Law Firms
Dechert Chairman’s Pay Cut Is Not $1M, Spokeswoman Says
Posted May 13, 2009, 06:59 am CST
By Debra Cassens Weiss
Thirty-six partners at Dechert are taking pay cuts, but reports that the chairman’s reduced draw amounts to $1 million are wrong, a law firm spokeswoman says.
The spokeswoman told the American Lawyer that the pay cuts are based on a percentage of each partner's annual draw, and partners could end up recouping the money in year-end bonuses. Firm chairman Barton Winokur is among the 36 partners getting reduced pay.
The spokeswoman did not reveal how much of a cut Winokur is taking.
Yesterday the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that Winokur revealed his $1 million pay cut at a secret enclave of law firm leaders. He also said that other Dechert leaders were taking salary hits, according to the story.
The pay cuts are among several cost-cutting measures implemented at Dechert. Other measures include laying off 92 lawyers and 62 staffers, pushing back associate start dates and prepaying expenses.
A 2007 story in the American Lawyer reported that Winokur was one of four lawyers at Dechert making nearly $8 million a year. The firm denied the report but the American Lawyer says it stands by the story.
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