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If someone told you that you could get a job post-graduation that’d give you a £100k+ a year salary, you’d probably think they were either:
Well if you’re planning on becoming a lawyer at one of the UK’s famous magic circle law firms, £107,500 is the minimum you can expect to earn once you’re newly qualified. It sounds crazy doesn’t it, almost too good to be true?
The reality is that starting salaries like this are the new norm for many newly qualified (NQ) graduates on the hunt for their first job within the magic circle. But what has caused this prestigious group of law firms to bump up the pay packets of some of the most junior members of their teams?
And with all this money, what does this mean for the tax obligations of the NQ lawyers?
We’ll answer all in the blog below…
Lawyers are now some of the best-paid graduates in the country. Why? Well, it’s mostly down to a type of ‘pay war’. It’s taking place among some of the top law firms in the world.
The legal industry has found itself caught up in an intense hunt for new talent . This is thanks to a huge industry boom following the Covid-19 pandemic and Brexit. To put it simply, there’s too much work, and not enough lawyers to do it. Combined with the fact that many senior associates at magic circle law firms have left, this has led to a surge in the number of junior lawyers being recruited to help with additional support.
Of course, we all know that being a lawyer is a tough job. But the problem is that the industry is seeing increased workloads and hours, which is resulting in burnout among lawyers. Law firms, like those in the magic circle, have responded by offering double-digit pay rises and office perks in an effort to retain their employees.
Flashy offices, onsite doctors and dentists, as well as post-work meals cooked by chefs, are also being used to ‘reward’ the junior lawyers for their gruelling work. This can involve working 12 hours, 7 days a week (yikes!). But in doing so, these law firms have sparked a pay war amongst the rival firms.
For example, Allen & Overy last year announced that they were matching magic circle rival Linklaters by offering their NQ lawyers a £107.5k starting salary. Not to mention that they also increased their trainee salaries to £50,000 in year one and £55,000 in year two, from £47,500 and £53,000, respectively.
| Law Firm | First-Year Trainee | Second-Year Trainee | Newly Qualified/Junior Lawyer |
| Allen & Overy | £50,000 | £55,000 | £107,500 |
| Clifford Chance | £50,000 | £55,000 | £125,000 |
| Freshfields | £50,000 | £55,000 | £125,000 |
| Linklaters | £50,000 | £55,000 | £107,500 |
| Slaughter and May | £50,000 | £50,000 | £115,000 |
At a first glance these huge wages sound great to newly qualified lawyers. But what many of them often forget about is tax. With a higher salary, comes higher taxes, and more obligations to keep track of.
If you’re a NQ lawyer with a hectic schedule, you might be struggling to wrap your head around (or simply forget) the tax you owe. If you work at a magic circle firm, then the most important thing to remember is that the amount of tax you’ll pay will change once you go from being a first/second-year trainee to newly qualified.
This is because once you earn over £100,000, your Personal Allowance is reduced. It’s by £1 for every £2 over £100,000 as you are classed as a high earner.
If you work at either Clifford Chance or Freshfield and earn £125,000+ a year, then your Personal Allowance drops to £0. Meaning that your income between £100,000 and £125,000 will be taxed at 60% – and this doesn’t include National Insurance, that’s another 2% on top.
If you want to know the exact amount of tax you can expect to pay on a magic circle starting salary, use our handy income tax calculator below!
When you’re self-employed, you have to pay your income tax and national insurance contributions yourself in your annual Self Assessment. Our calculator helps you quickly assess how much you owe.
However you may be eligible for a tax refund when:
In your case when you earn £50,000:
You pay no income tax on first £12,570 that you make
You pay £7,286 at basic income tax rate (20%) on the next £36,430
No contributions on the first £12,570 that you make
You pay £2,186 in contributions (at 6%) on the next £36,430 that you make
You pay £0 in NI Class 2 contributions
You need to save
to pay your £9,471.56 tax bill by 31/1/2026 which is in 666 days
Yes! Like anyone who is working in a high-earning job, junior lawyers can quite easily be classed as a ‘HENRY’ (High Earner Not Rich Yet).
Starting salaries in magic circle law firms are very lucrative, but if NQ lawyers also have high-income costs to pay (tax, bills, and personal finances), they might struggle to put any of their wealth into savings for the long term.
Paying tax as a high earner might sound pretty daunting, especially if you’re on a magic circle starting salary, but it doesn’t have to be complicated at all! If you have a tax-based problem, get in touch with us for some simple, one-off tax advice from our accredited accountants. Learn more here.
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