Financial Wellbeing in Law Report 2026

Four years of data. One direction of travel.

We’ve been speaking to the legal profession about personal finances since 2023. Nobody knows financial wellbeing in law like we do.

What the 2026 workplace survey found

01

Financial wellbeing is the great unknown in workplace wellbeing.

Firms aren’t sure where to begin and how to measure success.

No firmin the benchmark has set financial wellbeing outcomes or objectives
Only halfof firms have either an owner or annual budget for financial wellbeing
Ask in your firmHow are you planning for action on financial wellbeing in 2027?

02

Financial pressure is especially hard to see.

Most firms are simply not asking about financial wellbeing.

62%of firms have no direct dialogue with their people
38%are relying on informal reports from people in their teams
Ask in your firmWould your managers, wellbeing champions or people leaders know how to spot the signs of financial stress?

03

What law firms can't see, they can't manage.

Advance wages, employer loans, direct financial assistance: it’s all happening in law.

62%of firms have experience stepping in as a lender of last resort
No firmsare training managers to spot the signs of financial stress and intervene earlier
Ask in your firmWould your people know who to speak to if they needed financial assistance?

04

Most firms are relying on benefits to do the heavy lifting.

Did you know, you get an average return of £5 for every £1 spent on preventing poor wellbeing?*

67%of all support is benefits-led or reactive
Only 23%of firms have a programme of employee financial education in place
Ask in your firmWhere is your support today? Building skills to prevent problems or sorting them out when they arise?
There is a cost to doing no more, and it is significant

At least

£454m

a year, every year.

Lost by UK law firms to money worries.
Absence and lost productivity within employed solicitors only in the profession.(In other words, it doesn’t include a lot of other people who work in law so is likely an underestimate of the true cost.)
But better is possible

The good news?

Better is possible.

70% of firms say they know it is important and are planning more support next year. The question now is where to begin. The good news is we can help.

Get the checklist Talk to us →
  • Where to start: full programme or pilot first?
  • What does good look like?
  • Whole firm, or targeted groups?
  • How do I get my leadership on board?
  • Don't our benefits already do this?
Where to start: full programme or pilot first?
What does good look like?
Whole firm, or targeted groups?
How do I get my leadership on board?
Don't our benefits already do this?
The questions firms ask us most
Where to start

5 pillars of action to take financial wellbeing from good intention to strategic objective.

01Leadership

Sustained progress needs funding, targets and clear strategy.

“What gets measured gets done” so is your financial wellbeing strategy setting out what you’re doing, why, how and when?

Only halfof firms have a responsible person and a budget in place
Three quartersof firms rely on an informal approach to financial wellbeing
No firmhas specific outcomes or objectives tied to their firm’s financial wellbeing strategy
Ask in your firmIs financial wellbeing on our 2027 action list?
Talk to us about your firm →
02Knowledge

What you can’t see, you can’t support.

We know financial stress in law is high. Do you?

“I honestly think they don’t really want to talk about it.”Anonymous survey response
5.2/10average rating of firmwide knowledge of the link between financial wellbeing and the professional code of conduct
62%collect no data at all on financial stress in their people
Ask in your firmIf we ask about wellbeing in pulse checks and engagement surveys do we leave it open to interpretation or define it?
Talk to us about your firm →
03Support

Benefits and wellbeing aren’t the same thing. Yet many firms assume their benefits solve the problems they see.

How you structure support matters. Best practice support spans across three areas: preventative, proactive and reactive intervention.

Only 23%have a single site or online location for financial wellbeing resources
Only 15%have resources their teams can use to have positive financial wellbeing conversations amongst peers
67%rely on reactive solutions or benefits to support
Ask in your firmWhat does our benefits data say about who is using what we offer and who is not?
Talk to us about your firm →
04Transparency

Pay and progression

How openly a firm shares its financial success and the pay implications for its people sets the tone for whether money conversations are accepted.

92%give regular firm financial updates
31%share pay band or grades internally
Only 8%share salary information on job adverts
Ask in your firmHow well do our people understand how pay and progression works here, and does that help or hinder their ability to plan financially?
Talk to us about your firm →
05Monitoring and controls

Stop personal problems becoming a firm-level risk.

Do you know how much risk your business is carrying? How do you prevent financial fraud or misuse?

31%conduct credit checks on all employees who join the firm
77%of firms review expense claims for fraud and misuse
54%review time recording data for fraud or mistakes
Ask in your firmDo we recognise that financial pressure can drive the behaviours our controls are designed to catch?
Talk to us about your firm →

Your next step

Gather your data. Then talk to us.

Book a free assessment and we'll look at your firm's data with you, then tell you the best next step to take.

Book your free assessment Download the checklist
1. Download the checklist 2. Take the questions back to your firm 3. Book a free assessment of your best next step

With thanks to the firms that participated in the 2026 survey

A&O Shearman LLP Browne Jacobson LLP Clarion Solicitors LLP Clyde & Co LLP DLA Piper UK LLP Farrer & Co LLP Glaisyers ETL Higgs LLP Slaughter and May LLP Weightmans LLP

The 2026 Financial Wellbeing in Law Report was supported by The Solicitors' Charity.

* Return on prevention figure: Deloitte, Mental health and employers (2023).