The Partnership Scoreboard – Trends and tribulations
As part of our analysis of the modern realities of partnership, Legal Business collected data on partnership rounds for the last three years across three groups: the top ten UK law firms by revenue, the ten US-based law firms with the largest organically-built London branches and a select group of mid-tier City players.
The most obvious observation is that there has been – barring a few exceptions – little easing up of the post-banking crisis clampdown on making up partners. One City head of a major US firm notes: ‘It’s harder to become a partner. All the firms are focused on profitability, the motivations are a lot more financial. Firms will always question the business case.’
Such a dynamic is apparent among the Magic Circle, which is still as a group post-Lehman promoting barely enough to sustain partnership sizes. No exception is Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, which has in recent years been slow to make up new partners, a trend which has apparently intensified through 2016-18. The 392-partner firm promoted 46 partners across its last three rounds, a lower percentage than its Magic Circle peers and a rate that if sustained would lead to a continual shrinking of its partnership.
More expansive were Linklaters, Clifford Chance and Allen & Overy, which respectively made up 78, 74 and 65 partners over the last three rounds. Such rates modestly exceed levels seen from the trio in a three-year analysis Legal Business conducted of partnership rounds for the years 2011-13. The most generous was Linklaters, which has averaged 26 new partners annually during 2016-18 – a robust level for a 473-partner firm.
Yet the most obvious changing of the guard is at Slaughter and May, which made up ten in 2016, seven in 2017 and four in 2018, a total of 21. This is not only a rebound on the subdued levels seen during 2011-13, when the firm made up just nine partners, but shows a decisive tilt towards new blood for an institution with just 112 partners. On a five-year view, Slaughters has created 32 partners, nearly 30% of its current partnership.
As a group the Magic Circle this year promoted 89 partners, though only 28 in the UK. This compares to 99 in 2017 and 96 in 2016. These levels are modestly up on the 2011-13 period but remain a far cry from the 137 seen in the boom year of 2008.
The picture varies at other top ten UK practices. DLA Piper, for example, has promoted 156 partners over the last three rounds, a considerable number even for a firm with more than 1,200 partners.
Hogan Lovells and Ashurst also saw increases in promotions. The pair promoted 84 and 55 partners respectively over the last three rounds, both sustaining active levels of promotions. The top ten as a whole promoted 223 in 2018, though only 58 in the UK. These numbers do not account for Norton Rose Fulbright (NRF), which has just shifted its promotions round to move to a new financial year. On previous form, NRF would add around 40 to that total.
There is an interesting comparison at leading US firms with major City offices. The group splits between those promoting aggressively, including Kirkland & Ellis, Baker McKenzie, White & Case and Latham & Watkins. Sitting in the middle camp are Shearman & Sterling, Debevoise & Plimpton and Weil, Gotshal & Manges, while those with a very tight grip on promotions include Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton, Sidley Austin and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom.
While there has been considerable growth in the overall UK partnership promotions at US firms, the group as a whole managed a modest 34 in the 2018 round and 20 of those rest on just two firms: Kirkland and White & Case. Of the top ten largest US offices in London, no less than three firms – Sidley, Skadden and Weil – went through 2018 without making up a single partner.
Numbers at the largest US firms have not trended up in recent years across the group – these firms created 27 partners in 2017 and 36 in 2016, meaning they have in recent years promoted roughly half as many UK-based partners annually as the largest ten UK law firms.
As in so many things, Kirkland is the ultimate outlier, making up 268 partners over the last three years, reflecting both its aggressive expansion track but also its model of making up large numbers of non-equity partners at an early stage before giving them a shot at its closely-held equity ranks. In 2018, it promoted 97 partners, one of the largest rounds ever seen in the legal industry, including 13 in the UK.
Judging the mid-level firms, Fieldfisher has led the way for the mid-tier pack, reflecting dramatic growth at the top 50 UK firm, with 24 promotions over the last three rounds. Proportionately, however, there were more active promotion levels at Stephenson Harwood, Macfarlanes and Watson Farley & Williams compared to the size of their partnerships. These five created 36 new partners in 2018, including 23 in the UK.
The research indicates that levels of trainees making it through to partnership remain comparable with five years ago for elite firms, with over half of the partnership promotions at the Magic Circle and Herbert Smith Freehills being lawyers who had qualified with their firms. This proportion notably drops for mid-tier players.
| UK FIRMS
Number of partners |
Partners made up in 2018 | Partners made up in 2017 | Partners made up in 2016 | UK promotions 2018 | Former trainees who made partner 2018 | Female partners promoted 2016-18 (% of total) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DLA Piper (1,205) | 62 | 46 | 48 | 10 | 15 | 45 (29%) |
| Clifford Chance (570) | 26 | 24 | 24 | 7 | 15 | 20 (27%) |
| Allen & Overy (549) | 20 | 24 | 21 | 4 | 13 | 10 (15%) |
| Linklaters (473) | 27 | 26 | 25 | 10 | 19 | 20 (26%) |
| Hogan Lovells (835) | 31 | 29 | 24 | 5 | 5 | 27 (32%) |
| Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (392) | 12 | 18 | 16 | 4 | 9 | 13 (28%) |
| Norton Rose Fulbright* (1,200) | 32* | 45 | 39 | TBC | TBC | 39* (34%) |
| Herbert Smith Freehills (474) | 17 | 21 | 20 | 6 | 10 | 26 (45%) |
| Ashurst (394) | 24 | 19 | 12 | 9 | 8 | 22 (40%) |
| Slaughter and May (112) | 4 | 7 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 7 (33%) |
| US FIRMS
Number of partners |
Partners made up in 2018 | UK promotions 2018 | UK promotions 2017 | UK promotions 2016 | Partner promotions 2016-18 (firm-wide) | Female partners promoted 2016-18 (% of total) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White & Case (105 UK, 498 firm-wide) | 31 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 102 | 31 (30%) |
| Baker McKenzie** (90 UK, 1,570 firm-wide) | 80** | 6*** | 5 | 3 | 262 | 97** (37%) |
| Latham & Watkins (74 UK, 681 firm-wide) |
31 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 83 | 27 (33%) |
| Kirkland & Ellis (86 UK, 975 firm-wide) | 97 | 13 | 6 | 8 | 268 | 87 (32%) |
| Shearman & Sterling (36 UK, 211 firm-wide) | 16 | 3 | 5 | 35 | 8 (23%) | |
| Weil, Gotshal & Manges (30 UK, 274 firm-wide) | 10 | 2 | 3 | 31 | 7 (23%) | |
| Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom (30 UK, 361 firm-wide) |
14 | 2 | 37 | 7 (19%) | ||
| Sidley Austin (45 UK, 667 firm-wide) | 19 | 1 | 1 | 58 | 23 (40%) | |
| Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton (21 UK, 191 firm-wide) |
3 | 1 | 1 | 18 | 5 (28%) | |
| Debevoise & Plimpton (20 UK, 138 firm-wide) |
5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 19 | 8 (42%) |
| UK MID-TIER FIRMS
Number of partners |
Partners made up in 2018 | Partners made up in 2017 | Partners made up in 2016 | UK promotions 2018 | Former trainees who made partner 2018 | Female partners promoted 2016-18 (% of total) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Osborne Clarke (250) | 5 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 3 (21%) |
| Stephenson Harwood (170) | 8 | 4 | 11 | 5 | 2 | 9 (39%) |
| Macfarlanes (85) | 4 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 3 (23%) |
| Fieldfisher (250) | 10 | 9 | 5 | 6 | 2 in the UK | 5 (21%) |
| Watson Farley & Williams (158) | 9 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 6 (26%) |
* Norton Rose Fulbright’s partner promotions date for 2018 has been moved to align with its new financial calendar year. The partners made up in 2018 and total number of female partners promoted figures exclude 2018 EMEA promotions as they are yet to take place.
** Baker McKenzie’s promotions to be announced after press time. Responses are based on 2017 promotions. Combined female partner promotions figure is based on 2017, 2016 and 2015. *** Expected size of UK promotion round, to be confirmed.
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