Last week (17/7) The Australian published an article profiling the outplacement firm The Walford Partnership. In an article which appears targeted to evoke sympathy in the reader for retrenched law firm partners, managing director of Walford, David Slessar said:

our heart goes out to fallen corporate figures

leaving a firm after years as a valued partner can be daunting and emotionally difficult.

Boo hoo! There is no mention in the article of the emotional difficulty and general hardship endured by sacked junior employees who, unsurprisingly, have none of the tremendous wealth enjoyed by their equivalently sacked partners. The article does note, however, that Walford:

advises firms on how to deal with partners who … are being retrenched. … Outplacement and mentoring services have been used by Allens Arthur Robinson, Blake Dawson, Corrs Chambers Westgarth and Clayton Utz.

Does this mean what we think it means?  First support staff, then junior lawyers and now the major Australian law firms are sacking … partners? Are partners finally patulous to the GFC-induced cutbacks and sackings we have seen pervading corporate firms for months and months?

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