Biglaw

Where In Biglaw Are Midlevel Associates The Happiest? (2020)

Despite the pandemic pay cuts, midlevels are still satisfied at these firms.

By  
on

Making it to midlevel associate in Biglaw isn’t easy — especially during a pandemic. First you have to break into Biglaw in the first place (which can be quite difficult, especially if you didn’t go to a top law school or earn top grades). Then you have to survive the high stress and long hours. Finally, you need to endure and somehow persevere through these uncertain times despite the salary cuts, furloughs, and layoffs (depending on your firm).

But if you do make it to midlevel status, it’s arguably more difficult than ever thanks to COVID-19. The American Lawyer just released its midlevel associates survey, and respondents are understandably concerned about transparency, accountability, and work-life balance. Despite these concerns,  midlevels are happy with how their firms have managed the coronavirus crisis. Per Am Law’s Samantha Stokes:

Early-career attorneys are increasingly satisfied with the openness of firm leadership, how firms communicate about making the partnership, and the opportunity to build relationships with partners, according to The American Lawyer’s 2020 Midlevel Associates Survey. In the pandemic era, transparency in these areas has once again led associates to feel more satisfied with their firms overall than ever: The average composite satisfaction score for all 73 participating firms in 2020 was 4.32 on a five-point scale, an increase from last year’s average of 4.29.

Asked to rate their firms in several categories, associates gave higher marks than they have in the past, most notably when it comes to “management openness,” where firms had the greatest improvement, rising to 4.26 from 4.07 last year.

Midlevel associates were asked how satisfied they are with their firm on a variety of different questions: compensation and benefits; training and guidance; relations with partners and other associates; interest in and satisfaction level with the work; the firm’s policy on billable hours; and management’s openness about firm strategies and partnership chances. In the face of the pandemic, leadership across another of Biglaw firms scored major points with their openness. “Some associates are telling me that even when firms are communicating bad news, they’re still glad the firms shared it and aren’t aren’t trying to hide anything,” said Stephanie Biderman, a managing director with Major, Lindsey & Africa’s associate practice group. “It may not be the news they wanted to hear, but they’re still happy to feel included in the conversation.”

As far as work-life balance is concerned, millennial midlevels are really feeling the pressure. In fact, the term “work-life balance” was mentioned more than 200 times among the 4,100 respondents to Am Law’s 2020 survey. While some were pleased with how their firms were “good about making sure that people are mindful of their mental health,” others stressed (literally) that firms really only care about money, not mental health, with one associate poetically describing the situation like so:

Management rewards those who make the most money for the owners of the firm by working the longest hours (and who thereby accumulate the most stress and neglect their mental health, relationships, physical health, etc.). Firms qua firms are agnostic as to associates’ mental health—if it is neglected, it results in lessened productivity as manifested in burnout, but if it is prioritized, it also results in fewer hours billed (through a more advantageous work-life balance, etc.) and fewer profits. On balance, the system rewards flirtation with burnout and the accompanying depression and anxiety.

That having been said, let’s get down to the rankings. The full list is available here, but these are the firms that make the top 25 in terms of midlevel satisfaction:

Sponsored

  1. O’Melveny
  2. Blank Rome
  3. Paul Hastings
  4. Shearman & Sterling
  5. Goulston & Storrs
  6. Akin Gump
  7. Ropes & Gray
  8. Latham
  9. Thompson & Knight
  10. Buckley
  11. Carlton Fields
  12. Eversheds Sutherland
  13. Gibson Dunn
  14. Kirkland & Ellis
  15. Willkie Farr
  16. Orrick
  17. Munger Tolles
  18. Patterson Belknap
  19. Gibbons
  20. Dechert

Congratulations to all the firms that made the list! And congratulations to the midlevels who have jobs they’re relatively happy with, all things considered.

The 2020 Midlevel Associates Survey: The Rankings [American Lawyer]
As They Navigate the Pandemic, Midlevel Associates Say Law Firm Transparency Is Paramount [American Lawyer]

Staci ZaretskyStaci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

Sponsored

Topics

, , , , , ,