Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner (BCLP) is set to cut lawyer and staff positions across its global business, as well as keep pay cuts introduced earlier this year, as it takes further steps to weather the COVID-19 business disruption.

Its global business trim includes shutting its small Beijing base, which comprises one partner and two associates, according to the firm's website.

According to one person with knowledge of the process, the cuts will include 14 fee earners and 26 business services staff in the firm's London office.

The global cuts in total will affect a "very small proportion" of the firm's global workforce, a statement for the firm added on Wednesday.

The firm is also keeping pay cuts for employees and lawyers earning over $40,000 a year across all of the firm's offices, but lowering the reduced pay to a 7.5% reduction, compared to the initial 15% cut it introduced in May for an initial 13-week period.

The new pay cut will run from August until the end of 2020, according to the statement by the firm.

In a statement BCLP co-chairs Lisa Mayhew and Steve Baumer said: "After exceeding performance expectations during the first half of this extraordinary year, we're pleased to begin rolling back salary reductions necessitated during the worst of the pandemic conditions.

"Looking ahead, we plan to continue taking proactive steps to provide as much clarity as we can to all our colleagues and to ensure our firm is best positioned moving forward. While a difficult decision to make, we believe the limited adjustments to our workforce are in the best interest of our clients, our business, and our people for the long term."

In June, the firm decided to trim its London-based newly-qualified lawyers' salaries by 2.5% to £78,000 a year. The firm has also furloughed some of its paralegals and less than five legal PAs, according to two people close to the matter.

BCLP is the latest firm to cut positions amid the coronavirus pandemic. On Thursday, Watson Farley & Williams said it has started a redundancy consultation for its London legal PAs, citing "diminished requirement" for their services.

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