Associates at One Florida Law Firm Get Pay Hikes Averaging 8 Percent

One Florida law firm is bucking the lower-pay trend by giving its associates raises averaging 8 percent.

The Orlando-based law firm GrayRobinson gave merit-based pay hikes to 90 percent of its associates, and some of the raises were as high as 15 percent, the Miami Daily Business Review reports.

GrayRobinson president Byrd “Biff” Marshall Jr. cited several reasons why his firm was able to find money for raises. Its focus on litigation helped the bottom line, as did its restraint in hiring and decision not to give big pay hikes in recent years. Also, its attractive billing rates proved popular with clients.

Associates at the 235-lawyer firm start out at $95,000 to $105,000, compared to salaries of $120,000 to $160,000 at larger firms.

The story says these Florida law firms have cut salaries: Akerman Senterfitt, cutting associate pay by 10 percent; Holland & Knight, cutting associate pay by an average of 7 percent; and Ruden McClosky, cutting lawyer pay by 18 percent.