Female solicitors in private practice earned almost a third less than their male counterparts in 2008, with the gap most noticeable at the senior end.

New research by the Law Society found women in private practice took home 28.9% less than men in the same positions, when differences in their working lives were ignored.

Taking into account factors including experience and region, the survey of 1,200 UK-based lawyers found that their gender was pushing women's salaries 6% behind their male counterparts.

The Law Society suggests that there are a number of possible reasons for the discrepancy in earnings including direct discrimination, different preferences or motivation and attitudes to the labour market.

The median pay gap is at its smallest at associate and assistant level at 10%, widening to 24% for salaried partners.

The research also found that 60^ of the intake of solicitors were women this year, while 43.4% of all practising certificates are not held by women. Just over one fifth of women solicitors are partners, compared with almost half of all male solicitors.

Clare McConnell, chairwoman of the Association of Women Solicitors, said: "The pay gap suggests not only that many women are not equally rewarded for equal work, but most significantly, that women are not making the progress through the profession that they should."