As we reported earlier this week, the Atlanta office of Paul Hastings has adopted a new pay scale, with a starting salary of $160,000.

The Fulton County Daily Report picks up the news today. It's not new, since it was announced on Wednesday. But the article, by Meredith Hobbs, has a nice round-up of where things stand in the Atlanta market, post-Paul Hastings:

Like most of their competitors, Paul Hastings paid first-years $130,000 in 2007, the rate established by last spring's round of pay raises. The firm had delayed unveiling its response to the increase to $145,000 triggered by Alston & Bird in August (with smaller raises up the classes) until now.

Paul Hastings' new pay scale goes from $160,000 for first-years -- the current market rate for first-years in more expensive cities such as Washington, Chicago, Los Angeles and New York -- to $215,000 for seventh-years.

By comparison, King & Spalding announced in October a 2008 scale starting at $145,000 for first-years and going to $195,000 for seventh-years. At that time, King & Spalding established a richer bonus system, which upped pay for first-years receiving bonuses to $152,500, and star seven-years to as high as $250,000.

Paul Hastings does not calculate bonuses until after the end of its fiscal year, so associate bonuses correlating to 2008 compensation will not be determined until the end of February 2009, said Philip J. Marzetti, the firm's Atlanta managing partner.

More excerpts and discussion, after the jump.

Congratulations to this quintet of five law firms, which just made Fortune magazine's annual list of the 100 Best Companies To Work For (listed below in rank order):

19. Arnold & Porter: "Staffers get 12 weeks paid maternity leave and profit sharing of 7.5% of salary. The less you make, the less you pay for health-insurance premiums."

Actually, a correction: 18 weeks (as of January 1, 2008).

31. Alston & Bird: "Both the legal and nonlegal staff get super benefits, including 90 days of paid maternity leave, coverage of fertility treatments, and concierge services."

Concierge services? Fabulous. Atlantans, stop yer whining!

41. Bingham McCutchen: "They're proud of their elite grads: 72 from nearby Harvard Law, 24 from Yale, and 20 from Stanford. They all start at $160,000 a year."

55. Perkins Coie: "They value fun at this law firm. At 2007's Lawyerpalooza battle of the bands, the Perkins Coie rock & rollers brought down the house (and took home the top prize)."

See also Nixon Peabody: "Fun is not prohibited here." Speaking of which...

66. Nixon Peabody: "The law firm excels on policies for GLBT employees (a 100% rating from the Human Rights Campaign); it targets 3% of billable hours annually for pro bono work."

Please send us any theme songs that are composed to commemorate these honors. Thank you.

100 Best Companies To Work For (2008) [Fortune]

Earlier: Bingham McCutchen: Land of the Amazons?

In some legal markets, including much of the West Coast, the talk these days is about associate bonuses. But in other locales, the January 2007 increase in base salaries is still rippling through the large law firms.

We've just learned that Alston & Bird has matched King & Spalding's Atlanta base salaries. But A&B but did not match the K&S bonus levels -- the lion's share of the K&S raise.

Neither Alston & Bird nor King & Spalding, nor any other Atlanta firm, is on a "true" $160K scale (as defined by Simpson Thacher). In fact, a seventh-year at Alston & Bird will earn less in 2008 base salary ($195,000) than a class of 2006 first-year at a New York firm will earn in 2007, counting year-end and special bonuses ($205,000).

But at least things in the Big Peach are moving in the right direction -- albeit incrementally. Check out the memo, after the jump.

After Sullivan & Cromwell announced its new bonus program for senior associates, we received a bunch of messages like this one:

Can you please do a thread to see if other NYC firms have matched or plan to match the S&C recent bonus pool system for senior associates? Seems like there's been no reaction to this by any other firms.

Does this mean the other firms no longer offer top-of-the-market compensation for senior associates?

We're not aware of any other New York firms matching the S&C move. But we hear that Skadden is... establishing a committee!

More after the jump.

Alston & Bird lost four partners from its Washington office to DLA Piper on Tuesday, according to this report from The Lawyer:

Alston & Bird’s Washington office was rocked yesterday (Tuesday 2 October) by the exit of four partners to DLA Piper, including DC co-managing partner and chair of the firm’s executive committee, Frank Rusty Conner.

The departing group also includes the former head of Alston’s legislative and public policy group, Tom Boyd. Boyd joins DLA Piper as co-head of the firm’s government affairs practice in Washington with Governor Jim Blanchard.

The exit of the four partners will be a significant blow to Alston’s corporate ambitions. Conner, at the firm for almost 30 years, was also co-head of its corporate group while the two other, as yet unnamed partners, are understood to be from the corporate group.

Alston lost a fifth partner to DLA Piper in September. If this was the NFL, Alston would be getting compensatory draft picks.

DLA Piper raids Alston for former chair and team [TheLawyer.com]

We broke the news of the Kilpatrick Stockton pay raise earlier this month. Today's Fulton County Daily Report has an article about it here.

The Kilpatrick move is old news -- it was actually announced before Labor Day -- but Meredith Hobbs's piece does contain a helpful summary of where the big Atlanta firms stand:

Alston & Bird sparked this round of Atlanta pay raises on Aug. 1 when it increased associate pay across the board, starting at $145,000 for first-years and rising to $190,000 for seventh years—the same scale that Hunton & Williams instituted in February during the year’s first round of associate salary increases. At that time, most of the city’s big firms increased first-year pay from $115,000 to $130,000. That followed a similar $15,000 pay increase at the beginning of 2006, also sparked by Alston.

Other firms that have announced they will raise local first-year pay to $145,000 in January include Troutman Sanders, Sutherland Asbill & Brennan and Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker. Jones Day will raise first-year pay to $150,000 at that time.

Kilpatrick first-years join the $145K club [Fulton County Daily Report]

Earlier: Nationwide Pay Raise Watch: Kilpatrick Stockton

Memo from Jonathan Lowe to all DC associates, after the jump.

There's a lot going on this morning, including the resignation of Alberto Gonzales as attorney general and the Michael Vick plea hearing. But none of this will prevent fall recruiting from going forward, full speed ahead. So let's continue with our open threads on Vault 100 law firms.

Here are the Biglaw shops to talk about this morning. Two of them -- Alston & Bird and Bingham & McCutchen -- are, along with Nixon Peabody, on Fortune's list of 100 Best Companies to Work For.

61. Alston & Bird LLP (5.742)
62. Heller Ehrman LLP (5.690)
63. Vinson & Elkins LLP (5.676)
64. Bingham McCutchen LLP (5.641)
65. Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal LLP (5.635)

As you may recall, we wrote about Bingham McCutchen recently. Our post triggered some additional tips, which appear after the jump.

Please discuss these five firms in the comments. Thanks.

The Vault Top 100 Law Firms [Vault]

Earlier: Vault 1-5; Vault 6-10; Vault 11-15; Vault 16-20; Vault 21-25; Vault 26-30; Vault 31-35; Vault 36-40; Vault 41-45; Vault 46-50; Vault 51-55; Vault 56-60

The dominoes are falling in Atlanta. Last night, Troutman Sanders made its associate pay raise announcement.

From the Fulton County Daily Report:

Troutman Sanders raised associate pay $15,000 across the board in its Atlanta, Washington, Virginia and North Carolina offices Thursday, with the starting salary going from $130,000 to $145,000.

The firm's managing partner, Robert W. Webb Jr., announced the pay increase to associates at 5 p.m. Thursday.

The raises are effective Jan. 1, 2008, the same date the pay raise that Alston & Bird announced to its Atlanta associates last week goes into effect. Earlier this week, King & Spalding matched Alston's $15,000 increase in starting pay, also effective Jan. 1, but did not raise pay for more senior associates.

Correction: According to a source at the firm, as well as various commenters, "Troutman's DC and Tysons Corner offices have starting salaries of $160K as a result of the increase. (Troutman's Atlanta office is starting at $145K)."

What's most noteworthy about this raise, as pointed out to us by several tipsters, is that it's "across the board" -- not just for first- or second-year associates. In Atlanta, where salary compression for more senior associates is a serious issue, an across-the-board raise of $15,000 is good news indeed. It's better than what has been announced thus far by Alston & Bird and King & Spalding.

More discussion, after the jump.

We're delighted to see that ATL has so many readers in ATL. And we apologize for that one time we were mean to you. (We don't know what got into us; guess it was that time of the month.)

This morning's post about the Alston & Bird raise, which will take effect shortly before your kids enter law school, generated robust commentary. It also earned us another shout-out in the mainstream media. From an Atlanta reader:

"Above the Law was mentioned in the Daily Report article on the Alston & Bird raise. In fact, the reporter confronted A&B's hiring partner with some of the comments to your post."

[A]ssociates posting anonymously to the Above the Law blog, a gossip and news Web site about big law firms, were not happy with Alston’s pay increase. They contended that associate pay in Atlanta still lags behind that in other comparable markets, such as Houston and Dallas....

Several blog posters criticized Alston for pay compression, pointing out that the firm is not increasing pay for more senior classes at the same $15,000 rate as for first-years.

“A&B did raise today. Starts at $145K, tops at $190K. So much for solving compression. Folks are devestated [sic],” wrote “Anonymous” a scant hour after Alston announced the increase last evening.

“First years get a 15K raise. I get 5K,” groused another.

When told of the comments, [A&B hiring partner Jonathan W. Lowe] responded: “If this is true, I am certainly disappointed to hear that our associates are unhappy with this pay raise. We try to determine what the market is with respect to associate salary in each of the cities where we have offices, and this was our best effort at determining the market in Atlanta at this time.”

We agree with our reader's take on on Jon Lowe's response:

"His reaction to the negative comments seemed to catch him off guard. You almost get the impression he expected to hear only the sound of Cristal corks popping."

But hey, A&B associates, it's not all bad. Remember the firm's special generosity, back in May?

If this isn't ringing a bell, your recollection may be refreshed by two emails, reprinted after the jump.

Yes, we've confirmed the rumor: Alston & Bird has raised associate salaries in Atlanta.

But before you rejoice, consider the details -- the actual numbers, and the effective date. From a tipster:

An email went around at 6:05 p.m. [on Wednesday]. The raises take effect on January 1, 2008, and there is heavy compression:

1 $145,000
2 $150,000
3 $155,000
4 $160,000
5 $170,000
6 $180,000
7 $190,000

Some Atlantans are less than thrilled. As one commenter wrote: "Morale at Atlanta firms is about equal to Iraqi troops who surrendered to Amercian news crews during the invasion."

Still, as our tipster observed, "any raise is a raise."

The day that many of you have been waiting for has arrived. Today ATL goes to ATL: the fair city of Atlanta!

Based on NALP forms and prior news articles, it seems that starting salaries in the Big Peach generally range from $130,000 and $145,000 (similar to Philadelphia).

At $130K: Alston & Bird; Arnall Golden Gregory; King & Spalding; Kilpatrick Stockton; McKenna Long & Aldridge; Morris, Manning & Martin; Paul Hastings; Powell Goldstein; Smith Gambrell & Russell; Sutherland Asbill & Brennan; Troutman Sanders; Womble Carlyle.

At $135K: Jones Day

At $145K.: Dow Lohnes; Hunton & Williams; McGuireWoods; Schiff Hardin.

At $160K: Fish & Richardson (IP work).

Feel free to discuss associate compensation, or any other hot issues in Hotlanta, in the comments. Thanks.

New lawyers' pay puts public sector to shame [Atlanta Journal-Constitution]
Alston & Bird Raises First-Year Pay Yet Again [Fulton County Daily Report]
Hunton raises first-year salaries to $145,000 [Fulton County Daily Report]

Related: Open threads focused on Denver, Hartford, Philadelphia, Seattle, New Jersey, Phoenix, Charlotte.

We haven't verified this with a source at the firm; we received it secondhand (but from a source who has been reliable in the past). Anyway, with the foregoing caveats, here it is:

Alston & Bird just went to 145K for 1st years in Charlotte, but did NOT raise in Atlanta. The A&B associates in Atlanta are outraged.

Any thoughts, on this or any other salary-related matter? It has been a while since our last Skaddenfreude thread (which has forced some of you to leave salary-related comments in random places). So you can treat this as an open thread for compensation-related gossip and discussion.

Sorry, we don't have any new memos or emails to share with you. We can't post what we haven't been emailed.

We're not the only ones on the money beat. The MSM continues to follow increasing base salaries for law firm associates quite closely.

Here's a linkwrap of four articles, published yesterday or today, concerning associate pay raises and/or partner profits:

1. Biggest Chicago firms boosting 1st-year pay [Chicago Tribune]

2. Alston & Bird Raises Pay to $130,000 [Fulton County Daily Report]

3. Pay: It's All Relative: Starting pay at top firms falls farther behind partners'. [National Law Journal]

4. Keeping Up With the Joneses [The Recorder (subscription)]

As always, your comments are welcomed, after the jump.

Congratulations to these five law firms, which just made Fortune magazine's list of the 100 Best Companies To Work For:

-- Alston & Bird (#19)
-- Arnold & Porter (#26)
-- Nixon Peabody (#49)
-- Perkins Coie (#64)
-- Bingham McCutchen (#94)

The Recorder has a write-up of the results, which contains some fun factoids. Did you know that each Perkins Coie office has a "Happiness Committee," which throws surprise parties for lawyers and staff?

This is unusual. Many law firms have "Unhappiness Committees," which are sometimes called "Personnel Committees" or "Associate Life Committees." But we don't know of any other firm with a "Happiness Committee."

And here's something we didn't know about the #94 company on the list, Bingham McCutchen (whose name we keep on misspelling):

[A]t Bingham, women outnumber men two to one and make up 23 percent of the partner ranks -- believed to be the highest percentage in the industry, according to the Fortune report.

No wonder the Bingham men are so happy.

Five Law Firms Score Places on Fortune Magazine's 'Best Companies' List [The Recorder via Law.com]
100 Best Companies To Work For [Fortune]

A few moves within the legal profession worth noting:

Legal Academia:

* Tax law professor Neil Buchanan, to GW, from Rutgers-Newark, effective January 2007. (Gavel Bang: TaxProf Blog.)

Lateral Law Firm Moves:

* Corporate lawyer Carey Schreiber, to Winston & Strawn, from Dewey Ballantine.

* Corporate lawyer Jeffrey Katz, to Dechert (as a partner), from Milbank Tweed (where he was a senior attorney).

New Partners:

* King & Spalding has named twelve new partners. Have a friend who was up this year? See if they made it by reviewing the firm's press release.

Although they don't involve moves, while we're on the subject of law firm employment (and King & Spalding), here are two interesting items from the WSJ Law Blog:

1. Power Brothers Ascend to the Top of Hotlanta’s Legal Scene: Two brothers, Robert Hays and Richard Hays, will be heading Atlanta's two largest law firms, King & Spalding and Alston & Bird.

This will take effect as of 2008, when Richard Hays takes over as Alston & Bird's managing partner. Robert Hays is currently chair of King & Spalding. See also here.

2. Spurned Orrick Associate Sues Firm: "At the same time that it’s talking merger with Dewey Ballantine, west-coast powerhouse Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe is defending a suit by a former associate who claims the firm fraudulently promised to make him a partner."

Buchanan to Leave Rutgers for GW [TaxProf Blog]
NY Partners Switching Firms [NYLawyer.com]
NY Associates Making Partner [NYLawyer.com]
King & Spalding Announces Twelve New Partners [King & Spalding]