Major London law firms still making use of government’s furlough scheme
Major law firms, some of which are based in Canada, are still making use of the government’s furlough scheme.
City firms Trowers & Hamlins, BLM and and TLT were among those still making use of the coronavirus jobs retention scheme last month, according to HMRC data published by The Lawyer.
A spokesperson for TLT said: “We used furlough in December for a small number of colleagues whose work remained on hold due to the debt enforcement moratorium. We are not using the furlough scheme in any other part of the business.”
Other major names included Ince Gordon Dadds, Michelmores and Minster Law.
According to The Lawyer, the 700,000-strong list of firms making use of the scheme excluded employers with a successful or pending application to have their details withheld, as well as those who have paid back their grants in full.
As a result, high profile law firms that furloughed staff in 2020, such as Pinsent Masons, Stephenson Harwood and DLA Piper, were not mentioned, having repaid their funds.
Use of the furlough scheme has become a contentious subject in recent months, with some major firms that initially made use of the scheme but were profitable despite the pandemic deciding to give the money back to the government.
In 2020 the furlough scheme cost the taxpayer more than £46bn, with some 1.2 million people furloughed.
The full list of law firms published by The Lawyer included:
- Trowers & Hamlins
- BLM
- TLT
- Gordon Dadds
- Browne Jacobson
- Plexus Legal
- Ashfords
- Irwin Mitchell
- Michelmores
- Harrison Clark Rickerbys
- Devonshires
- Minster Law
- Fletchers Solicitors
- Harper Macleod
- Walker Morris
- Hugh James
- Thorntons