, I’m sure he’d do very well on the recruitment side of things however I’m not sure that we would be able to stretch to his reported $20 million a year salary!
With Cravath, Cahill Gordon and other more traditional Wall Street US firms making big investments in the London market, the presence of US firms in the City shows no sign of stopping even in a challenging transactional market.
Salaries
In New York City, Milbank have continued to try and dethrone Cravath as the market influencers when it comes to salary - https://abovethelaw.com/2023/11/milbank-raises-associate-salaries-and-announces-year-end-bonuses/. Cravath have responded by slightly outdoing Milbank at more of a senior level which most US firms seem to be replicating. As such, the New York salary scale is now the following:
Class of ’23: $225,000 ($15,000 bonus)
Class of ’22: $235,000 ($20,000 bonus)
Class of ’21: $260,000 ($30,000 bonus)
Class of ’20: $310,000 ($57,500 bonus)
Class of ’19: $365,000 ($75,000 bonus)
Class of ’18: $390,000 ($90,000 bonus)
In London, Slaughter and May have joined the rest of the magic circle by upping NQ salaries to £115,000 - https://www.rollonfriday.com/news-content/exclusive-slaughters-hikes-nq-pay-ps125000. This has resulted in some bunching in the other PQE bandings as well however by our data, it seems that mid-level associates at Slaughter and May only get paid marginally less than their magic circle counterparts.
Australia/New Zealand Recruitment
I am currently in Australia sporting a very British sunburn from my weekend on the Gold Coast!
As always, there are a number of lawyers who I am meeting across a range of practice areas. General feedback that I am getting, especially from transactional lawyers, is that of frustration in how long processes can take. This is especially true when we think of the days of 2021 where processes happened very quickly and people moved internationally very quickly. The advice that I give to those looking overseas is to be patient, think of things in longer terms (i.e look at starting a position in 6-8 months rather than 4-6 weeks) and be prepared to compromise.
Although the London and US markets remain quite quiet, across the Irish Sea in Dublin, firms are busy and are an attractive option for Australian lawyers. Although the salaries aren’t that of London, the work can be high quality and it can be a great stepping stone for a move to the London market when things are busier. Get in contact with us if you’d like to discuss Dublin options.
Long awaited visa changes come in for Australian from the end of January next year. From the 31st January 2024 Australian citizens will be able to apply for a Working Holiday visa between the ages of 18 and 35 years inclusive. This is a five year increase from the current maximum age of 30 years inclusive and applicants can extend their visa for a third year if they choose.
Practice Areas
We have seen a strong demand in TMT, projects and disputes (especially competition) over the last quarter and we’d expect this to continue into the new year, especially in specialised disputes. Funds always remains a busy area and can provide good opportunities with UK and US firms. Corporate and finance remains quiet with most roles in these areas arising with US firms.
Tour Dates
Come see me in concert/discuss options over a coffee. I’ll be in the following locations over the next 6 months. Contact – anthony.matthews@matthewsandcarter.com and we can try and set something up
SYDNEY: 4th – 7th December
PERTH: 8th December
MELBOURNE: 11th & 12th December
AUCKLAND: 13 – 15th December
DUBLIN: 9th – 12th April
BIRMINGHAM: 13th May
LEEDS: 14th May
EDINBURGH: 15th May
GLASGOW: 16th May
I’d like to thank all candidates and clients that we have worked with across the globe this year and I wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Anthony P Matthews
Director, Matthews and Carter Associates