The Mahlab Recruitment annual survey, conducted in June, found that just over half of firms, 51 per cent, had made average pay increases of 3.7 per cent over the previous year. This was down from nearly three-quarters in 2012 and from 92 per cent in 2011. This year, even the top tier of firms have introduced a range of measures - including job cuts, flexible working and pay freezes - to keep the costs down. Mahlab says that partners earnings have also suffered. Katherine Sampson, Mahlab's managing director, told Lawyers Weekly: 'This is a major wake-up call for many of the partners in law firms of any size about what they’d like to earn and have been accustomed to earning, and what they’re likely to earn in the future.'