First!

Whose the firstiest of them all?!

Still no Latham memo...

Where's Orrick? I bet if they were Dewey and Orrick they would have announced.

If you don't know by Thanksgiving, consider yourself screwed.

did cadwalader announce bonus numbers yet?

PH where you at?

LW may be waiting because they are thinking of raising salaries, instead.

So what exactly is the Schulte rumor?

11.05 = wishful thinking.

Schulte matched with special bonuses but only if you meet the billable targets.

11:03: don't get mad, get even. I know my floor will be a ghost town come January if we don't match, and I'm sure a lot of other V50 New York offices will be likewise.

Any idea on what GDC does? My guess is that they either follow Latham or withhold special bonuses from non-NY. I think the odds of any of the Big 3 in CA giving non-NYers the bonus are almost 0.

11:11 - yet another reason Quinn is better than the Big 3 in Cali.

The "Maybe Latham's thinking about raising" comment made me laugh out loud.

11:10 is the target 2000 hours?

how about a post on the upcoming calbar results? stats are out: 56.1% passed.

Why are the CA big three so cheap?

I've never heard of Schulte.

Jim "the hammer" Shapiro just announced - waiting for memo

The Big 3 only pay what they have to pay. That's why they'll match in NY and leave non-NY behind, just like they did initially with the raise to 160...the difference is that this time, the non-NYers will never get their special bonus.

To all those threatening to leave their firm if they don't match, where are you planning on going? Are you expecting the firms that do pay the special bonus to suddenly have a lot of positions opening up to cater for the several thousand of you who seem to be threatening to go? i am intrigued by your stance.

On an unrelated matter, I have heard rumors of a 1st year at Sullivan and Cromwell (i.e. working only a month or so now) who is already in touch with recruiters because he is not happy - can anyone confirm - that's got to be record time for realizing you hate your job.

did you seriously post about one first year who doesn't like sullivan and cromwell?

who the fuck is going to confirm - the first year?

jackass

the poor baby isn't being wined and dined by mummy and deddy biglaw anymore like he was when he was a summer associatewossiate.....

waaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.....

is schulte a good firm? whats the deal with it.

Everyone I have met at Schulte has been a genuine jerk/bitch, more so than the standard NYC biglaw stereotype.

Schulte--great for Hedge Funds and Estate work

11:26: who at a major NY firm doesn't have headhunters calling all the time? There are a whole lot of jobs out there. Maybe it would get a bit tight - maybe - if people all tried to move all at once, but one of the nice things about this job is that it's pretty easy to move if you want to.

are they among the top couple firms for hedge funds?

NYC Bonus List of Shame

2008 Vault Rank / Firm / 2006 RPL
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8 Latham & Watkins LLP / $920,000
9
10
* 11 Kirkland & Ellis LLP / $1,035,000(Punted)
12
13
14
15 Wilmer Cutler / $890,000
16 Williams & Connolly LLP / $955,000
17
18 Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP / $1,050,000
19 O'Melveny & Myers LLP
20
21 Arnold & Porter LLP / $855,000
22 Jones Day
23 Morrison & Foerster LLP
24
25
* 26 Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft / $1,000,000 (Punted)
27 Hogan & Hartson LLP
28 Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw LLP
29
30 Ropes & Gray LLP / $855,000
31 Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker
32
33 Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP / $840,000
34 Winston & Strawn LLP
35
36 Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
37 Linklaters
38 Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe
39
40
41 King and Spalding
* 42 Morgan, Lewis & Bockius (Punted)
43
44 Baker & McKenzie
45 Baker Botts LLP
46 Boies, Schiller & Flexner LLP / $980,000
47 Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP / $1,025,000
48 Dechert LLP
49 Irell & Manella LLP / $1,050,000
* 50 McDermott, Will & Emery / $875,000 (Punted)
51 Jenner & Block LLP
52
53
54 DLA Piper
55
56 Fish & Richardson P.C.
57 Fulbright & Jaworski LLP
58 Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP
59 Goodwin Procter LLP
60 Cooley Godward LLP
...
67. (Kaye Scholer Matched w/ Performance Reqs.)
92. (Kramer Levin Matched w/ Perf. Reqs.)
NR. McKee Nelson (Failed to Match)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

BONUS STATUS BY 2006 RPL
Rank 2006 in revenue
by revenue Revenue per lawyer
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1 Wachtell ABOVE MARKET $2,455,000 2.5%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2 Sullivan & Cromwell MARKET & ABOVE MARKET FOR SENIOR ASSOC. $1,565,000 1.3%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3 Wiley Rein $1,520,000 162.1%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4 Cravath MARKET $1,355,000 5.9%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5 Davis Polk MARKET $1,200,000 4.8%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5 Simpson Thacher-MARKET $1,200,000 6.7%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7 McKee Nelson BELOW MARKET $1,190,000 1.7%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8 Milbank, Tweed MARKET $1,110,000 10.4%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
9 Skadden MARKET $1,095,000 10.1%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
10 Cahill Gordon MARKET $1,075,000 8.6%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
11 Fragomen, Del Rey $1,070,000 26.6%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
12 Gibson, Dunn $1,050,000 4.0%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
12 Irell & Manella $1,050,000 9.9%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
14 Kirkland & Ellis PUNTED $1,035,000 5.1%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
14 Paul, Weiss MARKET $1,035,000 0.5%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
16 Munger, Tolles $1,025,000 18.5%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
17 Quinn Emanuel $1,020,000 28.3% SLIGHTLY ABOVE MARKET BUT PARTIALLY DEFERRED
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
18 Shearman & Sterling MARKET $1,010,000 2.0%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
19 Debevoise & Plimpton MARKET $1,005,000 8.6%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
20 Cadwalader BONUS ANNOUNCED, NO $ FIGURES $1,000,000 6.4%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
21 Boies, Schiller $980,000 3.2%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
21 Weil, Gotshal MARKET $980,000 2.6%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
23 Cleary Gottlieb MARKET $975,000 7.1%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
24 Willkie Farr MARKET $970,000 12.8%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
25 Williams & Connolly $955,000 2.7%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
26 Finnegan, Henderson $945,000 11.2%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
27 Townsend and Townsend $940,000 6.2%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
28 Fried, Frank $930,000 MARKET 4.5%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
29 Schulte Roth $925,000 6.9%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
30 Latham & Watkins $920,000 5.1%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
31 Wilmer Cutler $890,000 5.3%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
32 McDermott Will PUNTED $875,000 12.9%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
33 Kaye Scholer MARKET WITH POSSIBILITY OF MORE & PERF. REQS. $865,000 7.5%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
34 Arnold & Porter $855,000 4.9%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
34 Ropes & Gray $855,000 1.8%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
36 Choate, Hall $850,000 10.4%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
36 Kramer Levin MARKET W/ PERF. REQS. $850,000 6.3%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
38 Heller Ehrman $845,000 5.0%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
39 Akin Gump $840,000 7.7%
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
40 Hughes Hubbard $835,000 12.1%

Not listed: Dewey (Market with hours requirement)
Clifford Chance (Market)
White & Case (Market)
Morgan Lewis (Punted)
Covington (Special Bonus - Regular Bonus not yet announced)
Sidley (Special Bonus - Regular Bonus not yet announced)
Freshfields (Market)
Allen & Overy (Market)
Proskauer (Market with hours reqs.)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bonus List of Shame
by NY Attorneys (Source: Crains)

1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)
8)
9)
10)
11)
12)
13)
14)
15) Schulte
16) Wilson Elser
17)
18)
19) Latham & Watkins
20)
21)
22)
23)
24)
25) Greenberg Traurig

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Non-NY Bonus List of Shame:
(firms not matching in all domestic offices)

Firm (Offices that DID match)
1) Dewey & LeBoeuf (NYC)
2) Fried Frank (NYC)
3) White & Case (NYC)
4) Sidley Austin (NYC)
5) Covington & Burling (NYC)
6) Proskauer (NYC, LA, Boston)

they are the top for hedge fund work

11:44 -- Yes, Shulte and Seward & Kissel

11:44--yes that's why they have grown so fast

11:44 -- Yes, Shulte and Seward & Kissel

putting WEMED on the list of shame continues to amaze me. WEMED has a starting salary of like $15 and a pack of smokes, I'm sure they'll be next to match $115k bonuses.

11:46: Many of those firms (Proskauer in particular) did not really "match". They are not giving out the bonuses unless you hit certain billable hour tagets. That is NOT matching.

Schulte is the number one firm for hedge funds. And Schulte matched and one upped the other firms. Not only do you get the full bonus at 2,000 hours, but you get even more at 2,300 and 2,500 hours. So they are recognizing that people do work extremely hard. Not so bad.

post the memo please

11:50---Thank you Mr. Schulte

what's hunton's bonuses like?

11:50. If you are S&C or Simpson and bill 1,700 hours, do you think you get the full bonus? What happens is that you get asked to leave.

Time for DLA to raise.

11:50, send in the memo!

I think 11:50 (in defense of Schulte) is pretty much on point. Nobody should be getting these kinds of bonuses for billing 1,750 hours.

11:26

I couldn't have put it better myself. I am so amused by all these people threatening to leave their non-matching in masses. Come on! Consider:

1. There are far more firms that have NOT matched, than those that have matched.

2. The few firms that have fully matched Cravath (i.e., special bonus, irrespective of hours - pure lockstep) are the higher ranking firms.

So, 70-80% of associates in the v20-100 are all going to walk out and move to Cravath, DPW, Simpson, Cleary and Debevoise in January? Right...... (I am sure all the partners in v20-100 are trembling in fear that their offices will be empty in January).

11:41

It is easy to move around to another law firm job. It is not easy for many v20-100 associates to just walk in to v5 (the firms that pay the special bonus irrespective of hours) whenever they feel like it.

These v5 firms are not paying bonuses irrespective of hours. If you don't bill 2000 hours at Cravath, you might get your bonus now, but you won't have a job there in a year.

I moved from Davis Polk to Kramer Levin 2 years ago--best move I ever made. Have never failed to get a bonus even though there are hours requirement-their requirement last year was 2150 and this year rumored to be 2,000 but includes pro bono, recruitong, partner article research, etc. It is all about quality of life--partners realize you also have a life outside of the office and respect that. I work hard but am out most nights by 8 and hardly need to put in any weekends. It is not always about the numbers.

What's Kramer Levin? Sorry to hear you left the law.

12:13----please take the stick out of your ass-makes you sound like a girl

I want to work at schulte

12:17 - apply there. I'm sure they are hiring.

12:13-you sound jealous!

I feel a loyalty to my firm - probably because I just summered there and still like the place.

Is Schulte Ross & Zabel affiliated with Zabel Jewelers in the Paramus mall? I'm looking to buy a nice .25 carrot diamond ring. Thanks!

If the SRZ memo ever gets posted take a close look to see if they explain "target A" hours versus other hours. Like many firms, SRZ has its own definition of what hours count toward a bonus. So despite looking like a "match," no one is really comparing apples to apples unless you know each Firm's policy. Their "match" is nothing like the Cravath's bonus.

Target A at SRZ is just like at most firms - billables, written off hours, pro bono, articles, preparing/teaching CLEs, recruiting, etc.

My friend summered at Cravath and worked 90 hours a week. I can't imagine what full time is like. For you Cravath ppl who are so caught up with prestige I say go crawl back into your hole. Also, I'm curious, were you beaten up in highschool, did you ever played sports, are you still looking for your first kiss?

Is Schulte Ross even ranked by Vault?

Anyone at UCLA know what this was all about?

"We, the students elected to the Student Bar Association acting on behalf of the students of the UCLA School of Law, hereby respectfully resolve:

We are acutely aware of the ongoing conversation regarding some of the events on November 8, 2007. While this conversation is relevant to many of us, we hope that SBA can help to facilitate it so that it is productive and positive. By focusing on our common goal, we can move toward solidarity rather than division. We will all eventually disagree on the content or presentation of course material and we must ensure that UCLA School of Law is a place where everyone's voice is respected in that disagreement.

We believe that any student should be allowed to approach any and all members of the school community with valid and responsible pedagogical concerns in a respectful and thoughtful way without fear of humiliation, personal insult, or implied violence.

We believe that any student's concerns surrounding the treatment of complex and volatile topics ought to be given respectful consideration by all faculty and the administration. No one should ever be demeaned or disrespected for articulating those concerns, whether or not others agree. Academic freedom must include our rights as students to be free to think critically and express disagreement both in and outside of the classroom. We are all harmed when anyone is silenced by an environment that discourages discourse.

We believe that the UCLA School of Law must be committed to creating a safe, welcoming space and a culture of open, honest debate for everyone. Under no circumstances will SBA tolerate hateful comments that serve to intimidate and marginalize.

Moving forward, we expect that we will all be mindful of our own voices and, in anticipation of that moment when we may be the ones who express concern, we will respect those who have already spoken.

SBA will take action to ensure an appropriate response from faculty members and the administration in accordance with the Faculty Code of Conduct."

12:33 - you seem like an idiot. That said, you make one good point (without realizing that you did). For those who say only those firms that don't tie bonuses to hours are truly matching, consider how many Cravath associates bill less than 2,000 hours.

schulte is in the low 70s on vault. that being said - who gives a fuck about vault.

All firms in NYC expect 2,000 hours. Whether they say "bonuses are discretionary" or "you get a bonus because you sit in a chair within our building structure" is irrelevant, for the most part. I can't believe you guys are trying to categorize those who matched v. those who didn't based on this little detail. The lone exception is Skadden, where they just have too many damn litigators but so much money coming in on the corporate side to even give a damn that half their litigation department bills 1650.

12:39 is correct, yo.

cravath-hater

cravath treats their summers (in respect to work) the way they'll get treated when they work there. you work weekends, til midnight, etc. I had a friend at Skadden who pulled all nighters on document review for mergers. they want people who are OK with that.

SRZ's target is 2000 hours, which includes billable, pro bono, recruiting and other non-billable target hours (client development, marketing, etc.)

is there a memo from schulte? please post it thanks

11:44 -- Yes, Shulte and Seward & Kissel

The rumors are true. Schulte Roth & Zabel has merged with Zales Jewelers to form Zabel's Jewelers. Due to the downturn in business in the Cap Markets area, in which SRZ is a well known player, and the slow down in the M&A market, which has been highly profitable for SRZ, having represented Cerberus in it's acquisitions of Chrysler and GMAC, SRZ has diversified it's holdings into the Jewelery market. Zales' firm grasp on the consumer market, combined with the efficiencies that come about as a result of the verticle and horizontal integration of the law and jewelery companies will certainly boost the profitability of both entities once combines.

"I look forward to buying all my holiday jewelry at Zales," said one overpaid associate. "I didn't know where I was going to blow my $130K bonus, but now that we are merging with Zales, I know just how and where to spend my $60K bonus, $50K special bonus and $20K extra that I earned for billing 2500 Target A hours; I'm going to Zabel's Jewelers at my local mall!!!"

Schulte is considered the #4 firm for hedge funds (up from #8 last year), at least according to Alpha (the methods of which are hard to dispute, given the fact that it surveyed 1,000 funds, including the 100 biggest). The fact that it achieves such a major recognition goes to show that Vault rankings are only meaningful to law students (and some junior associates).

http://www.alphamagazine.com/EarlyReleaseAlpha.aspx

The only time the hours requirement isn't irrelevant is in a slow down. Its nice not to have to worry about being slow when your bonus isn't tied to hours. And there's no hand wringing about being on pace to bill 195o, not 2000. So, yes, there is a difference between hours and lockstep, because people at places like Cravath may come up short of 2000 hours (because they got married, had a kid, illness, etc.) and they still get paid. At Proskauer,they'd get shorted.

Schulte is considered the #4 firm for hedge funds (up from #8 last year), at least according to Alpha (the methods of which are hard to dispute, given the fact that it surveyed 1,000 funds, including the 100 biggest). The fact that it achieves such a major recognition goes to show that Vault rankings are only meaningful to law students (and some junior associates).

http://www.alphamagazine.com/EarlyReleaseAlpha.aspx

Gibson to 190!

Please note nits:

it's should be its and verticle should be vertical

Please note nits:

it's should be its, combines should be combined, and verticle should be vertical

Schulte is considered the fourth best for hedge funds, which goes to show that Vault is only meaningful to law students (and some junior associates).

http://www.alphamagazine.com/RankingsAlpha.aspx

Schulte Ross & Zabels to GIA-certified diamond earrings!

.25 carrot? Is that enough for a nice salad?

thats enough to get a tossed salad but not much else...

"My friend summered at Cravath" = "I couldn't get hired by Cravath so I am now going to bad mouth them"

I agree with 1:24. The issue is not a slacker or underachiever that bills 1600. The issue is where someone who consistently bills 2300 or more every year and then due to a downturn in the market manages to only bill 1900 hours. Does that person suddenly deserve to get $100k chopped of his/her salary while another associate who bills 2000 every year gets the bonus?

That's how the hours requirement can lead to arguably absurd results but unfortunately firms with hours requirements will not take that into account.

Instead of being concerned with consistent year after year results, maybe firms should adopt a "points system", so that you could carry over excess points from a prior year of high billable hours. :P

DC FIRMS STEP UP NOW!!!!!

I hate that firms in DC and Boston pay as much as NY firms. But in a couple years when I move to Boston or DC I'll be pretty pumped.