Once a standard milestone for ambitious Australian and New Zealand lawyers. ‘The London Stint’ became the ultimate finishing school until the world hit the pause button in 2020.
Between 2020 and 2024 came the post Covid hiatus. This was the necessary period of rehabilitation required to heal, adapt to new ways of working, reset, and ultimately regain trust in the world’s economy. Border closures, a cooling in the global M&A market, nervousness from leading city firms, and a general ‘wait and see’ approach meant the ‘London Dream’ became a thing of the past, with London firms prioritising retention and internal restructurings to save costs.
‘Thrive in 25’ was the buzzword in the city as 2024 ended and 2025 started. We did see a definite lift in the ‘nervousness’ throughout the year. With US firms consistently outbidding the Magic Circle firms, the competition for talent became fierce once again.
2026:
As 2026 begins, demand is spiking again. The appetite for ANZ lawyers is back to pre-COVID levels. The Talent War is well underway and isn’t just about replacing those who have left…
- Several US-headquartered firms have expanded their London footprints, operating on leaner models but requiring highly capable associates who can manage intense deal flow.
- M&A and Private Equity deals are on the up! But in turn, this has identified a vacuum of 3-5-year PQE lawyers who were not there during the post-COVID hiatus.
- Debt needs to be refinanced, with much of this taken out between the low-interest rate years of 2020 and 2021; the refinancing of this debt can be extremely complex.
The need for top talent has never been greater, and the pool of candidates able to hit the ground running at the required level isn’t as big as it once was. Clients are willingly revisiting international recruitment as a solution to their hiring needs. Firms are ‘keen to speak’ right now to lawyers from Australia and New Zealand who might once again want to pursue a career in the gateway to Europe, LONDON!
