As the term ‘magic circle’ suggests, the firms that make up this grouping are frequently regarded as being members of a distinct and elite club. Global revenue of more than £1bn each and an average profit per equity partner (PEP) figure across the five-strong group of £1.4m for the last reported financial year put these firms far ahead of the majority of the UK’s largest commercial law firms.
As such it would be easy to assume that the accounts of the four magic circle firms that enjoy limited liability partnership (LLP) status – Allen & Overy (A&O), Clifford Chance (CC), Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and Linklaters – would support this picture of homogeneity, with the firms recording similar figures across a host of metrics going far beyond revenue and PEP. In fact, professional services firm Smith & Williamson’s analysis of the 2013-14 LLP accounts of the UK’s top 50 law firms paints a much more complex picture.
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