Associate Salaries, Biglaw, Money

Sullivan & Cromwell Beats Cravath (For Certain Classes)

It's official: SullCrom is beating the market -- for some class years.

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Joyful young man holding six stacks of moneyUPDATE (8:45 p.m.): Please note the multiple updates below.

Biglaw firms have made this Wednesday a very happy hump day for their associates, announcing matches to the new Cravath salary scale left and right. While associates are surely very happy with their new salaries, starting at a whopping $180K, some were holding out hope that at least one law firm would top the market. Some thought that it would be Sullivan & Cromwell that would do it.

As you may recall from prior years, S&C doesn’t issue a universal bonus memo listing different class years and their respective bonuses. Following that tradition, S&C hasn’t issued a universal pay raise memo either; instead, the firm has sent each associate an individual memo with a link to an intranet page listing that lawyer’s pay raise. We have heard from S&C associates in a wide range of class years, and so far they all report… a Cravath match. Sorry to disappoint you (though a huge raise is hardly disappointing).

UPDATE (7:08 p.m.): Due to a clerical error at SullCrom, salary raise memos were initially sent out to attorneys in senior classes with the wrong information. As it turns out, eighth-year associates (i.e., Class of 2008 attorneys) at S&C will see their salaries raised to $325,000 — a full $10,000 more than what’s being offered under the Cravath scale. We’ve also heard that the class of 2009 is receiving a raise to $305K, a full $5K over what Cravath is offering to its associates. Were any other class years affected by this clerical error? We’ll keep you updated.

UPDATE (8:45 p.m.): This might make the news a bit less exciting, but even prior to the pay hike, S&C’s seventh- and eighth-year associates were earning above the standard Simpson scale (also employed by Cravath and other top firms). S&C seventh- and eighth-years were making, respectively, $270K and $290K, compared to the market rates of $265K and $280K for their years.

UPDATE (6/13/2016, 1:45 p.m.): And ninth-year associates (class of 2007) will make $345,000, according to the American Lawyer.

Associates at S&C seem extremely excited, and the memo that accompanied news of their new salaries, sent by chairman Joseph C. Shenker, outlined some new firm initiatives, including a special loan refinance program associates can take part in should they choose to do so. Congratulations to all Sullivan & Cromwell associates!

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For those who have been keeping track, we’ve heard from almost all of the firms that we’ve referred to as the “Fab Five”: Cravath, Simpson Thacher, and Sullivan & Cromwell. We’re still waiting to hear from Skadden Arps and Davis Polk. Could one of those two firms top the market? We’ll have to wait and see.

UPDATE (5:40 p.m.): Sources have reported that SullCrom has also extended raises to their summer associates.

(Flip to the next page for the full Sullivan & Cromwell pay raise memo, from chairman Joseph Shenker.)

Staci Zaretsky is an editor at Above the Law. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments. Follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

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