Together with

Table of Contents

• EDITOR’S RAMBLE 🗣

• FEATURED REPORT 📰

• TOGETHER WITH CMS* 🤝

• IN OTHER NEWS 🗞

• AROUND THE WEB 🌐

• STUFF THAT MIGHT HELP YOU 👌

EDITOR’S RAMBLE 🗣

In 2019, CMS gave me my start in law.

I remember the email that started my career:

“We’d like to offer you a place on the 2019 CMS Academy programme.”

That was my vac scheme offer.

In 2020, I started my training contract at CMS.

In 2022, I qualified into the corporate team.

In 2024, I left to focus full-time on LittleLaw.

And now, in 2025, LittleLaw is partnering with CMS UK.

It’s a surreal moment for me.

To be working with the firm that gave me my start — it means a lot.

When I started LittleLaw, the goal was simple: make it easier for people to understand what commercial lawyers actually do.

And, with CMS, it’s a perfect fit.

They care about helping more people understand the profession and get a fair shot.

If you’ve seen their TikTok (shoutout Phoebe), you’ll know exactly what I mean.

Over the coming months, we’ll be breaking down real CMS matters — showing what the work of the lawyers really looks like.

The first piece is coming later this month (it’s a good one).

– Idin

P.S. Their TC application are open right now (places England, Scotland and Dubai)

FEATURED REPORT 📰

🧾 The tax change future lawyers need to know

What’s going on here?

Later this month, Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor of the Exchequer (the government minister in charge of tax and public spending), will deliver the government’s Budget. This is when the government reveals how it plans to tax and spend over the next year.

One rumour is that limited liability partnerships (LLP) may become subject to employer National Insurance Contributions (employer NICs) — something they currently don’t pay.

Most UK law firms are LLPs, so this could mean higher tax bills for their partners.

What is a limited liability partnership (LLP)?

For professional services firms like law firms, the most common legal structures are:

• a general partnership,

• a limited liability partnership (LLP), or

• a private limited company (Ltd).

Here’s a quick overview of the differences between them:

Most major UK law firms choose the LLP model because it keeps the traditional “partnership” feel while giving members limited liability and slightly more privacy than an Ltd.

What are employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs)?

Employer National Insurance contributions (NICs) are payments made by employers on their staff’s earnings above a certain amount.

Currently, the rate is 15% on earnings above £5,000 per employee per year.

For example, if someone earns £45,000, £40,000 is above the £5,000 threshold.

15% of £40,000 = £6,000.

So the employer would pay £6,000 in NICs for that employee.

These contributions are part of the UK’s National Insurance system and help fund state benefits (like the State Pension).

How are employer National Insurance Contributions treated for LLPs today?

An LLP generally has two types of people:

• Members (often called partners): They share in the profits (like a law firm senior partner).

• Employees: They’re paid a salary (like an associate at a law firm).

Members, like senior law firm partners, aren’t employees. They get paid through a share of the LLP’s profits, not wages.

At the moment, employer National Insurance Contributions are only due on employee salaries. It doesn’t apply to members, because they’re treated as self-employed for tax.

So, when you work out how much an LLP must pay in employer National Insurance, you only count employee pay — partner earnings do not count.

What are the proposed changes?

We don’t have the full details yet. But it’s reported that Chancellor Rachel Reeves is looking at making LLP members (partners) pay employer-style National Insurance.

This would treat a partner’s profit share like salary — which means employer NICs would then apply.

Right now, employers pay 15% NIC on each employee’s annual earnings above about £5,000.

Under the reported plan, the same 15% rate would apply to each partner’s earnings above a similar threshold.

So, if this goes ahead, LLPs might have to pay employer NICs not only on employee salaries, but also on partner profits.

How have law firms reacted to this?

Unsurprisingly, law firms aren’t happy.

The City of London Law Society (a body representing City law firms) has already pushed back. Its chair, Colin Passmore, asked Rachel Reeves to speak with firms before deciding. He warned the change could hurt London’s position as a global legal centre. He argues that the government says it wants growth. Yet this idea could make UK firms less competitive.

Tax experts think this is more than a small tweak. Dan Neidle, former Head of Tax at Clifford Chance, says partner tax rates could rise from about 47% to around 54%.

So, if a partner earns £2 million a year, their take-home could fall from roughly £1.07 million to about £934,000 — that’s a big drop. (Here’s a useful calculator you can use to test different figures).

Firms won’t want partners feeling worse off. So, if this rule comes in, they may try to top up partner pay to keep them happy.

But that money has to come from somewhere, and in reality, there are two main options.

1. They can charge clients more, or

2. They can cut costs (like reducing bonuses or slowing pay rises for other staff).

Neither option looks good.

How can you use this in your applications?

There are a few ways you can use this story to help you stand out in your applications, right now.

💼 Show you understand how law firms work as businesses

In written answers or interviews, you can use this policy change to show you grasp the basics of law-firm structure.

Show you understand that:

• Partners typically own the business and are paid from profit share.

• Associates and trainees are employees and earn a salary.

That sounds simple, but most candidates struggle to show they see the law firm as a business — so this can help you stand out.

And if you discuss this story in particular, link it to the real-world consequences.

For example, you could say:

“If partners are treated like employees for NICs, this raises the cost of employing them. That could affect profits, pricing, or pay for other staff.”

⚖️ Show you understand the difference between a general partnership, an LLP, and a company

This could come up in case studies or written assessments. If you’re advising a company on different business structures, make sure you show you understand the differences:

• General partnership: More legal risk for owners, partners can be personally liable.

• LLP: Similar flexibility, but with limited liability.

• Company: More formal structure, owners are shareholders.

You can then show awareness of this story by saying something like: “If NICs rules change, a general partnership might become more attractive tax-wise. But it carries more risk because partners can be personally liable. Clients may want to factor this into their choice of structure.”

That’s exactly the type of balanced, real-life reasoning firms like to see in assessment centres.

🇺🇸 Show why US law firms may gain an edge

US firms typically pay more than UK firms (even those based in London).

If their structure avoids extra NIC on partners, they could become even more appealing.

At a US firm interview, you could say: “The change could help US firms recruit senior partners from UK LLPs, because take-home pay may be higher. That could strengthen their London offering.”

At a UK-firm interview, you could flip it: “This change could make it harder to retain senior talent. UK firms might respond by adjusting pay, improving career pathways, or investing more in high-profit practice areas.”

Mentioning it like this shows you follow market trends and can apply them to real decisions.

TOGETHER WITH CMS* 🤝

This training contract starts before day one

At CMS, your training contract begins with the award-winning CMS Academy — a two-week programme designed to make sure you’re confident to hit the ground running in your TC.

You’ll spend one week in London understanding how law firms really work, then another inside your future office — meeting colleagues, and working on real matters for clients.

CMS has got:

• 🌍 Offices across England, Scotland and Dubai

• 💼 Opportunities for client and international secondments

• 🎓 SQE sponsorship + maintenance grants up to £15,000

​​🕓 Applications close 30 November (Aberdeen closes 11 January) — so, get started now!

* This is sponsored content

IN OTHER NEWS 🗞

• 🇸🇦 Reed Smith has opened a new office in Riyadh. It’s the firm’s third new office this year, after Atlanta and Denver, and its third in the Middle East. This comes as many global firms rush into Saudi Arabia thanks to Vision 2030 and rising business across sectors like finance, energy, media, and transport.

• 📱 The UK competition regulator has confirmed that Apple and Google both hold “strategic market status” over their mobile platforms. This means the CMA believes they have deep, long-lasting power over things like operating systems, app stores and browsers, and that people rarely switch between them. It’s not an accusation of wrongdoing, but the ruling gives the CMA new powers to step in later if it thinks the companies are hurting users or app developers.

• 👟 Adidas has lost its appeal to protect its famous three-stripe design in the UK. The Court of Appeal said the trade marks were too vague because they allowed the stripes to appear in many different ways on clothing, so it wasn’t clear what was actually being protected. The case was brought by fashion brand Thom Browne (which won). Mishcon de Reya acted for Thom Browne, while Adidas was represented by Hogan Lovells.

AROUND THE WEB 🌐

• 🪑 Bizarre: Police in Spain arrested seven people for stealing 1,000 restaurant chairs

• 🔗 Cool: Find out the shortest link path between any two Wikipedia pages (honestly, it’s super fun)

• 📸 Funny: Check out the finalists of the Comedy Wildlife Photography competition — this one was my favourite 👇️ 

  

STUFF THAT MIGHT HELP YOU 👌

• 💻️ Free application advice: Check out my YouTube channel for actionable tips and an insight into the lifestyle of a commercial lawyer in London.

• 📁 Law firm application bank: A growing library of real, verified successful applications for training contracts and vacation schemes. Helpful if you want to learn from others who answered the same questions you’re stuck on.

• 📝 Write winning law firm applications: A practical course to help you write clearer applications, faster. Avoid common mistakes, learn how to structure answers properly, and get lifetime access to future updates. Try it for 14 days, risk-free.