Associates who made ‘incredible personal sacrifices’ will be receiving HUGE bonuses.
The post Top 50 Biglaw Firm Offers Bonuses Up To 130% Above Market For Its Highest Billers appeared first on Above the Law.
As they are wont to do, Biglaw firms have matched the prevailing market year-end and special bonus rates that were first set by Milbank in November, but some Biglaw firms are eager to go above and beyond to financially compensate associates who have truly dedicated themselves to their work by putting in a tremendous number of billable hours.
Dechert — a firm that brought in $1,293,528,000 in gross revenue in 2023, putting it at No. 39 on the Am Law 100 — is one of those firms.
The firm announced its Milbank match in November, including its usual “extraordinary” bonuses for associates who hit 2,200 and 2,400 billable hours, awarding them with 30% and 40% above-market bonuses, respectively. But that’s not all the firm is doing….
Sources tell us that on Christmas Eve, Mark E. Thierfelder and David W. Forti, the firm’s co-chairs, sent out a firmwide memo thanking everyone for their had work in 2024, and letting attorneys know that Dechert would be offering additional “enhanced” bonuses to its hardest workers. Here’s an excerpt from that memo:
This year, in addition to our usual 30% and 40% above market bonuses, we have enhanced bonuses up to 130% above the market to thank those who went well beyond our normal hours grid. For associates in EMEA who met the U.S. bonus targets, their bonus amounts will be commensurate with the U.S. scale. This is not setting a new hours expectation, but we recognize the incredible personal sacrifices that some of our lawyers have made to deliver truly outstanding client service.
Wow! Now that’s a big bonus! These extra-extraordinary bonuses will be paid out by the end of January. Congratulations to everyone at Dechert!
(Flip to the next page to see the full memo.)
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Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at 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.
