{"id":137267,"date":"2025-11-21T09:16:04","date_gmt":"2025-11-21T17:16:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2025\/11\/21\/paul-weiss-comes-correct-on-associate-bonuses\/"},"modified":"2025-11-21T09:16:04","modified_gmt":"2025-11-21T17:16:04","slug":"paul-weiss-comes-correct-on-associate-bonuses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2025\/11\/21\/paul-weiss-comes-correct-on-associate-bonuses\/","title":{"rendered":"Paul, Weiss Comes Correct On Associate Bonuses"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>It\u2019s been a challenging year for firm leaders at <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/tag\/paul-weiss-rifkind-wharton-garrison-llp\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Paul, Weiss<\/a>. The firm was targeting by Donald Trump with an (<a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2025\/07\/trump-wont-give-up-on-his-biglaw-executive-orders-until-he-gets-in-front-of-the-supreme-court\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">unconstitutional<\/a>) Executive Order, and rather than fight in court, they folded to Trump. In fact, they were<a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2025\/03\/paul-weiss-grovels-to-trump-gets-out-from-under-executive-order\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"> the first firm<\/a> to do so, leading the capitulation train\u2026 and got <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2025\/10\/playing-the-blame-game-over-the-biglaw-trump-deals\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">plenty of pushback<\/a> for it. <\/p>\n<p>Bunches of folks <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2025\/06\/paul-weiss-insists-everything-is-fine-despite-all-evidence-that-things-are-not-in-fact-fine\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">left the firm in protest,<\/a> so it makes sense the firm wants to reward those who stuck it out. All of which is preamble to say, yes, Paul, Weiss *is* matching the prevailing market rate on year-end and special bonuses.<\/p>\n<p>The bonus scale (year-end + special) is as follows:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Class of 2025: $15,000 + $6,000<\/li>\n<li>Class of 2024: $20,000 + $6,000<\/li>\n<li>Class of 2023: $30,000 + $10,000<\/li>\n<li>Class of 2022: $57,000 + $15,000<\/li>\n<li>Class of 2021: $75,000 + $20,000<\/li>\n<li>Class of 2020: $90,000 + $25,000<\/li>\n<li>Class of 2019: $105,000 + $25,000<\/li>\n<li>Class of 2018 and above: $115,000 + $25,000<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>These bonuses will be paid on December 22nd. And for those working extra hard for PW in 2025, there\u2019s a lil\u2019 sumpin\u2019 extra from the firm. According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.law.com\/americanlawyer\/2025\/11\/20\/paul-weiss-hogan-lovells-match-year-end-bonuses-\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">reports<\/a>, the firm told associates the year-end cash is \u201cin addition to the discretionary bonuses that some of you will receive in early 2026 for your outsized contributions to the firm over the past year.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>So, is your firm matching *both* the year-end and special bonuses? Let Above the Law know! We depend on your tips to stay on top of important bonus updates, so when your firm matches (or if they fail to do so), please text us (646-820-8477) or\u00a0<a href=\"mailto:tips@abovethelaw.com?subject=%5BFirm%20Name%5D%20Matches\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">email us<\/a>\u00a0(subject line: \u201c[Firm Name] Matches\u201d). Please include the memo, if available. You can take a photo of the memo and send it via text or email if you don\u2019t want to forward the original PDF or Word file.<\/p>\n<p>And if you\u2019d like to sign up for ATL\u2019s Bonus Alerts (which is the alert list we 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\u2019t need to do anything. You\u2019ll receive an email notification within minutes of each bonus announcement that we publish. Thanks for all of your help!<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p><strong><em><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\" wp-image-80083 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/06\/IMG_5243-1-scaled-e1623338814705-620x568.jpg?resize=174%2C160&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"174\" height=\"160\" title=\"\">Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/1XC11QhFCWxWr4NQrk2sEA\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">The Jabot podcast<\/a>, and co-host of <a href=\"https:\/\/legaltalknetwork.com\/podcasts\/thinking-like-a-lawyer\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Thinking Like A Lawyer<\/a>. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email <a href=\"mailto:kathryn@abovethelaw.com?subject=Your%20Column\" target='_blank\"' rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">her<\/a> with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2025\/11\/paul-weiss-comes-correct-on-associate-bonuses\/%E2%80%9C\/\/twitter.com\/Kathryn1%22%E2%80%9D\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">@Kathryn1<\/a>\u00a0or Mastodon <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2025\/11\/paul-weiss-comes-correct-on-associate-bonuses\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">@Kathryn1@mastodon.social.<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2025\/11\/paul-weiss-comes-correct-on-associate-bonuses\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Paul, Weiss Comes Correct On Associate Bonuses<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"post-single__featured-image post-single__featured-image--medium alignright\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"188\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/07\/GettyImages-531410666-300x188.jpg?resize=300%2C188&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" title=\"\"><\/figure>\n<p>It\u2019s been a challenging year for firm leaders at <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/tag\/paul-weiss-rifkind-wharton-garrison-llp\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Paul, Weiss<\/a>. The firm was targeting by Donald Trump with an (<a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2025\/07\/trump-wont-give-up-on-his-biglaw-executive-orders-until-he-gets-in-front-of-the-supreme-court\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">unconstitutional<\/a>) Executive Order, and rather than fight in court, they folded to Trump. In fact, they were<a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2025\/03\/paul-weiss-grovels-to-trump-gets-out-from-under-executive-order\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"> the first firm<\/a> to do so, leading the capitulation train\u2026 and got <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2025\/10\/playing-the-blame-game-over-the-biglaw-trump-deals\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">plenty of pushback<\/a> for it. <\/p>\n<p>Bunches of folks <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2025\/06\/paul-weiss-insists-everything-is-fine-despite-all-evidence-that-things-are-not-in-fact-fine\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">left the firm in protest,<\/a> so it makes sense the firm wants to reward those who stuck it out. All of which is preamble to say, yes, Paul, Weiss *is* matching the prevailing market rate on year-end and special bonuses.<\/p>\n<p>The bonus scale (year-end + special) is as follows:<\/p>\n<ul id=\"rte-47320cd2-c66e-11f0-a9be-9dec3236c5e5\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Class of 2025: $15,000 + $6,000<\/li>\n<li>Class of 2024: $20,000 + $6,000<\/li>\n<li>Class of 2023: $30,000 + $10,000<\/li>\n<li>Class of 2022: $57,000 + $15,000<\/li>\n<li>Class of 2021: $75,000 + $20,000<\/li>\n<li>Class of 2020: $90,000 + $25,000<\/li>\n<li>Class of 2019: $105,000 + $25,000<\/li>\n<li>Class of 2018 and above: $115,000 + $25,000<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>These bonuses will be paid on December 22nd. And for those working extra hard for PW in 2025, there\u2019s a lil\u2019 sumpin\u2019 extra from the firm. According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.law.com\/americanlawyer\/2025\/11\/20\/paul-weiss-hogan-lovells-match-year-end-bonuses-\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">reports<\/a>, the firm told associates the year-end cash is \u201cin addition to the discretionary bonuses that some of you will receive in early 2026 for your outsized contributions to the firm over the past year.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>So, is your firm matching *both* the year-end and special bonuses? Let Above the Law know! We depend on your tips to stay on top of important bonus updates, so when your firm matches (or if they fail to do so), please text us (646-820-8477) or\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/cdn-cgi\/l\/email-protection#0a7e637a794a6b68657c6f7e626f666b7d2469656735797f68606f697e372f3f484c6378672f383a446b676f2f3f4e2f383a476b7e69626f79\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">email us<\/a>\u00a0(subject line: \u201c[Firm Name] Matches\u201d). Please include the memo, if available. You can take a photo of the memo and send it via text or email if you don\u2019t want to forward the original PDF or Word file.<\/p>\n<p>And if you\u2019d like to sign up for ATL\u2019s Bonus Alerts (which is the alert list we 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\u2019t need to do anything. You\u2019ll receive an email notification within minutes of each bonus announcement that we publish. Thanks for all of your help!<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<p><strong><em><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-80083 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/abovethelaw.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2021\/06\/IMG_5243-1-scaled-e1623338814705-620x568.jpg?resize=174%2C160&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" width=\"174\" height=\"160\" title=\"\">Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/1XC11QhFCWxWr4NQrk2sEA\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">The Jabot podcast<\/a>, and co-host of <a href=\"https:\/\/legaltalknetwork.com\/podcasts\/thinking-like-a-lawyer\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Thinking Like A Lawyer<\/a>. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/cdn-cgi\/l\/email-protection#aec5cfdac6dcd7c0eecfccc1d8cbdac6cbc2cfd980cdc1c391dddbccc4cbcdda93f7c1dbdc8b9c9eedc1c2dbc3c0\" target=\"_blank&quot;\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">her<\/a> with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter <a href=\"https:\/\/abovethelaw.com\/2025\/11\/paul-weiss-comes-correct-on-associate-bonuses\/%E2%80%9C\/\/twitter.com\/Kathryn1%22%E2%80%9D\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">@Kathryn1<\/a>\u00a0or Mastodon <a href=\"https:\/\/mastodon.social\/@Kathryn1%22%22\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">@[email\u00a0protected].<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It\u2019s been a challenging year for firm leaders at Paul, Weiss. The firm was targeting by Donald Trump with an (unconstitutional) Executive Order, and rather than fight in court, they folded to Trump. In fact, they were the first firm to do so, leading the capitulation train\u2026 and got plenty of pushback for it. Bunches [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":137245,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-137267","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-above_the_law"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/xira.com\/p\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/IMG_5243-1-scaled-e1623338814705-620x568-QwBklv.jpg?fit=620%2C568&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/137267","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=137267"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/137267\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/137245"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=137267"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=137267"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=137267"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}