Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner (BCLP) is set to target its London-based real estate practice and its Manchester office in its slew of global cuts announced on Wednesday.

According to a lawyer at the firm, the firm held a review of its practices earlier in 2020 which concluded that its London real estate practice has "too many" senior associates.

As a result, the firm is set to cut around four senior associates and/or associate directors from its real estate team in London.

According to another person at the firm, BCLP is also set to cut five fee-earner positions in its Manchester base.

BCLP announced on Wednesday that it is cutting lawyer and staff positions across its global offices. A person with knowledge of the matter said those cuts will include 40 positions in its London base.

The firm is also maintaining a pay cut for employees and lawyers earning over $40,000 a year across all of the firm's offices. The firm is lowering the cut to a 7.5% reduction, compared to the 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.

The firm is also shuttering its Beijing office, which currently houses one partner and two associates, as part of the new measures.

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. Earlier in July, 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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