BCLP lifts London NQ pay to £135k

BCLP has raised pay for newly qualified lawyers in London to £135,000, up from £125,000.

The new rate takes effect from 1 January and puts BCLP ahead of rivals including Simmons & Simmons, Travers Smith and Winston Taylor.

NQ salaries in Manchester and Southampton will also rise, to £80,000.

BCLP is also increasing first-year associate salaries across most of its US offices to $225,000, matching the Cravath scale followed by much of the market. In St. Louis, Kansas City and Phoenix, salaries will instead rise to $215,000.

Milbank moved first earlier this year with a higher $235,000 starting salary, although most major US firms have yet to follow.

BCLP said the higher starting salaries will also feed through its associate ranks, with pay adjustments at more senior levels - in other words, to combat salary bunching.

Regional offices

No news on London trainee salaries, which were increased at the start of this year. First-years earn £55,000, while second-years receive £58,000.

BCLP will take around 20 trainees a year in London from October next year.

The firm has substantial UK operations outside the City.

Its Manchester office was opened by legacy firm Berwin Leighton Paisner in 2014, initially as a legal services delivery team, but has since broadened its work across areas including real estate, finance and disputes with more than 100 staff.

Southampton opened in 2018 and focuses heavily on real estate, one of BCLP’s biggest practices.