Associate Salaries

Another Magic Circle Firm Pulls Money Out Of A Hat

Given the actions of its peers, this firm didn't have much of a choice.

pounds Sterling British moneyFreshfields was the first Magic Circle firm to announce an associate pay raise, which it did on June 8. Clifford Chance announced its own salary increase the very next day. Ashurst, a Silver Circle firm, announced an associate pay raise yesterday.

So it should come as no surprise that Magic Circle member Allen & Overy is following suit. We don’t have the memo yet — please send our way, and we’ll update — but we’ve heard the following:

1. A&O is matching the Cravath scale in its two U.S. offices (New York and D.C.), and São Paulo too.

2. It’s matching up through eighth-year associates (class of 2008), meaning the scale goes from $180,000 to $315,000.

3. The effective date is July 1.

All in all, a pretty standard match. Here is one tipster’s reaction:

Happy and excited!

And then there was one….

All eyes on you, Linklaters — the only Magic Circle firm that hasn’t announced an associate pay raise (not counting Slaughter & May, which has no U.S. offices).

We are covering this story closely, so please drop us a line — text (646-820-8477) or email (subject line: “[Firm Name] Matches Cravath”) — when you know of another firm making a compensation move. Please include the memo if available. You can take a photo of the memo and send it via text or email if you don’t want to forward the original PDF or Word file. All sources are kept strictly confidential.

Earlier: Another Global Firm Matches
Magic Circle Firm Matches Cravath Scale
International Firm Brings Its U.S. Associates Up To The New Market


David Lat is the founder and managing editor of Above the Law and the author of Supreme Ambitions: A Novel. You can connect with David on Twitter (@DavidLat), LinkedIn, and Facebook, and you can reach him by email at [email protected].