Lawyer Pay

1369 ABA Journal Lawyer Pay articles.

$160K Starting Pay Unlikely to Be Cut by NY Firms, Experts Say

New York law firms are unlikely to cut associate salaries that start at $160,000 absent a move by market leaders such as Sullivan & Cromwell; Cravath, Swaine & Moore; Simpson Thacher; and Davis Polk & Wardwell. The experts aren’t holding their breath. New York firms already reduced associate bonuses after…

May 8, 2009 11:50 AM CDT

Most Firms Now See $160K Starting Salary ‘Makes No Sense,’ Managing Partner Says

In the latest signpost pointing the way toward a possible sea change in associate compensation, the managing partner of a 300-attorney Texas-based law firm says it’s time to cut the $160,000 starting salary for first-year associates that was a largely unquestioned BigLaw industry standard only last year. “It simply makes…

May 6, 2009 9:01 PM CDT

Craps-Style Strategizing Helps Push Boies Schiller into Ranks of Top 100 Firms

A contingency case has helped catapult Boies, Schiller & Flexner into the American Lawyer’s list of the nation’s top 100 law firms. Revenues at Boies Schiller increased by 18 percent in 2008, reaching $295 million, the American Lawyer reports. Profits per partner were $3 million, the third-highest on the Am…

May 5, 2009 2:10 PM CDT

Contract Lawyers Get Paid Less, But May See More Job Opportunities

Contract lawyers are seeing a drop in hourly pay as more laid-off colleagues join their ranks, but there may be a silver lining in the economic downturn for those who prefer contract jobs. Gregory Bufithis, who runs The Posse List contract job website, tells the National Law Journal that the…

May 5, 2009 1:37 PM CDT

MoFo Further Delays Start Date, Will Pay $5K Per Month + Medical Insurance Cost

In the latest announcement of yet another BigLaw firm delaying the start date for incoming first-year associates, Morrison & Foerster has pushed it back from November 2009 to April 2010 for an unspecified number of attorneys. But even then the firm won’t need all of the new associates it has…

May 5, 2009 12:43 AM CDT

More BigLaw Firms Cut Associate Pay

Recent attorney pay cuts by Nixon Peabody and Seyfarth Shaw seem to be part of a growing law firm trend. However, California-based law firms generally seem more willing to reduce associate salaries than those in New York, consultant Peter Zeughauser tells the Recorder. And in Washington, D.C., firms cutting attorney…

May 4, 2009 6:05 PM CDT

Seyfarth Cuts Pay for Some Partners and Associates, Lays Off 50 People

Yet another law firm is cutting pay for some of its lawyers. Seyfarth Shaw is cutting pay for some segments of its partner and associate teams in amounts ranging from 5 percent to 20 percent, according to Above the Law and the Recorder. Those staffers left behind won’t get the…

May 4, 2009 12:31 PM CDT

Stroock Deferral Options for New Grads: $50K to Delay, $75K to Go Away

In an innovative approach to the problem of too many lawyers and too little work, Stroock & Stroock & Lavan is offering multiple deferral options to its incoming class of fall associates. A letter sent on Tuesday by the firm to graduating law students previously offered jobs as Stroock associates…

May 1, 2009 9:14 PM CDT

Cahill Gordon Nudged from List of 100 Top-Grossing Law Firms

In 1985, New York’s Cahill Gordon & Reindel was No. 35 on American Lawyer’s first list of the nation’s top-grossing law firms. In 2008, an 11.8 percent drop in gross revenues nudged the firm out of the top 100. The co-administrative partner of the 265-lawyer firm, Jonathan Schaffzin, told the…

May 1, 2009 1:13 PM CDT

It’s Official: A&O Axes 450 Today

Implementing a restructuring plan announced earlier this year to deal with the dismal economy, Allen & Overy laid off about 250 lawyers and 200 staff today. Among the lawyers being let go are 47 partners, reports Legal Week. Another 35 partners at the London-based “magic circle” international firm are either…

Apr 30, 2009 9:54 PM CDT

Squire Sanders Cuts Associate Pay 10 Percent; Expert Sees a Trend

Squire Sanders & Dempsey is cutting associate pay by 10 percent, joining a handful of other law firms that have made similar moves. Is a trend afoot? The law firm announced the pay cut and the layoffs of 32 lawyers on Wednesday, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. Law firm consultant…

Apr 30, 2009 12:56 PM CDT

Profits Drop at 12 of 15 Top Firms

Last year was a tough one for the nation’s 15 most profitable law firms. Twelve saw declines in profits per partner, and some of them were steep. Cravath, Swaine and Moore saw a 13 percent drop in revenue and a 24 percent decline in profits per partner. It was worse…

Apr 30, 2009 12:11 PM CDT

Too Many Lawyers, Too Little Work: More Layoffs Are Likely, Expert Says

Too many lawyers are chasing too little work. And meanwhile a number of law firms are effectively serving as bankers for cash-strapped clients struggling in a difficult economy. After a “disastrous” fourth quarter in 2008, many law firms can expect an even more worrisome 2009, writes Dan DiPietro in the…

Apr 30, 2009 1:30 AM CDT

Lower Partner Profits in 2008 Driven by BigLaw’s Big Hiring

Partners at the nation’s top 100 law firms began feeling the pinch last year, earning lower profits, on average, even as their law firms saw increased revenues. The American Lawyer is placing part of the blame for the drop in profits on BigLaw’s big hiring. Overall, gross revenue at the…

Apr 29, 2009 2:55 PM CDT

Retired Boston Lawyer Earns $162K at Part-Time Job

After nearly 50 years at the Boston Redevelopment Authority, many of them in leadership positions, attorney Paul McCann has a pension of nearly $100,000 a year. But the longtime city planning official also makes another $162,000 annually for working about 25 hours a week as a consultant, reports the Boston…

Apr 27, 2009 11:12 PM CDT

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Lawyer Pay

$160K Starting Pay Unlikely to Be Cut by NY Firms, Experts Say

Most Firms Now See $160K Starting Salary ‘Makes No Sense,’ Managing Partner Says

Craps-Style Strategizing Helps Push Boies Schiller into Ranks of Top 100 Firms

Contract Lawyers Get Paid Less, But May See More Job Opportunities

MoFo Further Delays Start Date, Will Pay $5K Per Month + Medical Insurance Cost

More BigLaw Firms Cut Associate Pay

Seyfarth Cuts Pay for Some Partners and Associates, Lays Off 50 People

Stroock Deferral Options for New Grads: $50K to Delay, $75K to Go Away

Cahill Gordon Nudged from List of 100 Top-Grossing Law Firms

It’s Official: A&O Axes 450 Today

Squire Sanders Cuts Associate Pay 10 Percent; Expert Sees a Trend

Profits Drop at 12 of 15 Top Firms

Too Many Lawyers, Too Little Work: More Layoffs Are Likely, Expert Says

Lower Partner Profits in 2008 Driven by BigLaw’s Big Hiring

Retired Boston Lawyer Earns $162K at Part-Time Job

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