There is a new big 3 in Chicago, see above

This was the worst fake ever, yet somehow it made this blog. I mean, this is a tiny firm that doesn't have offices in any of the cities listed! 2 seconds of internet research could have confirmed this as fake.

Hey, we forgive you, Lat. If you want to do penance you can (por favor) post some of the bonus memo (real bonuses, not fancy clerk junk) info you've been collecting.

You called it, 3:07. Chicago is the new Philly. Old people will remember that you used to have a bunch of good firms but you'll always lag $20k in pay and you'll only get to hire natives and local schools.

Where the heck are the rest of the DC firms like Wilmer, A&P and Covington? They need to raise, so why look cheap by waiting?

Just had a kick-ass chicken bomb for lunch.

Seems like Lat applied the same degree of care and diligence to the verification of this memo that he did to the whole Stroock affair last week. Why be accurate when you can be first? Credibility and reputation obviously mean nothing here. Keep up the good work, Lat.

That chicken bomb I had was pretty damn good.

Don't listen to these critical little bitch punks, Lat. You're doing a great job.

so good, in fact, that now i need a fresh diaper.

What happened to DLA?

Wilmer, A&P and Covington can't afford to match- they can't hang.

I'm sure they're all really smart and that they're working on really "prestigious" matters, but the NY and CA firms finally accomplished the segmentation they set out to do with the $145k raise. Now students will have to choose between Cleary and Wilmer the way they used to have to choose between a BigLaw firm and a fancy appellate lit boutique. (Or, if the pay gap grows, the way they have to choose between a BigLaw firm and the DOJ.)

The DC shops are going to either have to become very fun & friendly places to work or else just accept that they are second-tier and the talent will go elsewhere.

GeeneParmesan is in the house. You'd all best step aside.

DCist, please check back with us in a few weeks when all the big DC firms have matched for your serving of crow.

The DOJ example is patently absurd, by the way.

I swear half the people posting comments about dumb law school trolls.

Wattup Geene!?!??!?!?!?!!

Hey Geeene, buddy. No? You don't want a shoulder rub?

3:57 - DLA doesn't matter anymore. They've already shown that they don't care about being a market leader.

GeeneParmesan just raised to 190.

My trousers just raised.

WSGR just raised to $160K according to a friend of mine who is an associate there.

Sadly, 4:02, I am no longer patently absurd. The Court's recent KSR ruling means that the obviously absurd junk I post is too obvious and therefore anyone can copy it.

I just like saying that A&P and Wilmer are second-tier because an A&P/Wilmer troll always responds vigorously, resisting the cognitive dissonance he must be feeling for hitching his wagon to A&P instead of Latham or Gibson.

How about this: I'll eat crow and you can eat $15k+ per year?

Sheppard Mullin will be the bellwether in D.C. So far the lowest RPL firm to make the move is H & H (at 765k). Sheppard Mullin is 50k below that. If they move, then pretty much everyone else will have to.

This blog is important, occasional fake memo or not. I'll still throw in $5 at paypal. (Don't worry, Lat, I'm trying to visit the advertisers every once in a while, too.)

I've raised my associate payscale to $250k.

GeeneParmesan's the name, raisin' to $190k is my game.

Rosencrantz & Guildenstern just went to $200K.

BTW, if you are a clerk taking a job at a firm and that firm hasn't notified you of the clerkship bonus bump, should you give 'em a call?

Geene, I hope you're not billing yourself as a law firm. You're a private investigator, and representing yourself as a lawyer is a violation of California statutes.

If you do not cease and desist immediately, I will be forced to inform the appropriate authorities.

GeeneParmesan is number one on my teamocil.

Any confirmation on WSGR?

Peter, Paul and Mary are pleased to announce an increase to 280K.

Any confirmation on WSGR?

Barley House + Bed, Bath & Beyond = clerking rules

Barley House, GeeneParmesan, clerking... there's only one duo out there who would dare be so bold.

Got some kick-ass new pillows.

HEY LAT, us westcoasters are still waiting to see what bonuses we're NOT making.

Could you please post that Orrick bonus memo you promised Friday?

it's 5:03 p.m.....dynamic duo OUT!

What is going on here?

I love it.

With all the first-tier people refusing to work for less than 160K, I might actually be able to get a 125K job! Yay second-tier me!

Amen, 5:11. Let's have it.

Viagra, Levitra and Cialis just raised to $160K

DCist, as for the fact that the DC firms are not going to raise, what do you think about the legal times article today? A&P Chairman Thomas Milch said that they plan on being competitive in the markets where they operate and will be making a decision in the coming days.

that means A&P must raise to remain competitive and Covington and Wilmer must follow

5:16(2):

Linky? Please? This is good news for D.C. Associates.

Stupid question but has Wilson moved yet?

I don't actually think, 5:16. I don't have time. I'm too busy maligning the firms that were too good for me, and counting my money.

But I would get a kick out of seeing the Sandman's firm finally match market pay.

McNulty! McNulty!

5:16 - Darn, I wish I received an offer from VL&C

Any real info on Wilson?

Date-Rape, Coke-ington, Cheeseball and Jag (DC) just matched.

My nuts just matched.

Yes, Wilson raised to $160K in CA, TX, DC & Shanghai offices.

If your firm is not on the $160K scale, then you should please go home for the evening.

DCist here. I have reconsidered. I will stand with the "A&P is not going to match" position.

Here's how: If they boost to $160k, their bonuses will be so weak that their associates are still getting $30k/yr less than their peers at the NY and CA firms in town. If they raise they'll pull a MoFo, so it won't count.

If they actually match, or even come within $5k, of Orrick or Latham (counting bonuses), I will eat the crow offered to me.

I'm a 3rd year at Sidley. I'm sick to my stomach. Here working my ass off in Chicago and there are people at three big firms making more than me? What the hell! Dear summers and Fall recruits - GO TO LATHAM, SKADDEN OR PAUL HASTINGS if you're coming to Chicago!

6:28: Sorry man. That is messed up. Sidley's rich, and you all do so much high-margin cap markets work that your firm should be paying whatever CWT or TPW pay- and they've been at $160 since the winter. Getting punked in your home town makes it even worse.

it's as ann as the nose on plain's face

Morale around here is pretty low - everyone, frankly, has been working like a pack of sled dogs who feel that their masters are going to take care of them for all their hard work. We were all led to believe that we would always be at the top of the market in Chicago. Partners to associates ratio is around 3:4, so it's not like this is going to cost the average partner that much cash, and they have done VERY well the last few years. Decisions get made kind of slowly, and I think everyone expects that Sidley will eventually raise to match Latham. If they really don't, I imagine that there will be a pretty big exodus around the beginning of the year, even bigger than the one last year. This year retention was good, but that's because bonuses were well up. I think that making it up again in bonuses is a bad idea. Given how stretched all the transactional departments are, I think that they'll match.