Legal Law

Associate Compensation Scorecard: Biglaw’s 2021 Bonus Blowout

Since we broke the news of the market bonus scale for associates at large law firms in the United States — a trend started by Cravath on Monday, November 22, 2021 — several firms quickly fell in line and matched the scale. The rest seem to be waiting for another firm to enter the scene (ahem, Davis Polk) and announce even bigger, better bonuses. When will your firm announce its bonuses?

As usual, we are compiling a table of all the firms that have already matched the new bonus scale, whether special bonuses are or were included, the minimum hours required to receive those bonuses (if available), and the date those bonuses will be paid. Today, we unveil that table for your viewing pleasure. We will update this table on a daily basis, sometimes multiple times, as firm’s announce bonus news. If you see any information here that is incorrect or needs clarification, let us know.

Help us help you now (and if/when you decide to make a lateral move in the future). Let us know what your firm’s minimum billable hours targets are for bonus eligibility and when your firm will pay those bonuses. You generally must remain at your firm until the payout date to receive them, as stated in most memos, which could make it all the more difficult for you to leave your place of employment.

As a little reminder, we love covering the Biglaw bonus season, but we need your help. As soon as your firm’s bonus memo comes out, please email it to us (subject line: “[Firm Name] Bonus”). We always keep our sources on bonus stories anonymous. There’s no need to send the memo using your firm email account; your personal email account is fine. Please be sure to include the memo as proof; we like to post complete bonus memos as a service to our readers. You can take a photo of the memo and attach as a picture if you are worried about metadata.

Don’t forget, if you’d like to sign up for ATL’s Bonus Alerts, please enter your email address in the box below. If you previously signed up for the bonus alerts, you don’t need to do anything. You’ll receive an email notification within minutes of each bonus announcement that we publish. Cheers to a happy bonus season, everyone!

Firm Date Matched Minimum Hours Payout Date
Cravath
Class of 2021: $15K (pro-rated)
Class of 2014: $115K
FIRST MOVER
November 22, 2021
None December 17, 2021
Cleary
Class of 2021: $15K (pro-rated)
Class of 2014+: $115K
November 23, 2021 None December 22, 2021
Cleary
Class of 2021: $15K (pro-rated)
Class of 2014+: $115K
November 23, 2021 None December 22, 2021
Boies Schiller
Market Bonuses
Class of 2021: $15K (pro-rated)
Class of 2014+: $115K
Traditional Bonuses
Rev share + unique monetary formula
November 23, 2021 For market bonuses: 2000-2349 hours for regular bonuses; 2350-2599 hours for extraordinary bonuses ($20K-$140K); 2600+ hours for extra-extraordinary bonuses ($30K-$150K) December 2021
Cadwalder
Class of 2021: $15K (pro-rated)
Class of 2014+: $115K
November 23, 2021 Additional bonuses “equal to 120% of [market bonuses]” for high billers with 2200 hours or more February 2022
Fried Frank
Class of 2021: $15K (pro-rated)
Class of 2014+: $115K
November 23, 2021 2000 hours to receive full bonus (comprised of billable hours, firm matter hours, pro bono hours (including 20 mandatory), and qualifying non-billable hours); premium bonuses ranging from $2,250 to $30K above class-year levels for eligible associates December 31, 2021

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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