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Number of registered solicitors and firms falls

updated on 09 May 2014

The number of registered solicitors has fallen for the first time in 20 years, according to this year’s statistical report from the Law Society.

The report shows that, as of 31 July 2013, the number of practising certificate (PC) holders fell to 127,676, a drop of 0.9% compared to the previous year. Meanwhile, Legal Futures reports that the number of private practice law firms has also decreased, with sole practices falling by around three percent and the number of firms with 26-80 partners falling by some eight percent. Only the biggest firms grew in number, by close to four percent - an indication of the high number of mergers that have taken place in recent years.

The number of lawyers working in-house has also grown, according to the report, to some 20% of PC holders.

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