Bonus season really is the best time of the Biglaw year. Sure, you probably worked a ton and had to sacrifice your personal life to do so, but at least you get a nice big bonus in recognition of all that hard work. But just how generous will those bonuses be?
That question was largely answered when Milbank acted first in announcing bonuses, then Cravath matched that scale. Now Cadwalader has announced that their associates will also be compensated on those market rates as well.
And the market scale that pretty much all the big firms will be following is:
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Class of 2019 – $15,000 (pro-rated)
Class of 2018 – $15,000
Class of 2017 – $25,000
Class of 2016 – $50,000
Class of 2015 – $65,000
Class of 2014 – $80,000
Class of 2013 – $90,000
Class of 2012+ – $100,000
Plus, the exciting part for those who’ve notched a particularly busy year, is that associates and counsel who bill over 2,200 hours will receive bonuses of 120 percent of their class year. Which is a nice extra way to say thank you. Bonuses will be paid by the firm in February. (Full memo on the next page.)
Remember, we depend on your tips to stay on top of important bonus updates, so when your firm matches, please text us (646-820-8477) or email us (subject line: “[Firm Name] Matches”). 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.
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Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, and host of The Jabot podcast. 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).