Today is September 3. Labor Day has come and gone. It’s been nearly a full month since Milbank announced that it would be handing out special bonuses to associates ($6,000 to $25,000, based on class year). Other midsize and boutique firms have already stepped in to award summer bonuses to their associates — firms like Vartabedian Hester & Haynes ($5,000); Otterbourg ($15,000); Bell Nunnally (up to $15,000); and Hueston Hennigan ($10,000 to $30,000, based on hours). Business is booming, but Biglaw has more or less ignored the firm’s announcement.
Why? What’s going on?
If Biglaw firms are planning to match these bonuses by year’s end, why not just notify your attorneys now? You don’t need to wait for Cravath’s blessing. We all know that Cravath is going to match, just as well as we all know that no firm wants to be left behind in the ultra-competitive associate compensation race. We’ve said it once, and we’re more than happy to say it again: stop delaying the inevitable. All you need to do is let your hardworking associates and counsel know that your firm will match these bonuses — and whatever other bonuses that may later come along — sooner rather than later.
The first day of Fall is September 22. Biglaw firms have just a few more weeks to announce their summer bonuses. If your firm announces, please let us know ASAP, so we can spread the news and hopefully make the market do something.
Remember everyone, we depend on your tips to stay on top of this stuff. So when your firm matches, please text us (646-820-8477) or email us (subject line: “[Firm Name] Summer Bonuses”). Please include the memo if available. You can take a photo of the memo and send it via text or email if you don’t want to forward the original PDF or Word file.
And if you’d like to sign up for ATL’s Bonus Alerts (which is the alert list we’ll also use for salary announcements), please scroll down and enter your email address in the box below this post. If you previously signed up for the bonus alerts, you don’t need to do anything. You’ll receive an email notification within minutes of each bonus announcement that we publish.
Staci Zaretsky is the managing editor of Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Bluesky, X/Twitter, and Threads, or connect with her on LinkedIn.
The post Milbank Moves On Summer Bonuses While Biglaw Firms Stall On Matching appeared first on Above the Law.
Today is September 3. Labor Day has come and gone. It’s been nearly a full month since Milbank announced that it would be handing out special bonuses to associates ($6,000 to $25,000, based on class year). Other midsize and boutique firms have already stepped in to award summer bonuses to their associates — firms like Vartabedian Hester & Haynes ($5,000); Otterbourg ($15,000); Bell Nunnally (up to $15,000); and Hueston Hennigan ($10,000 to $30,000, based on hours). Business is booming, but Biglaw has more or less ignored the firm’s announcement.
Why? What’s going on?
If Biglaw firms are planning to match these bonuses by year’s end, why not just notify your attorneys now? You don’t need to wait for Cravath’s blessing. We all know that Cravath is going to match, just as well as we all know that no firm wants to be left behind in the ultra-competitive associate compensation race. We’ve said it once, and we’re more than happy to say it again: stop delaying the inevitable. All you need to do is let your hardworking associates and counsel know that your firm will match these bonuses — and whatever other bonuses that may later come along — sooner rather than later.
The first day of Fall is September 22. Biglaw firms have just a few more weeks to announce their summer bonuses. If your firm announces, please let us know ASAP, so we can spread the news and hopefully make the market do something.
Remember everyone, we depend on your tips to stay on top of this stuff. So when your firm matches, please text us (646-820-8477) or email us (subject line: “[Firm Name] Summer Bonuses”). Please include the memo if available. You can take a photo of the memo and send it via text or email if you don’t want to forward the original PDF or Word file.
And if you’d like to sign up for ATL’s Bonus Alerts (which is the alert list we’ll also use for salary announcements), please scroll down and enter your email address in the box below this post. If you previously signed up for the bonus alerts, you don’t need to do anything. You’ll receive an email notification within minutes of each bonus announcement that we publish.
Staci Zaretsky is the managing editor of Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Bluesky, X/Twitter, and Threads, or connect with her on LinkedIn.
The post Milbank Moves On Summer Bonuses While Biglaw Firms Stall On Matching appeared first on Above the Law.
