JD Journal

London’s Hammonds LLP is set to cut about 10% of its partnership.

The top 50 UK law firm is cutting up to 20 partners from its fixed share and equity ranks.

Some partners will also be affected by a de-equitization program in an attempt to deal with underperformance, especially at the top of the partnership.

The cuts, affecting the firm’s offices in London, Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds, will see corporate and real estate under the most scrutiny, with a number of partners having already left the firm. The rest of those affected are expected to leave before the end of the financial year.

In January, the firm had 186 partners, including 74 in the equity.

The move comes after the firm laid off 53 support staff and 24 fee earners as a result of a redundancy consultation launched in November.

Hammonds posted a drop in profits per equity partner of more than 9% for 2007-08, to £367,000 ($525,000). Revenue at the firm edged up 3.4% to £132 million ($188.9 million).

Hammonds’ overseas offices are located in Aosta, Milan, Rome, Turin, Brussels, Paris, Berlin, Munich, Madrid, Hong Kong and Beijing.

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