Law firm equity partners have seen their earnings surge by 42% in five years and now average £307,000 a year, a financial adviser firm has reported. 

According to research published by Bowmore Wealth Group, equity partners’ income has increased faster than the rest of the UK workforce, where average salaries grew by 18% to £30,000. It attributes the trend to a rise in demand for legal services part-driven by ‘counter-cyclical practices like litigation, which tend to perform well during periods of economic stress’.

The Law Society’s most recent financial benchmarking survey showed that interest on client money turbocharged law firm profits last year.

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HM Revenue & Customs data collected by Bowmore shows income rising steadily since 2018/19, when equity partners drew an average annual income of £216,000. 

By contrast, barrister income appears to be slowly falling. The average annual income for self-employed barristers fell from £188,000 in 2021/22 to £180,000 in 2022/23. Bowman chief executive Marc Incledon suggested the decline was down to greater use of alternative dispute resolution and more cases being settled away from court, as well as legal aid payments falling.