Pure lockstep is fast going out of fashion in the UK with 85% of top lawyers preferring a more merit-based system for paying partners, research has found.

More than half (55%) of lawyers believe a modified lockstep model is the best way to manage and motivate a legal practice, while a further 30% favoured a merit-based system in the latest Legal Week/EJ Legal Big Question survey. Just 11% argued a pure lockstep was best.