Davis Polk Weighs In On Associate Bonuses

Getting in on the bonus game.

After the first Biglaw bonuses were announced earlier this week by compensation leader Cravath, the firms that consider themselves top tier have been lining up to announce their own 2017 bonuses… which coincidentally line up with Cravath’s. Now comes word that Davis Polk & Wardwell have come out with their bonus structure.

And it is exact what you’d expect.

In line with the other big players in the legal market, Davis Polk will offer bonuses based on class year according to the below schedule:

Class of 2017 — $15,000 (pro-rated)
Class of 2016 — $15,000
Class of 2015 — $25,000
Class of 2014 — $50,000
Class of 2013 — $65,000
Class of 2012 — $80,000
Class of 2011 — $90,000
Class of 2010 and senior — $100,000

Associates will get paid their bonuses on December 22nd.

So, Davis Polk associates, how do these dollars stack up? It might be what you were expecting, but the bonus stagnation over the years has certainly left others at big firms frustrated.

Please help us help you when it comes to bonus news at other firms. As soon as your firm’s bonus memo comes out, please email it to us (subject line: “[Firm Name] Bonus”) or text (646-820-8477), or tweet (@ATLblog). We always keep our sources anonymous — and that includes our sources for bonus stories. There’s no need to send the memo using your firm email account; your personal email account is fine. Please be sure to include the memo as proof; we like to post complete bonus memos as a service to our readers. You can take a photo of the memo and attach as a picture if you are worried about metadata in a PDF or Word file. Thanks for your help.

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headshotKathryn Rubino is an editor at Above the Law. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).

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