The vast majority of top 25 law firms, ranked on their New York attorney headcounts, report significant increases in the sizes of their most recent partnership elections compared with last year, with one firm increasing the class of attorneys its elevating from the associate set by 19-fold.

As observers note, the swell in elite firms’ partnership ranks reflects the growing trend of bringing high-performing associates on as non-equity partners as a way of retaining talent and potentially boosting profitability