World’s Wealthiest Law Firm Enters The Summer Salary Wars
Has the firm shattered the market on salaries?
As expected, now that Cravath has signed off on the latest round of raises brought to us by Davis Polk, Biglaw firms of all stripes have waltzed in to shower their associates with piles of cash. Now, the most profitable Biglaw firm in the the world has decided to offer some input.
What is Kirkland & Ellis planning to bring to the table?
The No. 1 firm in the country — known for its above-market bonuses — brought in $4,830,000,000 gross revenue in 2020, but it’s not going to be shattering the market when it comes to raises. Here, the firm is not a leader but a follower. Kirkland is offering its associates a Davis Polk match. This is what the new salary scale looks like at K&E (full memo available on the next page):
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- 2020: $205,000
- 2019: $215,000
- 2018: $240,000
- 2017: $275,000
- 2016: $305,000
- 2015: $330,000
The firm will also be throwing a bone to its overworked and underpaid non-equity partners (“non-share partners” or “NSPs”). For these partners in name only, we certainly hope the juicy new salaries at K&E are worth the squeeze.
Congratulations to everyone at Kirkland!
(Flip to the next page to see the full memo from Kirkland.)
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Staci 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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