Moving to the regions: Birmingham

Author James Brewster
July 24, 2024

This guide is crafted for legal professionals considering a move to Birmingham or seeking career progression within the city. Whether you’re newly qualified, an experienced solicitor or exploring in-house roles, we’re sharing insights into Birmingham’s legal market and lifestyle.

With practical advice on local job prospects, city benefits and a comparison to practising law in London, this guide provides essential information to support your decision on making Birmingham your professional home.

Contents

Why Birmingham

Birmingham is one of the largest legal hubs in the UK, outside of London, and is therefore an ideal destination for legal professionals seeking dynamic careers and quality living. The city combines historic charm with modern amenities, offering vibrant culture, diverse dining and scenic canals. Its strengths in finance, technology and creative industries provide numerous career opportunities, with various housing options to suit different lifestyles.

The central location, excellent transport links and reputable educational institutions make Birmingham a top choice for professional growth and a welcoming community.

Insights into succeeding as a legal professional in Birmingham

In early 2024, our Birmingham team met with Jenny Farrington, Senior Associate at Gowling WLG and Joel Nixon, Corporate Partner at Higgs LLP, to discuss the advantages and challenges of practising law in Birmingham. In this Q&A session, hosted by Taylor Root’s James Brewster and Chloe Matthews, our guest speakers share their insights on Birmingham’s unique legal landscape, local job market trends and how the city compares to London for legal professionals.

Lifestyle in Birmingham

Birmingham offers a number of lifestyle benefits including: 

  • Green spaces: Plenty of parks and outdoor areas for relaxation and recreation
  • Arts & culture: A lively arts scene with theatres, music venues, galleries, and museums
  • Diverse food scene: A wide range of dining options reflecting the city’s multicultural population
  • Sports & recreation: Top-notch sports facilities and outdoor activities like canal walks and countryside excursions

Living essentials

Birmingham offers a practical, affordable, and well-connected lifestyle: 

  • Affordable living: Lower cost of living compared to London, with budget-friendly housing and everyday expenses
  • Job opportunities: A diverse job market in finance, tech, healthcare, and more, with strong support for business growth
  • Education: Home to prestigious universities and quality schools, both state and private
  • Central location: Easily reach other major cities via excellent road, rail, and air connections
  • Shorter commutes: Less time spent commuting, leading to a better work-life balance
  • Ongoing development: Significant investments in infrastructure, making Birmingham a hub for innovation and growth

The legal sector in Birmingham

Birmingham is a key hub for the UK’s legal sector, with a strong presence of both national and international law firms offering a wide range of services.  

Key locations in the city centre 

  • Colmore Business District: A major hub for legal firms, professional services, and corporate offices. Colmore Business District is home to prestigious law firms like DLA Piper, Gowling WLG, and Pinsent Masons, as well as major financial institutions and corporate headquarters.
  • Brindley place: A prime location with a mix of law firms, corporate offices, and financial services. Companies like Deutsche Bank and Deloitte have significant legal departments here 
  • Snow Hill: An area with modern office developments and several law firms, close to key transport links, making it a strategic location for legal professionals

Law firms and chambers 

  • Specialised practices: The city’s firms specialise in various areas such as corporate law, intellectual property, real estate, family law, and employment law
  • Birmingham Law Society: One of the UK’s oldest law societies, providing extensive support and resources to legal professionals
  • Educational institutions: The University of Birmingham and Birmingham City University offer top-tier law programmes, producing highly skilled graduates 

Legal jobs in Birmingham

Birmingham offers a wide range of legal job opportunities in both private practice and in-house roles, particularly in central areas like the Colmore Business District. 

Private practice opportunities 

Commercial law: 

  • Roles: Solicitors in mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, commercial contracts, and intellectual property

Real estate law:

  • Roles: Solicitors handling commercial property transactions, development projects, and landlord-tenant disputes

Employment law:

  • Roles: Advising on employment contracts, disputes, and regulatory compliance

Litigation and dispute resolution:

  • Roles: Handling civil and commercial litigation, arbitration, and mediation

Specialist law firms:

  • Roles: Niche areas such as family law, immigration, and environmental law
  • Roles: In-house solicitors handling corporate governance, compliance, contracts, and employment law

Accountancy and professional services firms:

  • Roles: Legal advisors within multi-disciplinary teams, focusing on tax law, corporate transactions, and regulatory compliance
  • Employers: PwC (legal services), KPMG (tax and corporate law), Deloitte (expanding legal services division)

Public sector and non-profit organisations:

  • Roles: Legal counsel for public bodies, charities, and educational institutions 

Salary bands for private practice law firms in Birmingham

The salary for solicitors in Birmingham varies significantly based on experience and the type of law firm.

For detailed salary information, please see our Taylor Root Salary Maps.

Key Considerations

Additional benefits: Many firms offer bonuses, profit-sharing and other benefits that can significantly increase overall compensation

Type of law firm: Salaries tend to be higher in top-tier or international law firms compared to regional or smaller firms

Specialisation: Solicitors in high-demand practice areas like corporate, finance, real estate and commercial/technology law often command higher salaries

Location within Birmingham: Firms located in the Colmore Business District or other prime areas may offer higher salaries compared to those in less central locations

Housing costs in Birmingham and West Midlands

The West Midlands region, which includes cities such as Birmingham, Coventry, Wolverhampton, and the surrounding areas, has a diverse housing market. Here’s an overview of the average house prices in the region, focusing on the most recent data available. 

Average House Prices in the West Midlands (as of 2024)  

  • Overall Average: £250,000 – £260,000 
  • Detached Houses: £400,000 – £450,000 
  • Semi-Detached Houses: £250,000 – £300,000 
  • Terraced Houses: £200,000 – £240,000 
  • Flats/Apartments: £150,000 – £180,000 

Overall, the West Midlands offers a relatively affordable housing market compared to other regions in the UK, particularly London. Birmingham, being the largest city in the region, has a wide range of housing options catering to different budgets and preferences, making it an appealing choice for many potential homebuyers. 

Benefits of working with Taylor Root

Expertise and connections: Taylor Root excels in legal recruitment, offering deep market knowledge and established relationships with top law firms and corporate legal departments. Providing insights into salary benchmarks and industry trends provide valuable guidance, helping candidates make informed career decisions. 

Access to exclusive opportunities: Offering a wide range of roles, from newly qualified solicitors to senior partners and in-house positions. With access to exclusive job listings and a global network, Taylor Root connects candidates with unique opportunities worldwide. 

Efficient support: Taylor Root streamlines the job search process by managing applications and interviews, saving candidates time and effort. Providing tailored job matches, assist in negotiating salaries and contract terms, and offer interview coaching to enhance performance. 

Ongoing professional development: Taylor Root maintains regular contact to keep candidates updated on new opportunities and industry developments, fostering a long-term relationship to support future career moves. 

Trusted and discreet: Known for professionalism and proven success, Taylor Root ensures confidentiality throughout the job search, making them a reliable partner in achieving career goals. 

in-house legal Jobs

  • Energy
  • FinTech

Legal Counsel, Environmental Impact

Legal Counsel, Environmental Impact An Abu Dhabi based investment management group with a strong influence into environmental protection, is creating and financing nature based solutions in emerging markets territories. So why this role in particular? Here’s an opportunity to join a fast-growing, entrepreneurial institution at the forefront of global environmental trading markets. You will work […]
  • Posted Posted 8 hours ago
  • Technology (in-house)
  • Telecommunications

Senior Legal Counsel – Technology

The Opportunity Our client is a leading financial services institution in Australia seeking a stellar technology lawyer to join a high calibre, collaborative team. The business is at the start of a tech transformation journey, so it’s an exciting time to join. You will work on high value technology transactions, and also be involved in […]
  • Posted Posted 2 days ago
  • Banking (in-house)
  • Financial services (in-house)

Deputy General Counsel

Leading financial services company requires a Deputy General Counsel to join expanding legal team. You will be one of a number of Deputy GCs within the organisation, each responsible for a particular area. This position falls within the group legal function, covering a wide variety of matters including but not limited to commercial contracts, procurement, […]
  • Posted Posted 3 days ago
  • Banking (in-house)

Employment Legal Counsel, 5+

This mid-cap US bank is looking to appoint an employment legal counsel to its EMEA Legal Team in London. In this role you will advise on a broad range of employment and Employee Relations (ER) work including advising on day-to-day employment issues such as disciplinary processes, performance management, grievance processes and preventative management as well […]
  • Salary Up to £140000 per annum
  • Posted Posted 1 week ago
  • Banking (in-house)

Trade Finance Legal Counsel, 4+

This corporate bank is looking to appoint a trade finance lawyer to its EMEA Legal team in London. In this role you will join a collegiate team and advise on a broad range of work including: Provide legal advice on corporate lending matters including syndicated and bilateral loans, security and guarantees and sustainable finance. Provide […]
  • Salary Up to £120000 per annum
  • Posted Posted 1 week ago
  • Education

Legal Counsel – M&A

Our client is a leading global operator of premium private schools, headquartered in Central London. We are looking for a stellar M&A lawyer to join the high-calibre legal team, to support the growth of the group. The role You will provide comprehensive legal support for all aspects of M&A transactions throughout the whole deal lifecycle, […]
  • Salary competitive
  • Posted Posted 2 weeks ago
  • Banking (in-house)

Paralegal – In-House Aviation

The Paralegal will play a crucial role in supporting our Legal Group in managing, drafting and progressing complex acquisition, sale, leasing, finance and corporate structuring activities. This position requires strong organisational skills, a keen eye for drafting and detail, a real interest in learning and demonstration of ownership of given projects, excellent communication skills and […]
  • Salary Up to €80000 per annum
  • Posted Posted 2 weeks ago
  • Accountancy
  • Insurance
  • Management consulting
  • Services

Senior In-House Counsel

We’re delighted to partner with a top law firm in their search for an in-house counsel. This is a position to support the firm itself (non fee-earing) on a wide variety of matters including procurement (including IT procurement), general commercial contracts (including clients engagements), internal policies and procedures, and risk matters. You will have strong […]
  • Posted Posted 2 weeks ago

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