Linklaters today announced a 5% increase in partner profits on the back of a steady rise in revenue and pre-tax profits last year, driven by ‘robust markets and sustained deal activity’.

The magic circle firm recorded profit per equity partner (PEP) of £1.87m in the year ended 30 April 2022, up from £1.77m in its previous year’s results. Profit per partner – including those who are salaried – climbed 4.5% to £1.78m.

Linklaters posted a 7% increase in pre-tax profits to £871.7m and a 6.5% rise in revenue to £1.78bn, which the firm’s managing partner Paul Lewis said marked ‘a strong set of financial results, largely driven by increased revenues from robust markets and sustained deal activity over the past financial year.

‘Our strategy is built on the premise that we will deliver profitable growth by excelling for clients,’ he added. ‘We are able to achieve this due to the quality, hard work and client-centric approach of our people.

‘In a post-pandemic world with growing political and economic uncertainty, our clients require complex legal solutions. The investments we have made over the year have ensured that we are able to provide the right combination of global coverage and high-quality cross practice expertise. To excel for our clients we need to be nimble, bold and decisive in our approach, which we will continue to be as we look ahead to the next financial year.’

All the magic circle firms have now published their results for the last financial year apart from Slaughter and May, which is not an LLP and does not report figures.

Clifford Chance led the way on income, reporting revenue of £1.97bn and PEP of just over £2m, while Allen & Overy topped the charts on net profits with a 9% increase to £900m.

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer recorded the highest PEP figure in the magic circle with a rise from £1.91m last year to £2.07m – but that was dwarfed by City firm Macfarlanes which posted PEP of £2.48m, marking a 19% leap from the previous year.