James Caan wishes to get rid of those he refers to as ‘under-performing partners’. His comments betray his lack of understanding of how the partnership structure works.

In most of the firms I deal with, the partners are likely to be among the hardest workers in the firm, as well as having to shoulder the financial risk. Most partners have spent many years in the profession, initially working hard as junior solicitors to establish expertise and reputation and, as senior assistants and junior partners, using those assets to build up and retain the firm’s client base.

In many firms the partners are ‘the face of the firm’ and those to whom the client will go with any concerns. It is not uncommon for firms to lose business when a particular partner retires or leaves. I do not think that many of the partners I know are resting on their laurels in the hope of easy profits on the backs of their junior employees; indeed, they are constantly striving to provide a service to their clients at a reasonable price in the face of increasing overheads and external regulation.

Stephen Thorn, Drivers, Malton