Biglaw

Am Law 100 Firm Finally Decides To Offer Special Bonuses To Associates

But they're tied to billable hours.

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Back in December, special bonuses reigned supreme as a part of Biglaw firms’ year-end bonuses; after all, associates had worked themselves to the bone through the repeated vagaries of the pandemic, and this extra cash served as a way to thank them for their many sacrifices. The vast majority of firms offered these special bonuses without hourly requirements, but quite a few did tie them to billables, and some firms opted not to offer special bonuses at all.

As can be imagined, associates at those firms were quite angry; not only was their work not being rewarded, but their bonuses were officially below market. One firm that originally refused to offer special bonuses recently announced that appreciation money was officially in play.

The firm in question is Sheppard Mullin, and while more money is now on the table for associates, the additional bonus compensation is being offered on a sliding scale based on billable hours. Check out the firm’s scale, below:

As you can see, the firm is offering the prevailing market rate special bonuses to associates who have billed 2,000 hours. Associates who billed 1,900 hours will receive half that amount, while those who billed 1,950 hours will receive a bit more. This may not be the market standard for special bonuses, but hopefully this is enough to assauge associates at the firm.

All bonuses at Sheppard Mullin will be paid out on January 22.

(Flip to the next page to see the Sheppard Mullin special bonus memo.)

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Earlier: No Special Bonuses At This Am Law 100 Biglaw Firm, And Associates Are PISSED

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.

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