As a lawyer at one of the “magic circle” of leading corporate legal firms, Matthew Courtney was expected to work 16 hours a day, seven days a week.

He hoped that his efforts would eventually be rewarded with a partnership – and a £1 million salary.

But weeks after Mr Courtney, 27, and other associate lawyers at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer spoke to senior partners about their long hours and stress, he was found dead at Tate Modern, The Times has learnt.

He had gone alone to the art gallery after work on Friday and died instantly after plunging from a stairwell leading to the seventh-floor restaurant at 11.30pm.

The death of the Oxford-educated lawyer, the only child of the World Cup football referee George Courtney, has highlighted concerns about the stress suffered by City workers as bonuses reach record highs.

His father told The Times: “We talked to Matthew 24 hours before his death and he said he was working long hours but there was nothing there to suspect anything untoward.

“We have spoken to Matthew’s line manager today, and there might have been an issue with his workload. They had recently taken some of that workload off him. Freshfields were very happy with the quality of his work.”

Mr Courtney, of Pimlico, Central London, had been one of only 100 trainee lawyers selected each year to join Freshfields. He qualified last August and was appointed an associate specialising in intellectual property rights at its Fleet Street offices.

As a £55,000-a-year junior, he would frequently have been called on to work 16-hour days, seven days a week, for weeks on end to keep up with the firm’s relentless flow of multi-billion-pound deals. Junior staff at Freshfields, which employs 2,400 lawyers worldwide, tend to put in this level of work - for up to eight years before they are eligible for partnership and some of the best financial rewards in the City.

A spokeswoman for Freshfields said: “The firm held a minute’s silence at 11am on Monday in memory of a friend and a colleague. We are deeply sad and affected.”

Mr Courtney studied law on an open scholarship to Christ Church, Oxford, and spent a year at law school in London. He previously attended Durham School, which costs £4,000 a term. He spoke French, German and Spanish, was a talented violinist and saxophonist and had appeared at the Edinburgh Fringe while at Oxford. He had also been a member of the National Youth Choir of Great Britain.

His father, who refereed at the 1986 and 1990 World Cups, and mother, Margaret, were visited at their home in Spennymoor, Co Durham, by his manager and colleagues. Mr Courtney’s father, who is 65, said: “Matthew set very high goals for himself and achieved great goals. He was a credit to himself and his family.”

After qualifying last autumn, the father and son spent a month travelling around California. They also went to The Gambia before Christmas.

Mr Courtney’s father said: “He had a good crowd of people around him at Freshfields and enjoyed his time there. He was like all of the associates there – he worked fairly long hours but there was a very good social side.

“The only sad thing is he had so much more to give to his employer, his friends and everybody whose lives he touched. I think he might have gone on to things other than the law. He always wanted to write.”

Rodney Thomas, director of marketing at Durham School, who taught Mr Courtney German, said: “Matthew was the epitome of a gifted and talented pupil.” Police studied security camera footage from Tate Modern but told Mr Courtney’s family that it is inconclusive. A Scotland Yard spokeswoman said that the death was being treated as “unexplained but not suspicious”.

Market leader

— Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer is Europe’s top corporate law firm and last year worked on 260 deals worth €378.3 billion (£254 billion)

— It employs more than 2,400 lawyers in 28 offices around the world

— Its 450 partners each earned on average £830,000 last year. Over the next two years this is expected to rise to more than £1 million

— Freshfields’ clients include Tesco and Cinven, a private equity firm weighing up a possible £10 billion bid for Sainsbury’s

Source: Mergermarket

Reader feedback: we have so far received several hundred comments on this article. Unfortunately, we have been having technical problems with our comment facility across the site that has resulted in only a small number of comments displaying or, in this case, none at all. We are not attempting to censor comments or deflect any criticism. Our technical people are working on a solution but in the mean time, we have posted a selection of your comments. Please accept our apologies.

This is really sad! Most big city firms are slave-drivers but at least they pay well. Worse is if you work damn hard and yet it is not appreciated at all: all they look at are your hours and billing targets! There is certainly more to look for in a staff.
Jojo, Hong Kong

Easy to say that he had made a choice and should have known.Not that simple.I work at a magic circle firm and have decided to leave and start my own practice doing the type of law I care about, rather than work in the City not doing much or any law and earning money for the partners, working for days without going home.I am one of the lucky ones as I have a supportive family who does not see working in the City, earning a lot of money as the ultimate success.The City lawyers are not 'the best lawyers', as they like to say, they are just best paid.We do the same things over and over again, using precendents, while a handful of partners may think about the actual law on and off - not that they have much time for that, being too busy entertaining clients to keep the business.Not that there is anything wrong with earning a lot - but none of these people are paid enough, it is the partners of these firms that get the profit.Employ more lawyers working in shifts and have lower profits!
Wendy, Islington

We need better use of the law on maximum working hours. And Freshfield's clients should have the sense to question whether they get the best value from people working excessive hours.
XY, Norwich

People are justifiably concerned at the fact that this poor man was working 16 hour days 7 days a week. It is worth remembering that for child workers of LED (third world) countries this is the norm. Do we place a different value on the life of a white, western male? It certainly gains more column inches.
Mary, London

Very sad indeed, but puzzled by the inclusion of the price of school fees for the Durham school. What does the cost of his schooling have to do with his death?
Joachim, Berlin

If there's all that money sloshing around in these places wouldn't it make sense to employ twice as many people for - say - just HALF a million pounds apiece?

If I wanted to hire a lawyer I'd prefer one who wasn't so tired he couldn't function properly.
Mikey, Streatham

Prurience about wages in the City? This poor guy's hourly take-home pay was less than half a tube driver's. Way less. No wonder the bonuses in the echelons are so big - it's practically slave labour. You can be sure that this chap took home barely 5% of the earnings he made for Freshfields.
Andrew, London

It's not just law firms - banks, consultancies and pretty much every professional services firm treats its employees like this. Having worked in one such firm and then got out to have a life, the tragedy of broken relationships, chronic health issues and deterioration of behaviour that this sort of life brings is frightening. That it appears to have contributed to this poor guy's death is truly tragic.

Will the goverment do anything to step in? Doubt it, the shadowed threat of big firms like this leaving London will make them cave in and just let them be.
Pete, UK

I am 28 years old and believe it or not I have only recently started a career in teaching. I work in Japan where working hours are some of the longest in the world. Yet i am astounded at the level of control impinged upon these gifted lawyers. The mental life of the young Matthew Courtney, may he rest in peace, could only have been enveloped in what his employers required from him. Business may be booming - but what about the holistic heallth of this young man? Was his mind and heart free enough too be just a growing young man? If i may be so bold, I suggest now to the contrary. The human mind needs space and time to explore more natural, intuitive interests - such as ART, music, religion, and culture.

I think that this great man was crushed from the inside, his artistic tendencies curtailed by an overbearing money machine bent on all the ideals of modernity which we should all be aware of by now. The comments from his employers et al seem impotent and bland. I empathise with the departed, my heart bleeds for those who love him.
David Williams, Saitama, Japan

Ross, you clearly don't work at the coal face of a corporate law firm. 90 hours a week during this M&A boom is not unusual for weeks at a time. If you are working 8 hours a day, don't expect to be there in the near future.....
Nick, London

To Chris Jackson

Unfortunately the majority of associates working at a magic circle law firm like yours have not had as blissful an experience as you appear to have had, of working in any department (IP, corporate or otherwise), and so would not concur with your breezy statement that 16 hour (or thereabouts) days do not occur on a frequent basis. This is a dangerous approach to take in view of the fact that tragedies like this can and do occur, and I would urge others not to follow this Neverland line of thinking where city law firm working hours are concerned. Health, mental sanity and quality of life should matter far more than appeasing the irrational demands of powerful corporate clients in the city on a day-to-day basis
Anonymous, London

i used to work in a magic circle law firm. i am a healthy person; young; i don't drink; don't smoke; go to the gym and eat healthy too. there were couples of weeks where i had to work "16 hours a day - 7 days a week - for prolonged periods of time" (as a competition lawyer, it often happens).

on a sunday afternoon, i was called while i was having brunch with friends to "work overnight". i said "yes of course" and the next thing i remember: i was at the doctor for i had fainted and felt on the floor.

as my body had clearly said "of course you're not going" i decided to quit the firm.

i am now much happier, working for a 'local' smaller law firm; i found a good balance between private and professinoal life and play a lot of music (see www.myspace.com/kutnotrainstation) and enjoy my friends, boyfriend and family.
sicilie, brussels

What a tragedy. But no one holds a gun to your head to work under such stress. If only Matthew had realised there were happier, alternate paths in life he could have taken. He must have been entranced by the salary - I agree with B Wildey - that is obscene when so many Londoners are struggling to make ends meet. And what did that wealth bring this 'poor' guy - death.
Sean O'Conor, London

I have friends who work terrible hours at one of these firms (16 hours is on a particularly bad day) where 12h is not uncommon, and a free weekend is like getting a surprise vacation.

This is a bad trend, which is taking its toll and this will become evident in a few years, when the health issues begin to surface.
John Kowalski, Warsaw

Jo-

Because they would have to have twice the number of seats, computers, training, insurance, maternity/paternity leaves, and more importantly because they wouldn't attract the kind of single-minded individual who will work his life away for a big pay-packet.

Oh yes- and during deals- would employee one pass the batton to employee two after 8 hours, complete with an instant telepathic download of everything that had just happened?
Daniel Xavier-Vizer, Hagatna, Guam

I don't know what firm 'Ross' works in but 8 hours would be treated as a 'half day' in most magic circle firms. 16 hours a day for 7 days straight continuous is a bit over the top - but there will be stretches (particularly if you work in M&A) where it will reach these levels.

'Magic Circle' firms burn out young lawyers by the cartload. Those that can't keep up are dumped - exhausted, stressed out and bitter - those that survive will move into a very high income bracket. But they will lead isolated and dysfunctional lives - they will fail as husbands and wives, friends, mothers and fathers.

Some advice to the young - go there for a few years. But if you value the quality of your life don't stay!! Bale out!!
ex-magic circle carthorse, London

Ross, no one I know in a MC firm, or any other firm for that matter, averages 8 hours' work a day. That might be average for time billed but not for time worked. Neither, of course, do they work 16 hours a day, 7 days a week.

The truth of the matter is that MC lawyers, like many other professionals, work hard and on occasion have to work extremely hard. Most people have had to do an all-nighter every now and again but the work is neither as easy as Ross suggests nor as hard as the report suggests.

Whatever hours he was working, it sounds as though Mr Courtney was struggling with his workload and this is a horrible tragedy. Does it need to be dramatised more than that?
James, London

Excessive workloads have to be seriously considered and rewarded by the partners. It is not the number of hours worked that can be the problem but sufficient understanding of the issue and proper free time observed. Line managers can help in spreading the workload amongst their staff
B Aitken, Edinburgh

What a waste of a life.

People are pushed to excell so much by employers, relatives, loved ones in this day and age because they want them "to excel" without really thinking what would make that person happy. Is it any wonder some people just snap and can take no more. Unfortunately there will be many more queing up to take their place. Having worked for one company and literally watched two managers have nervous breakdowns due to workloads, employers have a long way to go to ease the situation or even care in some cases.
Rachel, Huddersfield

We all have the luxury to make choices. Infrequently in civilised society do others take choices from us through selfishness. Mostly we must take responsibility for these choices we make even if we can't see the potential outcomes at the outset.
Derek Maggs, Kuala Lumpur

There are no surprises here unfortunately. Anyone going into the "City" knows what is expected. The "big bucks" are there for a reason: sacrifice. Unfortunately for poor Mathew and his family and friend's, he was unable to draw the line for himself.

This is not about Freshfield's, or any other institution that depends on being #1 to succeed (#2 don't get paid), but about people that are unable to draw the line of what is acceptable and unacceptable to them.
Patrick, Los Angeles, California

Tragic.

I, too, am a lawyer and a musician as was Mr. Courtney. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, I never had the academic standing to merit placement in a large law firm and thus had a somewhat unconventional career in a small law firm, later as a mediator in government and privately and now a very happy member of Canada's Immigration and Refugee Board, hearing refugee cases. There is a similar law firm "culture" in the major cities of Canada that drives lawyers to work inhuman and unhealthy hours. While an exceptional few thrive on this, it is definitely not for most people. No amount of success, recognition or money can buy back your physical or mental health. My sympathy to Mr. Courtney's family - he sounds like an exceptional young man.
Stuart Much, Toronto, Canada

oh this is bad, i wish i could save him somehow
Matthew, Craves, Scotland

May his soul rest in peace, is all i can say :(
Perry, Park Street, Germany

Sorry that the guy died, but the premise of this article is bogus. Maybe fatigue caused him to fall, but fatigue isn't stress. Looking at his CV, he looks the sort who would always have worked very hard and would never have taken yoga courses even if his employer had offered them. The real news angle lurking behind the faux outrage over "stress" (which is a completely menaingless term, blown out of all proportion by psychologists, therapists and other pseudo-types seeking to feather their own nests) is the prurience about the wages earned by many in the City.
Toby, Sydney

Whatever role his workload may or may not have played in his death, was it really necessary for the section publicising Freshfields' deals, profits and clients?
Miriam, London

I also work in a City firm. Ross is right to say that 16 hours a day is very unusual. I find it astonishing that other contributors to this page are using a tragedy such as this as a soapbox to make cheap points about salaries.
Peter, London

Having trained and worked at a magic circle firm, I can categorically state that the average hours are much longer than 8 hours a day even in non-transactional departments. In transactional departments, 12 hour days were the norm and if you were part of a team working on a major transaction you would rarely leave the office before midnight or the early hours. I lost count of the number of weekends that I sacrificed and 'all nighters' that I worked. You cannot be productive or efficient working such long hours but that is what is expected - like many other corporate assistants I saw the light and moved in-house after a few years.
Liz, London

A tragic end to a young life! Let it be a solemn warning to all that life is more than work and financial success. I believe Freshfields and others of that corporate ilk are vicariously culpable of destroying young lives with the promise of great financial rewards. Its a rat race headed by the Huge Rat of Greed. Success at any price! Well if you live like a rat, be prepared to die like a rat.
Jay, Garrison

A sad and tragic story.

Matthew was young, fit, clever and ambitious; the perfect money making formula for firms like Freshfields to tap into. They are only too aware that carrots such as partnership status and million pound salaries will focus the energies of the young and motivated.

Matthew was perhaps enjoying his fast paced city lifestyle however, one day he would have questioned it (fortunately I did in time) and realised that status and money are not necessarily the keys to happiness. Unfortunately, for many gifted twenty / thirty year olds that question often comes too late when the mental and or physical damage has been done. In the meantime the corporate world will continue to exploit that young spirit. A better balance should be found otherwise more of the UK's young and talented business people will either duck out or not bother in the first place.
Emma, Sydney

Big firms chew up and spit out young lawyers without hesitation. Drawn in to work long hours for partnership suddenly an 8am start and 8pm finish is a normal day. Then its working a few hours over an occassional weekend until one day its usual to spend Saturday or Sunday at the desk. Personal relationships suffer and personal behaviour becomes increasingly dysfunctional.

And one day they are told that the goal they worked for is not achieveable - they're not good enough. Burnt out, overspecialised and at 30 something too old and too expensive to be taken on by the second tier they have to reappraise themselves and their career.

Please don't tell me that long hours aren't part of that existence. An 8 hour day? To be spotted at the lift at 6.30pm in X&Y where I spent the first few years of professional life would be sarcastically remarked upon - "having a half day?"
Glad I got out, Berkhamsted

What a sad story. Our whole society - not just city law firms -needs to think hard about what happened to Matthew. Success in this world is fine, but not when the obsession with it leads young people to become so stressed they die.
John O'Leary, Wellington, New Zealand

The Times should do a better job than this. As a journalist myself, I feel bad when the press fail to make the minimal research to report the truth. I am a law student, and my research in the magic circle has led me to conclude there is no firm that expects its lawyers, let alone junior lawyers, to work 16 hours a day seven days a week. The truth is people might be expected to work late (10-12 hours) for a couple of days once in a long while - when there is a deal that needs to close quickly.

This is not to say that Mr Courtney was not overworked, but just to say many lawyers do not over work all the time. In intellectual property particularly, I doubt anyone would ever have to work 16 hours for seven straight days. This is not acceptable even at Freshfields.

Here is the interpretation of your story: "City lawyers work 16 hours daily until they make partner." You cannot be further from the truth.
CHO, London

I have just read the comments made by other readers, such as 'this is terrible', 'these places are sweatshops' etc etc. Firstly, lets get our facts straight. Yes, occasionally City lawyers are asked to work long hours (I am also a junior at a magic circle firm), but the reporting above suggests this is all day, everyday for months on end. Sure - it is stressful at times, but no one goes into this profession with their eyes closed. As a junior in any profession you will work long hours - fact. This is not slavery - we apply for these jobs with free will, work very hard and are paid accordingly. On the actual reporting itself, I must say this is story is shameful. Death + stressful job = story? I don't think so. There are no reports re suicide. I think the journalist should consider the family and their feelings before writing a piece full of such insinuation and devoid of any material fact again.
Steph, City of London

This is a terribly tragic case and we have to find the full facts, but if people are working such long hours that lead to accidents isn't it time the HSE became involved.

Would they be prepared to prosecute the Managing Partner of a firm that abused their junior staff
Nigel Grizzard, Leeds

I agree with Marc. I have friends at Freshfields who work long hours but any implication that assistants are expected to work 16/7 is wrong. Granted when deals are on, and in a corporate department, hours are high, but this is never month on month, year on year. What is the Times trying to say here?

It is very sad to hear when someone in my profession dies and my sympathy is with his parents.
Sam, London

I think the point of this "story" has been lost. We don't know the truth of the tragedy and feelings for this young man's family and friends would be most welcome.
Sarah, London

This is a sad event. I have no doubt that Mr Courtney was required to work hard for his salary. But there is no evidence, at least yet, to link his death to his workload, or any other particular stress in his life.

And the suggestion that Freshfields, or indeed any magic circle firm, asks its associates to work 16 hours a day, 7 days a week (112 chargeable hours a week!) repeatedly is baseless nonsense.
Robert, London

Until there is confirmation that Mr. Courtney's death was suicide, I feel that it is unfair to both his memory and his family to imply that it is.

In addition, Freshfields cannot be held responsible for his death in the event that it is proved that this was a suicide - whilst hours are long and the workload heavy at City firms, law students know what to expect when applying for training contracts and are exposed to the workload as trainees. As a previous employee of a City law-firm, I feel that your comments are unjustified.
Elizabeth Stoppelmoor, George Town, Cayman Islands

Thanks Nige, UK. I guess I must be a, em, "slug". Or perhaps the reality is not what the press would have us believe. If you look at most law firms' hours targets, they are around 1400-1600 a year, which equates to 7-8 hours a day. Likewise, if you look at average hours actually billed across the magic circle, the numbers are around the same. I'm not saying people don't work hard, and sometimes work consistently hard, simply that the reality is very different to the 16 hours a day, 7 days a week portrayed in the article. Perhaps you would let us know your vast experience to opine on the matter, mine is 8 years at a City firm.
Ross, London

Dear B Wildey, Cordes, France, although the article is certainly exagerating the workload and hours a young lawyer is expected to put in, and creating a confusion damaging to the young man, his family and his firm, the comment that salaries are "obsene" is quite uncalled for. Lawyers in such firms do put a great deal of effort and commitment into their work and if firms deem them to deserve such rewards, then good for them!
Emmanuelle, Paris

I used to work for a magic circle firm before recently moving to an in-house role and in all honestly I am surprised that this kind of thing doesn't happen more often. I am not suprised though that other lawyers have defended magic circle firms because it is a highly pressured and political environment that many people (including myself for sometime) get too caught up in to see a way out.
Joseph, London

I agree with Ross and Marc - yes, there is pressure at magic circle firms, and when we're on a deal, we often need to work long hours and weekends. But in most firms there is also a sense of balance, and when the pressure is off, people take time out. I don't agree with Nige that it's impossible to "make it" unless you flog yourself; I'm a partner at a magic circle firm and I have always made a point of maintaining a balance between work and other interests. Far from spoiling my partnership prospects, if anything I think it enhanced them - clients don't just want their lawyers to work like slaves, they want them to be people they like, who have other interests and can talk about other things than legal documents.

None of this, of course, takes away from the fact that the death of this young lawyer is a tragedy for his family, friends and colleagues. It would be better for the press to concentrate on this, rather than trying to sensationalise the story.
David, London

Where is the correlation between his stress and his death?
AL Awyer, London

I wish Ross were right but unfortunately this is off the mark. We have all heard of people (and some of us have had the misfortune of experiencing it first hand) putting in 115 hour weeks in the likes of Corporate and Banking departments to close a deal. Simple maths would reveal the following (115/7 = 16.4 hours/day). If only it were spread this evenly. Sometimes, a 16 hour day is followed by a 20 hour day and so on.
Paul, London

CHO in London has the right of it. This is a pretty poor description of a young lawyer's life. 16 hours a day seven days a week happens, but it's certainly not all the time. 'm not sure where you're going either with all the numbers (55,000 per year salary, 4,000 per term school)--are you trying to make a point about class? Poor striving young lad driven to death by his job?

The picture is incredibly simple and one-sided, by far too sensationalist for The Times. I would have expected more from this paper.
APH, Frankfurt am Main, Germany

I am also a solicitor in a City firm with many friends in magic circle firms. I know NO-ONE who regularly works 16 hours a day five days a week, let alone doing 16 hours a day seven days a week. This might be the case leading up to completion but it will usually last no more than a week. I can't understand where these figures have come from.
Victoria, London

Ross, London - I agree that the article seems to invite conclusions which are not supported by the facts. However, saying "almost no-one EVER works" those hours is a similarly flawed statement. When working on a large deal which spans various jurisdictions and must complete by a hard deadline, it is not unusual for associates at a global law firm to work those hours for at least a month or so. They then have some recovery time before the next deal kicks off. However, I would not expect these sort of hours to be worked by a non-contentions IP lawyer (if that is what Matthew Courtney was). Either way, this is a tragic end for someone who appears to have been too talented to be a legal document churner.
AI, London

I knew Matthew, not as a close friend but as someone who spent some time with him and his family during their holidays over a couple of years.

He was an intelligent, funny, kind and thoughtful man. We lost touch some time ago and I was always sorry about that, never more so than now.

The shock and sadness I feel can only be miniscule, insignificant to that felt by his family. My thoughts are with them.

It's so sad that this has happened to such a decent, genuine young man and his family.

I don't know the situation about the hours he was working or how he was feeling, but I do know that this is a terrible, terrible loss, and I shall always remember him fondly.
Michael Robbins, London

Hiring two people at half the rate wouldn't work, because there would always be overlap - eg two people sharing a particular role on a deal would need a handover discussion every day. This costs time and money. Equally, the firm would have to provide a second desk, computer, etc and other additional overheads. The firm would also need to spend twice as much time and money on recruitment. Law firms are here to make money, not to look after people.

But where's the link between that and this tragic event?
Evelyn, London

I have been a legal aid lawyer for about 30 years. I earn about £60,000.00 a year but I go home at 5.30 most nights and rarely work at weekends. I have a life outside my work.

Hearing about £1million salaries and 16 hour days makes me feel that there really are 2 different professions - the City and the High Street. I am pleased at the choice I made 30 years ago.
Russell Conway, London

I don't know which planet Ross is on, but I am now 13 years qualified. In my early years I worked 70 hours a week, every week. Maybe I chose the wrong firm....

A tragedy, whatever happened. Suicide? A few beers and a slip? Fainting? We'll never know.

Rest in Peace. No more billable hours for you, mate.
Tony, London

Quote: "If he was working 16 hours a day, 7 days a week, how did he have time to go to the Tate Modern?"

Ross, if Matthew started work at 0600 and finished at 2200 he would have worked a 16 hour day. There are 24 hours in every day. I don't understand what you are driving at.

This is a very sad story; I send my condolences to Matthew's family and friends.
Lulu, Bellevue, USA

To the chap who works in the Magic Circle; are you a coporate lawyer? I had heard similarish sort of hours (the same as investment banking, as you would be working on the same deals) though I do know non-corporates work far less.

However, I agree that the reporting of this story is totally sensationalist. We don't even know his death had anything to do with his work.
Abioye A Oyetunji, London

I have to agree with Ross. I also work in the magic circle as an associate with friends at a number of similar firms.

Towrds the end of a deal it would not be unusual to work 7 days straight or indeed to work for longer than 24 hours at a time. However this is far and few between with the average day being 9-7.

This is tragedy which should have been reported with more care and with more respect for Mr Courtney's profession.
ann, london

Jo the reason they don't hire 2 people at half the salary to cover the same area is it is highly skilled work that could not be carried out by less costly and hence less skilled people even if you have more of them.

I work in a different field (not law) but I find some people pick up the work quickly and others are still struggling even after I have spent hours and hours working with them to help them understand the task.
Pat, Reading

This is a tragic story but unfortunately the impact is utterly undermined by the quality of the reporting. As someone who has worked recently at Freshfields and who has many friends working in other magic circle firms I would be shocked if Mr Courtney had ever been asked to work even 2 weeks of the hours alleged in this article - especially given his practice area. The idea that such demands are the standard is just plain wrong. This is not to belittle the stress he may have been under but the lazy journalistic practice of pulling numbers out of the air to reinforce a stereotype is particularly offfensive in circumstances like this.

Quoting the partner's average salary reveals, I suspect, the motivation of the reporters while listing the cost of his schooling is just irrelevant.

I hope that Freshfields do not feel constrained by the circumstances from defending themselves.
John, London

Ross are you a lawyer in one of the magic circle firms? I used to be and its really not all that uncommon. I agree with the comments that no-one is worth that amount of money but would suggest that the reason that those amounts are paid is simply because no-one would work those hours otherwise.
Emma, London

This is a tragedy and a wake-up call for law firms across the City (not just Magic Circle firms) to address this longstanding issue of overloading their associates with too much work, particularly in the boom market that we are in at the moment.

Having said that, it would be unfair to accuse/villify law firms of exploiting their lawyers. Associates know what they are in for when they sign up to a career in the City (particularly in corporate and banking). Working 16-hour days, 7 times a week is not the norm, but it is not uncommon to have lawyers doing all-nighters for days on end to close a transaction. Ultimately, it is for both the organisation and the individual to share in the responsibility of achieving an approriate work-life balance.
Mand, London

Not sure I agree with you there Ross. These hours are unlikely to happen to the same assistant all year round, but corporate and/or finance assistants involved in that level of transaction can expect a fair few 100+ hour weeks (and worse) each year. I'm happy for you (and your friends) if you manage to avoid that, but if you#re working on a proposed private equity deal to acquire Sainsburys you won't be making any plans for your evenings or weekends (such as going home, or sleeping).
Jeff, London

Ross - not sure which magic circle firm you are at but 100+ hours in a week is not unheard of, and a regular eight hour day would actually be a "magic" firm. I think you are missing the point of the article whih is that overwork may have lead to the death of a talented young man, it would not be tolerated in other industries.
M, London

They should be ashamed of themselves. Surely a life is worth more than £55k, 16 hour days and 1 minute of silence? Firms these days are too busy chasing profit and the only people making money out of these lives are the Partner's and Shareholders. I wonder if anything will come of this to prevent further lives being lost through unacceptable pressure put on people by their employers. I doubt it, we will all carry on with our self-absorbed lives accepting more demands for less reward.
AJM, London

I am not too sure what the actual facts are here in this story, but 16hrs a day, 7 days a week, for a periods of time during the year, is not unusual in corporate law, unless of course, you are doing mundane work.

M&As typically require such commitments from the counsels involved for the duration of the case.
Kong Kek Kuat, Kuala Lumpur

Times, pls do a better job next time. Simply do the most minimal research to see how much junior lawyers have to work in the magic circle. The interpretation of your article is: "Junior lawyers in the magic circle work 16 hours daily until they make partner." You cannot be further from the truth. If your sources are lawyers, they must be disingenuous ones.
CHO, London

All I can say is that if Ross is working only 8 hours a day at a magic circle firm then he's a slug and won't be there for long. Probably explains why he's reading the newspaper! ALL my colleagues at magic circule firms get flogged ceaselessly for the promise of partnership that increasingly does not exist.
Nige, London

Presumably the suggestions from the article are that he was so tired from his work he may have fallen or so stressed he may have jumped.

There doesn't seem to be any evidence from the article that he was indeed working 16 hour days 7 days a week. He's in IP, not corporate or banking which makes it less likely. I work for a magic circle firm and do not work nearly those hours.
Chris Jackson, London

I would like to know what the Times is basing its claims on. I am a lawyer in a large city firm, and I have never met a lawyer before claiming that they are expected to work 16 hours a day, 7 days a week for any prolonged period of time. Mr Courtney's parents did not state that he was working such long hours. Is there actually any truth behind the Times' claims, or are they just libellous claims without any basis for truth? It is disgusting that this newspaper is implying Freshfields is somehow morally responsible for his death.
Marc, London

The exploitation of the competitive spirit of young professionals in the City is counter productive - especially when coupled with daily return commutes of three hours or more.

Hard work is good when balanced with personal time for sport, family and a good social network. 16 hour a day sweatshops are illegal in manual trades, they should be in the professions!
Geraldine Clayton, London

This is a tragedy not helped by your disingenuous reporting.

"As a lawyer at one of the 'magic circle' of leading corporate legal firms, Matthew Courtney was expected to work 16 hours a day, seven days a week."

If he was working 16 hours a day, 7 days a week, how did he have time to go to the Tate Modern?

I'm sorry to undermine your feeble research, but I work in the magic circle with friends in other firms, including Freshfields and can reassure you that almost no-one EVER works 16 hours a day for seven days straight; let alone are they expected to do so. The average hours are more like 8 hours a day. Although this might take away from your stereotypes, unfortunately for you it is the truth.
Ross, London

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