Sullivan & Cromwell has become the first elite New York law firm to give the green light to salary rises – increasing base rates from $125,000 (£70,936) to $145,000 (£82,286) – although the firm has warned that bonuses could decrease as a result.

The US firm made the announcement last week, following recent salary rises by Californian and national giants to $135,000 (£67,611), and sees Sullivan trump the out-of-towners’ increases by $10,000 (£5,674) across the board.