King & Spalding

Nationwide Pay Raise Watch: Troutman Sanders

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Troutman Sanders LLP Abovethelaw Above the Law blog.jpgThe 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.

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Nationwide Pay Raise Watch: More on King & Spalding

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King Spalding LLP logo Abovethelaw Above the Law blog.jpgEarlier this week, we reported on King & Spalding raising starting salaries for its associates to $145,000.
A subsequent article, in the Fulton County Daily Report, contained this interesting analysis:

[Legal recruiter Raffaele V.] Murdocca predicted that King & Spalding would not simply match the new Alston & Bird pay scale for more senior classes. “A lot of associates are upset with how much pay compression there is at Alston & Bird,” he pointed out.

Alston increased pay by $15,000 for first-year associates but in smaller increments for more senior associate classes, so there is only a $45,000 difference between the salaries of the firm’s first- and seventh-year associates….

“That is not a lot of money when dealing with very different levels of experience,” said Murdocca. “Mid-level and senior associates are doing a substantial amount of work and are very valuable. The firm does not want to upset them….”

For ATL readers in ATL, there’s additional discussion after the jump.

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Nationwide Pay Raise Watch: King & Spalding

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King Spalding LLP logo Abovethelaw Above the Law blog.jpgGood times for associates at King & Spalding in Atlanta. They get kidnapped, but they’re released unharmed. And now they get pay raises!
We’ve confirmed the rumor from yesterday afternoon that King & Spalding has raised starting salaries for first-year associates. Here’s the email:

We are pleased to announce that, effective January 1, 2008, the salary for first-year, partner-track associates in the Atlanta office will be $145,000. We are continuing to evaluate compensation for other partner-track associates in Atlanta and will communicate with you further as additional decisions are made. We appreciate all that you do for the firm and for our clients.

From a source at K&S: “Much speculation that the only possible reason for delay regarding other years is that the firm is going to top A&B.”
K&S just announced [Greedy South / Infirmation]
Earlier: King & Spalding Attorney Kidnapped!

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X-Summers: Crab Stabber AKA Senorita Foulmouth

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X Men small X Summers X Summer Associates Abovethelaw Above the Law blog.jpg
Time for another summer associate story. We’re still taking submissions on these, so if you have one, check the submission guidelines and fire away.
Here’s our latest X-Summer:
1. Superhero name: Crab Stabber AKA Senorita Foulmouth
2. Special power: Crazed Crustacean Impaling/ Spanish Profanity
3. Summered: King & Spalding, Houston, Summer 2004 or 2005 (“can’t recall”)
4. Claim to fame: The allegations, according to our tipster:

“K&S Houston used to have this boondoggle of a recruiting trip to the Four Seasons resort in Punta Mita Mexico for a weekend. Excellent way to get to know your summers, their spouses, and how they behave socially. And did I mention it is at a Four Seasons in Mexico?”

crab dead crab Abovethelaw Above the Law blog.jpg“Anyway, a group of people were sitting at a beach campfire, drinking some adult beverages and making smores and other goodies on the fire. Our heroine takes her skewer and proceeds to stab a crab, roughly 8 inches in diameter, that was trying to sneak by the people on the beach. Not a small crab. She then proceeds to roast it on the fire. There is a famous picture, which she more or less posed for, with her holding the crab on the skewer with a maniacal grin on her face. Let’s just say some of the partners, spouses and others sitting around the campfire were a little shocked.”

“At another point during that summer, our heroine was sitting in at the beginning of a lunch seminar with other summers, attorneys and paralegals. That summer, [a lot] of the SAs happened to be fluent in Spanish and would speak Spanish to each other in the halls, etc. Well, our heroine was talking to another summer in Spanish and apparently cursing like a Caracas sailor in mixed company, when a paralegal politely said: “You may want to be careful, other people speak Spanish here, too.” To which our heroine shot back: “Are you an attorney?” Ummm… no, but let’s just say that the paralegal knew a few.

5. What happened next: “Ummmm…. no offer.”
The rules still apply. Don’t be a d-bag and name the Crab Stabber or try to guess who she is. Thanks a bunch.

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King & Spalding Attorney Kidnapped!

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Kidnapped attorneys.jpg
Two attorneys were reportedly kidnapped after leaving a nightclub in Atlanta Saturday night. They were found unharmed after one wrote a text message to his brother.

David Deganian, 26, and a friend, Herman Hoying, 28, stayed behind to pay a bar tab as everyone started to leave around 2:30 a.m., Arman Deganian said.
But David Deganian and Hoying never made it to the house. The truck they had arrived in was missing when Arman Deganian went out to look for his brother after receiving the text message.
Atlanta police issued a news release saying the two men were missing.
But by Sunday afternoon, Atlanta police had two men in custody. They were arrested in a store in southwest Atlanta when police say they used a credit card from one of the missing men, Arman Deganian said.

Text messages: Literally life-saving!
You wouldn’t think it from the image shown here, but Herman Hoying (the one on the left) is an associate at King & Spalding, the venerable Atlanta firm. Check out the picture on the firm’s site — Herman cleans up well!
We wonder: How much ransom would K&S have paid to get Hoying back?
Update: Herman Hoying has a nice comment below:

I want to acknowledge the amazing work of both the Atlanta Police Department and SunTrust Bank, who worked together to quite literally save our lives. They did amazing work.

We’re glad everyone is safe.

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Nationwide Pay Raise Watch: Two D.C. Developments

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King Spalding LLP logo Abovethelaw Above the Law blog.jpgFirst, King & Spalding is now on the $160K salary scale in Washington, DC. We hear that the associates back in Atlanta, who have not seen any raise action, aren’t happy campers. Memo after the jump.
Second, with respect to the rumor that Hogan & Hartson has raised salaries for its lower-hours track, we’d appreciate it if someone would send us confirmation and/or a memo. Thanks.

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Nationwide Pay Raise Watch: Atlanta

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Atlanta Georgia GA Hotlanta Big Peach Abovethelaw Above the Law legal tabloid.jpgThe 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.

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Skaddenfreude: A Few Announcements, End of Day Open Thread

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100 dollar bill Above the Law Above the Law law firm salary legal blog legal tabloid Above the Law.JPGToday was a little more interesting than yesterday. A few announcements were made — or were finally brought to our attention and confirmed, if they were made previously.
After the jump, more information about DLA Piper, Katten Muchin Rosenman, King & Spalding, and Jones Day (Atlanta).
(And, of course, your comments.)

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Skaddenfreude: The King & Spalding Memo

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Here’s the King & Spalding memo. As our source points out, “King & Spalding matched — but NYC only, which leaves an 8th-year in their Atlanta office making less than a 1st-year in their NY office.”
Correction/Update: This is actually a disputed matter. According to this comment, a first-year in New York ($160K) makes more than a sixth-year in Atlanta ($155K), but not an eighth-year ($170K). The point remains, however, that K&S’s New York associates earn significantly more than their colleagues at the Atlanta mother ship.
KING & SPALDING LLP
From: Hays, Robert
Sent: Thursday, January 25, 2007 6:32 PM
To: [New York associates]
Subject: Increase in Salaries for New York Partner-Track Associates
Please see the attached announcement regarding changes to base salaries for our New York partner-track associates.
King Spalding King Spaulding pay raise associate base salary memo.JPG

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Musical Chairs: 11.06.06

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musical chairs above the law legal blog above the law legal tabloid above the law legal gossip site.GIFA 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]

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