The firm’s Australian chair and Australasian regional CEO Doug Stipanicev said that while Dentons is in a strong position to weather the COVID-19 storm, “no one can predict how long this will go on for, or what the overall impact will be”.

With that in mind, the firm – in a statement provided to Lawyers Weekly – said that salaries are being reduced by 20 per cent, with employees to either continue working full hours and take some leave days each month, or work reduced hours.

Further, Dentons equity partners are reducing both their monthly take-home pay and have frozen their profit distributions, which amount to a reduction in cash flow of more than 50 per cent for those professionals.

The new measures will apply to all 449 staff and 70 partners across Dentons’ Australian offices.

“Our agile business allows us to redeploy some of our employees to areas that are seeing an increase in work, but we also have a responsibility to do everything we can to preserve the jobs of our people,” Mr Stipanicev continued.

“We have taken a conservative look at our profit forecast for the coming months, and we believe the approach we have asked our employees to agree to will ensure we can preserve as many jobs as possible, and come out in a strong position on the other side.”

Dentons ran a “comprehensive consultation process with everyone in the firm”, Mr Stipanicev continued, holding eight town halls and then giving employees the option of agreeing to the measures.

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“I’m extremely proud of our people, who have embraced this challenge and come together to agree to the measures for the greater good of our business and our clients,” he proclaimed.

“Our focus will continue to be on our clients, leveraging our global networks for their benefit; and in supporting our staff through this challenging time.” 

Mr Stipanicev proclaimed that COVID-19 has moved the legal industry more quickly to digital solutions and virtual ways of working.

“We’re taking the opportunity that these times present us with to offer solutions our clients that solve their business challenges, such as the use of automation and robotics to drive the integration of the eco-legal system of business and legal; manage contracts more efficiently with digital signatures; and pricing and alternative fee arrangements that can be done overnight instead of weeks/days,” he concluded.

The news follows reports from this week that Colin Biggers & Paisley has cut salaries by 20 per cent and partner remuneration by 20 per cent to 40 per cent, depending on one’s seniority. Further, Clifford Chance has paused salary reviews and deferred partner profits, HopgoodGanim Lawyers is cutting salaries for staff earning more than $65,000 by 20 per cent, directors and senior executives for plaintiff firm Slater and Gordon will see their pay reduced by 10 per cent to 15 per cent and Sparke Helmore has cancelled pay rises for this year for partners and employees.

Lawyers Weekly has also reported on the measures taken by dozens of other law firms in the wake of the pandemic. Those reports can be found here.