{"id":157972,"date":"2026-07-23T13:01:37","date_gmt":"2026-07-23T21:01:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/07\/23\/enough-already-biglaw-needs-to-stop-waiting-for-cravath\/"},"modified":"2026-07-23T13:01:37","modified_gmt":"2026-07-23T21:01:37","slug":"enough-already-biglaw-needs-to-stop-waiting-for-cravath","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/2026\/07\/23\/enough-already-biglaw-needs-to-stop-waiting-for-cravath\/","title":{"rendered":"Enough Already: Biglaw Needs To Stop Waiting For Cravath"},"content":{"rendered":"

Milbank announced associate salary raises<\/a> on June 2. Today, we\u2019re on the verge of August, and Biglaw\u2019s traditional game of Waiting for Cravath<\/em> has officially entered the absurd phase.<\/p>\n

When we first checked in on the market a few weeks ago, it was strange. Now it\u2019s bordering on unprecedented. The firms that traditionally wait for Cravath to make the next move are\u2026 still waiting. Cravath, meanwhile, remains silent, and with each passing day, the silence gets harder to explain.<\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t a question of whether<\/em> the raises are coming. Virtually no one believes they aren\u2019t. Associates expect them. Recruiters expect them. Firm leaders almost certainly expect them. At this point, it\u2019s less a matter of if than when.<\/p>\n

Why are we still doing this?<\/p>\n

For years, Cravath has served as the unofficial signal for the rest of Biglaw. The firm announces a salary scale, and much of the market falls into line shortly afterward. It\u2019s an old tradition, even if it has never made much sense. But this year has exposed just how strange the ritual really is.<\/p>\n

Milbank has already spoken. Boutique firms have shown they aren\u2019t afraid to move first<\/a>. Yet much of Biglaw has collectively decided to freeze until Cravath gives everyone permission to act.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re now approaching two full months since Milbank\u2019s announcement. That\u2019s an eternity in the legal industry. Summer programs are wrapping up. Recruiting season is around the corner. Firms have had more than enough time to run the numbers, secure approvals, and decide what they want to do.<\/p>\n

And still\u2026 a stunning silence.<\/p>\n

The longer this drags on, the more the delay becomes the story. No one seriously believes that dozens of profitable firms need another week \u2014 or another month \u2014 to determine whether they can afford raises that everyone has known were likely since early June.<\/p>\n

If the market is going to match, then match.<\/p>\n

If someone wants to chart a different course, then say so.<\/p>\n

Keeping thousands of associates in limbo while everyone waits for a single firm to blink first is becoming increasingly difficult to justify.<\/p>\n

At this point, the raises themselves are no longer the surprise. The only surprise is that we\u2019re still waiting.<\/p>\n

\n
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<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Staci Zaretsky<\/a> is the managing editor of Above the Law, where she\u2019s worked since 2011. She\u2019d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email<\/a> her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Bluesky<\/a>, X\/Twitter<\/a>, and Threads<\/a>, or connect with her on LinkedIn<\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The post Enough Already: Biglaw Needs To Stop Waiting For Cravath<\/a> appeared first on Above the Law<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"\"
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tIt’s time to stop waiting for Cravath.\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Milbank announced associate salary raises<\/a> on June 2. Today, we\u2019re on the verge of August, and Biglaw\u2019s traditional game of Waiting for Cravath<\/em> has officially entered the absurd phase.<\/p>\n

When we first checked in on the market a few weeks ago, it was strange. Now it\u2019s bordering on unprecedented. The firms that traditionally wait for Cravath to make the next move are\u2026 still waiting. Cravath, meanwhile, remains silent, and with each passing day, the silence gets harder to explain.<\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t a question of whether<\/em> the raises are coming. Virtually no one believes they aren\u2019t. Associates expect them. Recruiters expect them. Firm leaders almost certainly expect them. At this point, it\u2019s less a matter of if than when.<\/p>\n

Why are we still doing this?<\/p>\n

For years, Cravath has served as the unofficial signal for the rest of Biglaw. The firm announces a salary scale, and much of the market falls into line shortly afterward. It\u2019s an old tradition, even if it has never made much sense. But this year has exposed just how strange the ritual really is.<\/p>\n

Milbank has already spoken. Boutique firms have shown they aren\u2019t afraid to move first<\/a>. Yet much of Biglaw has collectively decided to freeze until Cravath gives everyone permission to act.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re now approaching two full months since Milbank\u2019s announcement. That\u2019s an eternity in the legal industry. Summer programs are wrapping up. Recruiting season is around the corner. Firms have had more than enough time to run the numbers, secure approvals, and decide what they want to do.<\/p>\n

And still\u2026 a stunning silence.<\/p>\n

The longer this drags on, the more the delay becomes the story. No one seriously believes that dozens of profitable firms need another week \u2014 or another month \u2014 to determine whether they can afford raises that everyone has known were likely since early June.<\/p>\n

If the market is going to match, then match.<\/p>\n

If someone wants to chart a different course, then say so.<\/p>\n

Keeping thousands of associates in limbo while everyone waits for a single firm to blink first is becoming increasingly difficult to justify.<\/p>\n

At this point, the raises themselves are no longer the surprise. The only surprise is that we\u2019re still waiting.<\/p>\n

\n
\"\"
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Staci Zaretsky<\/a> is the managing editor of Above the Law, where she\u2019s worked since 2011. She\u2019d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email<\/a> her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Bluesky<\/a>, X\/Twitter<\/a>, and Threads<\/a>, or connect with her on LinkedIn<\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Milbank announced associate salary raises on June 2. Today, we\u2019re on the verge of August, and Biglaw\u2019s traditional game of Waiting for Cravath has officially entered the absurd phase. When we first checked in on the market a few weeks ago, it was strange. Now it\u2019s bordering on unprecedented. The firms that traditionally wait for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":157954,"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-157972","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\/2026\/07\/Staci-Zaretsky-KGKjCj.jpg?fit=150%2C100&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157972","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=157972"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157972\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/157954"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=157972"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=157972"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/xira.com\/p\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=157972"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}