Thursday, June 18, 2009 2:24 PM - By Kashmir Hill
At the beginning of 2009, we were tracking salary freezes as law firms across the country froze their salaries at 2008 levels, rather than instituting lockstep raises based on seniority. Our most recent salary freeze round-up was in February. (We also acknowledged those that had raises as normal.)
Since then though, the salary freeze watch has been replaced by the salary cut watch. Rather than keeping salaries at 2008 levels, some firms are cutting back to 1998 levels.
Okay, not really. Salaries aren’t quite in line with the days of Ally McBeal, but some pay stubs are starting to resemble those of 2005.
So what about those firms that instituted “slurpee freezes” back in January? These firms said they were keeping salaries at 2008 levels, but that they planned to revisit the decision later in the year. It was assumed at the time that they would be revisiting in order to raise salaries, but that has not been the case.
If your firm hasn’t “revisited” the decision, that might be a good thing. None of those with slurpee freezes decided to raise salaries, though quite a few cut them. Specifics after the jump.
We checked in with a number of firms on the slurpee freeze list. Many thanks to Karen Sosa for her help on this — you’ll be learning more about her next week.
Some firms got back to us. Some did not. If you have any updates, feel free to e-mail them to us or to add information in the comments.
THE SLURPEE FREEZE LIST - CHECKING IN
Alston & Bird - looks like they’re still frozen
Andrews Kurth - looks like they’re still frozen
Arnold & Porter - looks like they’re still frozen
Baker & McKenzie - when the firm froze, it said it would revisit the decision June 30. But in April the firm became the first Vault top 50 firm to cut salaries.
Bingham McCutchen - still frozen. “Nothing new to report,” says a Bingham spokesperson.
Chadbourne & Parke - it revisited the decision in order to pour out some slurpee. Chadbourne cut base salaries in April.
Dorsey & Whitney - it poured out 1/10th of its slurpee. Dorsey announced it was cutting salaries by 10% in June.
Fish & Richardson - it revisited the decision in June and is apparently not cutting salaries this year.
Fulbright & Jaworski - looks like they’re still frozen
Katten Muchin - looks like they’re still frozen
K&L Gates - when the firm froze, it said it would revisit the decision in July. We doubt its associates are expecting salary raise fireworks next month though.
Haynes and Boone - looks like they’re still frozen
Mayer Brown - Freeze is permanent this year. “Salaries will remain at their current levels through the end of 2009,” said a spokesman. No word as to plans for salaries for new associates starting in 2010.
McDermott Will & Emery - its slurpee is frozen solid. The firm announced in March that the salary freeze would remain in effect for the rest of 2009.
Patton Boggs - freeze is still on.
Sidley Austin - looks like they’re still frozen
Sonnenschein - it revisited in May and decided to cut salaries from 10-15%.
Venable - looks like they’re still frozen
Winston & Strawn - looks like they’re still frozen
Womble Carlyle - it revisited the freeze in April and decided to cut salaries.
Earlier: Nationwide Salary Freeze Watch: Buchanan Ingersoll, and a New Round-up
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Frozen first!
Professor Rodriguez should not be a barbri lecturer.
Uh uh uh! You didn't say the magic word! Uh uh uh!
MOAR BAREBACK
Who cares? Everyone is still ridiculously overpaid--and at least now incoming associates and rising 2Ls have all that informaiton at hand.
Who cares? Everyone is still ridiculously overpaid--and at least now incoming associates and rising 2Ls have all that informaiton at hand.
Don't you see the danger, John, inherent in what you're doing here? Genetic power is the most awesome force ever seen on this planet. But you wield it like a kid who's found his dad's gun.
The problem with scientific power you've used is it didn't require any discipline to attain it. You read what others had done and you took the next step. You didn't earn the knowledge yourselves, so you don't take the responsibility for it. You stood on the shoulders of geniuses to accomplish something as fast as you could, and before you knew what you had, you patented it, packages it, slapped in on a plastic lunch box, and [pounds table with fists] you're selling it, [pounds table again] you want to sell it!
Your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could that they didn't stop to think if they should.
It's being rumored that Sotomayor's about to withdraw her name because of some unidentified legal problem. Does anyone know anything about that?
aKIN Gump raised for those on track to hit 2000 hours. Most of my section (litigation) got the salary bump for the first quarter and are on track for the second quarter.
9- it's rumored that there may be an issue with her violating 29 U.S.C. 1369 - she's fuglier than any other justice or nominee in the Court's storied history.
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aKIN Gump raised for those on track to hit 2000 hours. Most of my section (litigation) got the salary bump for the first quarter and are on track for the second quarter.
The real question here is whether Kash keeps her ass lobster on ice.
can you guys please do a post on what happened to chemerinsky and what is the deal with rodriguez...she's horrible, i feel especially bad for the LLMs....
Ditto to 5/6 - In this climate, everyone should be making about 100K less.
9, I think she failed to pay taxes when she was illegal and working as a maid.
Why aren't more firms cutting salaries? I thought after the freeze that we'd see a market cut to bring everyone back down to the 145k or 135k scale, but thus far, most Vault 100 firms have just stayed with the freeze. Is more to come after mid year financials are released on June 30, or did the freeze and attorney lay-offs stop the bleeding?
Breaking: Latham just reserved the Javits Center for Friday
How about Ballard cutting all salaries 20% and capping its most senior associates at 145K,
Associates who stay at Ballard have either no options or no self-respect.
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What do you mean 20??
DEAR ATL,
Look into the NY Con Law Barbri drama today.
Help us get a printout of the full handouts (with answers) from Barbri so that we don't have to waste more time tomorrow.
Yes, ATL, please go to the aid of 24. While you're at it, please contact my firm and arrange to get the printer next to my office fixed. I'm tired of walking all the way down the hall.
The ship be sinking...
The end of Biglaw? Well, I don't really think that the end can be assessed as of itself as being the end because what does the end feel like? It's like saying when you try to extrapolate the end of the universe, you say, if the universe is indeed infinite, then how - what does that mean? How far is all the way, and then if it stops, what's stopping it, and what's behind what's stopping it? So, what's the end, you know, is my question to you.
Okay, I'll give a serious answer. Lonely summer associate, I suggest you disregard the prohibition on finding work on your own. Show up in the offices of powerful partners in the practice area of your interest. Explain that there is no work for you, and that you would like to do something useful. Is there a non-billable project Power Partner might like you to work on? Summary of recent case law, perhaps? Write up something about recent work the firm has done for marketing purposes? You'll take anything, and you'll bill it to any internal firm account, or no account at all -- Power Partner's choice.
You've got nothing to lose, and potentially a powerful ally to gain. Even if you don't get an offer, having such an ally is huge.
27=11 on a scale of 1 to 10.
Karen Sosa: http://www.google.com/profiles/116352958564393544205
28 is absolutely right. Heed my words juniors and summers: making it at BIGLAW has as much to do with the relationships you make (or don't) as it does with the quality of your work product.
Look for the heavy hitters, i.e., the partners who consistently bring in business. Try to get on their projects and do a great, exhaustive job. Their word holds more weight during reviews than does that of service partners, and they will keep you busy while your peers without similar protection aren't.
"None of those with slurpee freezes decided to raise salaries, though quite a few cut them."
This is incorrect. Akin Gump was frozen, revisted the decision, and decided to raise salaries for those on pace to bill 2000 hours this year.
30,
nice work. i think she's been posting as Partner Emeritus.
Elie - What about Latham? Aren't they still frozen?
Can't believe this thread isn't getting more attention. My firm is on solid freeze through the end of the year, but is at least as prestigious as Akin, and pretty much every associate I know is on track to bill over 2000.
Kudos to Akin for doing the right thing. Other firms should follow.
Bullshit - Katten Cut by 20% for associates and 10-40% for income partners. You need to follow up on this. People are pissed, esp. in New York. MAss defections in March.