Its little wonder that some graduates with finance degrees are considering different career paths – the LSE made it clear that law places are disappearing fast under the swell of applicants looking to widen their net. It seems though that the rot in the industry may create a whiff for a little longer, as many younger students have been put off the finance industry on “moralâ€� grounds. Who’s the winner? Well, anyone prepared to tread water for 5 years when there will be a shortage of qualified students who can work in the industry, and teaching. That’s right, teaching has been fingered (pardon?) as the “top destination” for bright graduates. This has got to be helped by the government plans for new teachers in England to train in six months rather than a year. Its great news for my pals at Teach First too, where top graduates can teach for at least a year before taking up other career options.

As news comes in that women are less likely to ask their boss for pay rises or promotions, there’s fun and games at the tribunal courts: Bonuses aren’t dead, you’ve just got to work a little harder for them. Boss of equity broker Cheuvreux, Jerry Lees is in the dock accused of giving two female employees with whom he had been having affairs bigger bonuses than a woman who spurned his advances (these included telling her had “fantastic” breasts, asking to suck her nipples, and claiming he could perform six times in one night.) Such a potty mouth doesn’t come cheap as the 51 year-old accuser could receive a £5 million pay-out if her claims of harassment and sexual discrimination are proved. The boss is also claimed to have asked another women in the office to take her bra without removing her clothes as he gave her a job interview in a pub! How much did not taking the boss’ “dictationâ€� cost her? She claims that her bonuses of £55k and £105k paled when compared to her co-workers whom she believed were sleeping with Mr Lees - £150k and £325k respectively. Even at six times a night that’s a high earner! As for the nipple sucking: the accuser claims she asked her boss in a bar for a glass of water, she claims he replied, “only if I can suck your nipples.â€� He claims he actually had suggested she have a slippery nipple cocktail and she misheard. Surely, “case dismissed?!â€�

Have you ever used Pirate Bay? No, neither have I. The website carries links to copies of music, films and TV programmes, and such file sharing has led it to be taken to court in Sweden by Sony and Warner Bros. The young owners, who face jail and a fine of £100K, say that they cannot be prosecuted for copyright theft because none of the content is hosted on their computer servers. Sneaky. So the boys have been accused of “promoting other people’s infringements of copyright laws”, a bit like aiding and abetting a murder. Representatives of the movie, music and video games industry are seeking about 115 million kronor (10.6 million euros) in damages and interest for losses incurred from tens of millions of illegal downloads facilitated by the site. They really are pirates: Swedish police raided the company’s offices and seized nearly 200 servers in 2006, temporarily closing the site. But it re-opened a few days later with servers hosted in different countries. Yarrr! The trial will last three weeks – and if they get away with it, the implications could be huge.

At first, the law firms seemed to be enjoying a late harvest from the credit crunch, swooping in to make a bob or two from companies laying off or losing cash. But my pals at Clifford Chance are the first of the so called “magic circle� law firms proposing making partners (the top lawyers who own the business) redundant – though cuts will doubtless be announced throughout the firm. Clifford Chance is the first, but won’t be the last. None of Linklaters, Freshfields. Allen and Overy and Herbert Smith have ruled out the idea of redundancies. So wink an eye to Slaughter and May: they have a different business model to their rivals, having established close working relationships with other law firms around the world rather than a huge network of branch offices. This makes them more adaptable, and means they can say they have “no current plans for redundancies.� And they have never done so in previous downturns either. How’s that for an incentive?!

Ah, the distractions of a January: the darts world championship; celebrity Big Brother, and the Stonewall report of the top 100 gay-friendly employers. A good benchmark for those who appreciate diversity in the workplace, as well as a good cuddle. This year, the highest climber was Simmons & Simmons in the normally poorly represented legal profession, who this year mustered 4 firms to the list (Eversheds came in last place). Bankers Lloyds TSB topped the poll, followed by the Hampshire Police, and then (surprise, surprise) Brighton & Hove City Council. As well as shining a spotlight on the top performing organisations, the index also notes those sectors such as media, retail, construction and the NHS that consistently fail to make the grade, shown by their absence or low rankings. So if you’re one of this country’s 150,000 gay students (you know who you are) you now know where to start in seeking an employer.