Top 10 Biglaw Firm Ponies Up Money For Hardworking Associates

Sidley weighs in on the Biglaw salary wars.

money salary Sharing treasure, Big hand giving a big bag of money with dollar sign to a businessmanWhat better way for a Biglaw firm to let associates know much their work is appreciated than with a nice raise? And thanks to the new market standard set by the combination of Milbank and Davis Polk, firms are doing just that.

The latest firm to say thank you with cold, hard cash is Sidley Austin. The firm took in $2,462,935,000 in gross revenue in 2020, making it number 6 on the Am Law 100, and they are happy to share their good fortune with the associates who made it all possible.

As expected, the firm matched the prevailing market compensation as detailed in the chart below:

Class of 2021 $215,000
Class of 2020 $225,000
Class of 2019 $250,000
Class of 2018 $293,500
Class of 2017 $335,000
Class of 2016 $360,500
Class of 2015 $381,000
Class of 2014 $396,500

And like many of their peer firms, the raises will be retroactive to January 1 and will hit bank accounts in March. Read the full memo on the next page.

*** Wondering if the grass is greener on the in-house side? Click here for a look inside the black box of corporate counsel pay in our 2021 In-House Compensation Report. ***

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Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. 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).


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