Gigantic Biglaw Salaries Are Making Associates Reconsider Taking Pay Cuts To Go In-House

Those in-house pastures aren't quite as green anymore.

big money small moneyThe reality from where I sit as a recruiter is that when we approach in-house candidates with great opportunities, they often stop listening once they find out it could be a 30-50% pay cut.

— Legal search consultant Stacy Humphries of the Pye Legal Group in Houston, Texas, explaining how the latest Biglaw salary wars have impacted in-house recruiting. “It’s not good for big firm lawyers who won’t have as many in-house options available to them or will have to work hard to convince companies that they sincerely want to go in-house and will stay,” Humphries wrote in a popular LinkedIn post. “These salary wars are not good. Change my mind.”


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.