UK 4 years PQE & 5 years PQE SALARIES OUTPERFORM MORE SENIOR IN-HOUSE SALARIES

In the UK, 4 years PQE and 5 years PQE salary bands have increased most since 2004 while 9 years PQE and 10 years PQE salaries have fallen furthest - Russian lawyers see greatest increases in salaries over last 6 years - Salaries fall most in Spain & Belgium but Poland still has worst pay in EU

Over the last six years, 4 years PQE and 5 years PQE salary bands in the UK have increased more than others, according to international legal recruiter Laurence Simons. Salaries of 5 years PQE inhouse lawyers have risen 7% over the last six years while those of 4 years

PQE lawyers have risen 14%. In 2004, a 4 years PQE salary was worth
57,000. That has now risen to 65,000. 5 years PQE salaries have risen from 65,750 in 2004 to 70,500 today.

The research shows the big losers of the downturn have been the 10

years PQE and 9 years PQE salary bands. In 2004, the average 9
years PQE salary was worth 89,000. But by 2010, average salaries at that level had fallen to 84,750 down 5%. Average salaries at the 10 years PQE level have been hit even harder. They fell from 95,500 in 2004 to 89,000 (down 7%) in 2010.

Naveen Tuli, managing director of Laurence Simons said, Many people assume senior lawyers suffered the least during the downturn but as far as inhouse roles go, thats wrong. Our research shows that 4 years PQE and 5 years PQE salary bands performed proportionately much better than 9 years PQE and 10 years PQE - perhaps reflecting the sweet spot at which most legal

departments look to hire in lawyers to their teams. Over the last 18

months or so, those companies that have been in the fortunate position to be hiring in-house staff have tended to focus on those with slightly less experience as such 4 years PQE and 5 years PQE lawyers have been in demand and that has driven up

salaries.

Rachael North, director of Laurence Simons adds, This has been particularly noticeable in the technology and telecoms sectors. The increasingly rapid pace of digitization and the widespread adoption of mobile broadband have meant the

telecoms and technology sectors have ridden out the global downturn
relatively well. Although 2009 saw some salary freezes and non payment of bonuses, in 2010 the market has shown slow, but steady signs of improvement.

INTERNATIONAL WINNERS & LOSERS

The research, which was gathered over the course of six years and collated data

from over 14,000 inhouse lawyers throughout the world, also showed
salaries in Russia had performed better than any other country in the world. Pay at the 2 years PQE level has increased 81% from 2004, up from 25,000 to

45,250 in
2010 (UK: +15%).

Meeta Dutt, manager for Russia, Central & Eastern Europe at

Laurence Simons said, By 2004, the concept of an internationally

staffed inhouse legal department had become accepted by local Russian companies keen to float on international stock exchanges. The result of that, alongside the boom in the energy, metals, consumer, and technology sectors, was intense competition both for the best local lawyers and those trained in the UK or US, who could demonstrate good crossborder corporate finance and M&A transactional experience. In the last five years business focused

lawyers with generalist commercial skills in both multinational and

domestic companies have become increasingly more soughtafter.

GLOBAL SALARY DECREASES SPAIN & BELGIUM The story was very different in Belgium and Spain. In Belgium, 2

years PQE salaries have fallen 29% over the same period while
salaries in the 4 years PQE band have fallen 26% (UK: +14%). Tanja Albers, european in-house manager at Laurence Simons said, The Spanish inhouse market remains something of a closed shop with few if any organisations recruiting outside the country. Salaries have been hit by this and the substantial damage done to the Spanish economy by the recession. Theres little sign of early recovery there.

POST BOOM RECOVERY Although the downturn didnt hit Russia particularly hard with the worst affected salary band (10 years PQE) still rising 5% from 2008 (89,750) to 2010 (94,250) the real winner post the 2008

watershed has been the Middle East. The largest increases across salary bands from 5 years PQE to 10 years PQE have all been recorded in the Middle East, with the 5 years PQE band rising 41% from 123,000 to 173,000. Since the boom, the worst cuts at a more junior

level have occurred in Spain. More senior salary bands, have been hit
hardest in Germany. The average 10 years PQE salary in Germany has fallen 31% from 135,000 in 2008 to 93,750 in 2010.

Tanja Albers said: We do not expect to see much improvement in

senior pay levels in Germany until well into the second half of the year.
Mark Anderson, Middle East manager at Laurence Simons added, The situation is better in the Middle East. Despite Dubais welldocumented economic woes, the Gulf region as a whole has held up relatively well through the downturn. But even here, the boom time for lawyers is

most definitely over. Over the last twelve months, pay levels have
remained flat with little sign of any early rise. Meeta Dutt adds, Russias going through something similar, too. Candidates with good

international experience are still demanding high salaries. But looking

to the future, the expectations of huge pay increases so common in the boom years have been consigned to history.

EUROZONE SALARIES A SNAPSHOT COMPARISON

Within the Eurozone, at all levels, the highest salaries are to be found in Ireland. The worst paid inhouse lawyers with less than 3 years

experience are to be found in Spain. The worst paid inhouse lawyers

with more than 3 years experience are to be found in Poland. Naveen Tuli said, The market for inhouse lawyers in Poland is a relatively new one but is being fuelled by a growing desire to keep the cost of legal services down to an acceptable level. Despite the

increasing number of inhouse lawyers in the country basic pay still

tends to be lower than that on offer in law firms. The average inhouse lawyer with 10 years qualified experience can earn 113,000 a year in

Ireland but only 63,750 in Poland.

GLOBAL FORECASTS HEADCOUNT, THE ECONOMY, & BRAZIL

82% of lawyers interviewed said they thought headcounts at their

current employer would either increase or remain static over the course of the next 12 months. While 56% expect them to remain unchanged, 26% of inhouse lawyers predict their office numbers are going to rise over the course of the next year. And when asked about

the future of the global economy over the next twelve months, 66% of
respondents described themselves as optimistic or extremely optimistic. Only 24% said they were either pessimistic or extremely pessimistic.

Laurence Simons said Latin America, and specifically Brazil would drive international growth in in-house legal jobs over the coming year. Pedro Amaral Dinkhuysen, Latin American managing partner at Laurence Simons said, While the boom times are over for the Middle East, certainly for the short term, the market in Brazil where we are

seeing a huge influx of law firms into Sao Paulo and Rio is very strong.
This has caused a noticeable upward pressure on pay in some cases by as much as 20% for inhouse lawyers and 30% for law firm practitioners. Lawyers with solid experience in corporate, banking, compliance and tax are most in demand and able to command a

premium to move in the current climate.

Company Name Laurence Simons Website - http://www.laurencesimons.com/

Address - 322 High Holborn, London, WC1V 7PB

Telephone - +44 (0)20 7645 8500