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Most professionals, especially those who own all or part of their firm, find it difficult to think about retirement. Many of those who practise their chosen profession into their sixties and seventies are reluctant to contemplate life without the mental stimulation, companionship, excitement and sense of fulfilment that their work provides. To a great extent, we are what we do; winding down raises questions about self-esteem and our value to society. Professional life increasingly conditions us to place the interests of clients, customers and colleagues so far in front of our own interests that personal and family issues are sometimes neglected, creating additional challenges.
With these challenges in mind, Partner Retirement in Law Firms encourages proactive retirement planning. In this 2025 edition, edited by partnership and employment specialist Ronnie Fox, expert contributors offer up-to-date guidance to navigating the difficult aspects of retirement in the broad context of career planning, including:
the financial consequences of retirement;
legal matters;
day-to-day practicalities;
accounting and tax;
psychological considerations; and
new activities in retirement.
The key to successful retirement is asking the right questions and using the answers to create a plan. Partner Retirement in Law Firms provides both individual professional partners and HR teams with a practical guide to making the transition from professional to retired life seamlessly and with minimal stress.
Price: £159.00
Pages: 131
Publisher: Globe Law and Business
Imprint: Globe Law and Business
Publication Date:
08 August 2025
Trim Size: 9.25 X 6.12 in
ISBN: 9781837231256
Format: Paperback
BISACs:
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii
By Ronnie Fox, Fox & Partners
Executive Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix
About the editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xv
About the authors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xvii
Chapter 1: Partner retirement – a firm’s perspective . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
By Corinne Staves, CM Murray LLP
The legal framework . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Voluntary retirement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Involuntary retirement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
The exit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Chapter 2: Legal issues from the individual partner’s point of view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
By Ivor Adair and Caroline Field, Fox & Partners
Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Considerations for retiring partners negotiating their exit . . . . . . . . . 24
The default regime – the Partnership Act 1890 and Limited Liability Partnership Act 2000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
The exit routes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Challenging expulsion / compulsory retirement and tactical considerations for partners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Business protection by the firm – risks for the partner . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
The deal and beyond . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Chapter 3: Accounting and practical considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
By Andrew Baker, RSM
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Retirement date . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Impact of business structure and profit-sharing arrangements . . . . 53
Accounts at the date of retirement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Goodwill and anti-embarrassment arrangements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
Non-partnership assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Financial settlement and payments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Post-retirement issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Chapter 4: Tax considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
By Nicky Owen, Crowe U.K. LLP
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Equity changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Profit share . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Capital invested in the firm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Salaried member/partner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Retiring as a partner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Retirement date . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Tax reserves . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Self-assessment tax return . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Tax liabilities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Selling your share of goodwill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Selling your shares in a service company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
Post retirement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Chapter 5: The emotional impact of partner retirement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
By Micheline Hogan, Psychodynamic psychotherapist
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Plan in advance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Alternative strategies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Defining your post-retirement role . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Concluding thoughts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Chapter 6: Build a strong retirement plan and safeguard your future – ten essential steps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
By Veronica Mann, Talis Financial Advisers
Make your plan – find your number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Pensions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Other assets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109
Investment risk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
There’s no point planning if disaster strikes… . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Legacy planning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Your ten-point retirement plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Chapter 7: Another career? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
By Roderick Chamberlain, former director of Career Guidance Services Limited
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
“When should I do it?” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
“How should I think about it?” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
“What should I do about it?” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126
Concluding thoughts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
About Globe Law and Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131