Abandoning lockstep pay for associates has been all the rage among U.S. firms that consider themselves trendsetters. Some of the firms that have broken from lockstep and moved toward merit-based pay over the past year have frozen associate salaries as an initial step in the process.
But at Linklaters, considered something of a bellwether for the London market, the firm has decided to stick with lockstep and avoid any pay freeze for associates, according to the U.K.-based publication Legal Week. Linklaters never froze salaries for its associates, but it did cut the percentage-raise lawyers receive as they move up the ranks of the firm, Legal Week says.
