UK firms should cut 5000 solicitor jobs, says report

A new report from the Royal Bank of Scotland claims that the UK legal market is suffering from substantial over-capacity, and is currently carrying over 5,000 excess solicitor jobs. The report describes a "permanent structural change in market forces in the UK" caused by sustained low demand and the entry of new players under the Legal Services Act, and points to the "opportunity" to remove 5% of the fee earner base at a saving of around £280 million in annual costs for the UK legal profession. Royal Bank of Scotland law firm banking head James Tsolakis said: "We would see a good case to take out 5% of fee earners to put the profession on more stable levels of profitability." He also said that many partnerships remain in denial about the scale of challenges facing the profession, though management is often far more alive to such issues.

UK firms should cut 5000 solicitor jobs, says report legalweek.com Wed, Mar 21, 2012