On the surface a lot can change in the legal world in six months. In the time since I went on maternity leave last summer, SJ Berwin has agreed and gone live with its much-trailed combination with King & Wood Mallesons (KWM), Lawrence Graham has finally found a merger partner in the shape of Wragge & Co, and CMS Cameron McKenna? Well, it hasn't yet managed the US link it has publicly set its sights on, but it has agreed a deal with ailing Scots firm Dundas & Wilson.

In many respects though, these developments – with the exception of the KWM merger – seem unlikely to be transformational. Even in KWM's case, the impact it makes will be intrinsically linked to the extent to which the firm can integrate and overcome sizeable cultural differences. Meanwhile, UK mid-market merger activity is increasingly just business as usual for a host of firms scrabbling to improve – or simply maintain – their position in a saturated and highly competitive market. 

It is tempting to view the latest initiative intended to boost social mobility in this same harsh light. This week the diversity recruitment specialist Rare has announced a scheme intended to improve diversity across a range of professional careers, including law. Rather than assessing all graduate candidates equally on the basis of their qualifications, the organisation is pushing firms to measure academic performance against the context of candidates' socio-economic backgrounds, including their schooling.