Bonuses and the Reality of Big Law Associate Compensation
Associates make gobs of money compared with the rest of the population, though the numbers don't look as good when law school debt is factored in.
December 08, 2015 at 04:12 PM
4 minute read
Even more than usual, money is on the minds of thousands of young lawyers this month. On Monday, Cravath, Swaine & Moore circulated an internal memo setting associate bonuses according to the same scale set last year by Davis Polk & Wardwell. First- and second-year associates will receive up to $15,000, while senior associates can make as much as $100,000.
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom and Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy each quickly followed suit, matching Cravath's rate. Skadden said that high-performing senior associates are eligible for an extra 10 percent above the $100,000 bonus, according to Above the Law.
Still unknown is whether Big Law associate base salaries for 2016 are in for a boost, or whether they'll continue to remain at the levels set in 2007. Already, rumors have circulated that this is the year that associate salaries will rise in New York. Firms often announce salaries at the start of the year.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View All
Law firms need to consider a range of options for achieving their aspirations
8 minute read
Lawyers and Accountants: Collaborators and Competitors in the Multidisciplinary Age
8 minute readTrending Stories
- 1Pistachio Giant Wonderful Files Trademark Suit Against Canadian Maker of Wonderspread
- 2New York State Authorizes Stand-Alone Business Interruption Insurance Policies
- 3Buyer Beware: Continuity of Coverage in Legal Malpractice Insurance
- 4‘Listen, Listen, Listen’: Some Practice Tips From Judges in the Oakland Federal Courthouse
- 5BCLP Joins Saudi Legal Market with Plans to Open Two Offices
Who Got The Work
J. Brugh Lower of Gibbons has entered an appearance for industrial equipment supplier Devco Corporation in a pending trademark infringement lawsuit. The suit, accusing the defendant of selling knock-off Graco products, was filed Dec. 18 in New Jersey District Court by Rivkin Radler on behalf of Graco Inc. and Graco Minnesota. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Zahid N. Quraishi, is 3:24-cv-11294, Graco Inc. et al v. Devco Corporation.
Who Got The Work
Rebecca Maller-Stein and Kent A. Yalowitz of Arnold & Porter Kaye Scholer have entered their appearances for Hanaco Venture Capital and its executives, Lior Prosor and David Frankel, in a pending securities lawsuit. The action, filed on Dec. 24 in New York Southern District Court by Zell, Aron & Co. on behalf of Goldeneye Advisors, accuses the defendants of negligently and fraudulently managing the plaintiff's $1 million investment. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick, is 1:24-cv-09918, Goldeneye Advisors, LLC v. Hanaco Venture Capital, Ltd. et al.
Who Got The Work
Attorneys from A&O Shearman has stepped in as defense counsel for Toronto-Dominion Bank and other defendants in a pending securities class action. The suit, filed Dec. 11 in New York Southern District Court by Bleichmar Fonti & Auld, accuses the defendants of concealing the bank's 'pervasive' deficiencies in regards to its compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act and the quality of its anti-money laundering controls. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian, is 1:24-cv-09445, Gonzalez v. The Toronto-Dominion Bank et al.
Who Got The Work
Crown Castle International, a Pennsylvania company providing shared communications infrastructure, has turned to Luke D. Wolf of Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani to fend off a pending breach-of-contract lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 25 in Michigan Eastern District Court by Hooper Hathaway PC on behalf of The Town Residences LLC, accuses Crown Castle of failing to transfer approximately $30,000 in utility payments from T-Mobile in breach of a roof-top lease and assignment agreement. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Susan K. Declercq, is 2:24-cv-13131, The Town Residences LLC v. T-Mobile US, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Wilfred P. Coronato and Daniel M. Schwartz of McCarter & English have stepped in as defense counsel to Electrolux Home Products Inc. in a pending product liability lawsuit. The court action, filed Nov. 26 in New York Eastern District Court by Poulos Lopiccolo PC and Nagel Rice LLP on behalf of David Stern, alleges that the defendant's refrigerators’ drawers and shelving repeatedly break and fall apart within months after purchase. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Joan M. Azrack, is 2:24-cv-08204, Stern v. Electrolux Home Products, Inc.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250
