In 2018, during what turned out to be the strongest year in the legal market since the Great Recession, Milbank LLP announced a new salary scale for their associates. To stay competitive in the hunt for the best young associates, almost 100 of Milbank’s Big Law competitors quickly followed suit.
The current Big Law salary scale is:
However, it’s not only the biggest firms in the country that are vying for top talent. Dozens of mid-sized firms and sophisticated, specialized boutiques have also jumped on the Big Law salary scale bandwagon—or close to it. Some of these law firms are even paying their associates more than their AmLaw counterparts.
* Salaries vary by geographic market.
| Class Year | Salary |
| 1st year | $190,000 |
| 2nd year | $200,000 |
| 3rd year | $220,000 |
| 4th year | $255,000 |
| 5th year | $280,000 |
| 6th year | $305,000 |
| 7th year | $325,000 |
| 8th year | $340,000 |
| 9th year | $350,000 |
| Summer Associates | $3700/week |
However, it’s not only the biggest firms in the country that are vying for top talent. Dozens of mid-sized firms and sophisticated, specialized boutiques have also jumped on the Big Law salary scale bandwagon—or close to it. Some of these law firms are even paying their associates more than their AmLaw counterparts.
Here’s a list of firms outside the AmLaw 100 where associates are getting paid the big bucks.
| Law Firm | 1st Year Salary | Firm Type | Practice Area(s) | Location(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ahmad, Zavitsanos, Anaipakos, Alavi & Mensing P.C. | $190,000 | Boutique | Litigation | Houston |
| Axinn, Veltrop & Harkrider LLP | $170,000-$180,000* | Boutique | Antitrust | New York; Hartford; Washington D.C. |
| Banner Witcoff | $190,000 | Boutique | Intellectual Property | Chicago |
| Barack Ferrazzano Kirschbaum & Nagelberg LLP | $190,000 | Midsize | Mixed Practice | Chicago (HQ); Minneapolis; Austin |
| Brewer, Attorneys & Counselors | $185,000 | Boutique | Litigation | New York; Dallas |
| Caplin & Drysdale, Chartered | $170,000 | Small-Midsize | Mixed Practice | Washington D.C.; New York |
| Chapman and Cutler LLP | $180,000 (except Salt Lake City - $130,000) | Midsize | Mixed Practice | Chicago (HQ); New York; San Francisco; Washington D.C.; Salt Lake City |
| Condo Roccia Koptiw LLP | $180,000 | Boutique | Intellectual Property | Philadelphia |
| Desmarais | $210,000 | Midsize | Patent Litigation | New York; San Francisco |
| Dovel and Luner | $215,000 | Boutique | Plaintiff-Side Litigation | Los Angeles |
| Durie Tangri | $180,000 | Boutique | Intellectual Property | San Francisco; Los Angeles |
| Duval & Stachenfeld | $190,000 | Boutique | Real Estate | New York |
| Farella Braun & Martel LLP | $180,000 | Midsize | Mixed Practice | San Francisco; St. Helena |
| Friedman Kaplan Seiler & Adelman LLP | $180,000 | Boutique | Litigation; White Collar | New York; New Jersey |
| Gibbs & Bruns LLP | $190,000 | Boutique | Litigation | Houston |
| Groom Law Group Chartered | $190,000 | Boutique | ERISA/Employee Benefits | Washington D.C. |
| Gunderson Dettmer Stough Villeneuve Franklin & Hachigian, LLP | $190,000 | Midsize | Mixed Practice | Multiple Offices in California; Boston; New York; Ann Arbor; Singapore; Beijing |
| Hickman Palermo Becker Bingham LLP | $160,000 | Boutique | Intellectual Property | San Jose |
| Holwell Shuster & Goldberg | $190,000 | Boutique | Litigation | New York |
| Hueston Hennigan LLP | $190,000 | Boutique | Litigation | Los Angeles |
| Keker & Van Nest LLP | $190,000 | Boutique | Intellectual Property | San Francisco |
| Kellogg, Hansen, Todd, Figel & Frederick P.L.L.C. | $225,000 | Boutique | Litigation | Washington D.C. |
| Klee, Tuchin, Bogdanoff & Stern LLP | $190,000 | Boutique | Corporate Law | Los Angeles |
| Kobre & Kim LLP | $190,000 | Boutique/Midsize | Litigation | New York; Miami; San Francisco; Washington D.C.; Multiple International Offices |
| Marshall, Gerstein & Borun LLP | $180,000 | Boutique | Intellectual Property | Chicago |
| McDonnell Boehnen Hulbert & Berghoff LLP | $180,000 | Midsize | Intellectual Property | Chicago |
| McKool Smith | $190,000 | Boutique | Intellectual Property | Multiple offices nationwide |
| Morvillo, Abramowitz, Grand, Iason & Anello PC | $190,000 | Boutique | Litigation | New York |
| Shartsis Friese LLP | $190,000 | Small-Midsize | Mixed Practice | San Francisco |
| Smyser Kaplan & Veselka, L.L.P. | $190,000 | Small-Midsize | Mixed Practice | Houston |
| Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox, P.L.L.C. | $180,000 | Midsize | Intellectual Property | Washington D.C. |
| Susman Godfrey | $195,000 | Boutique | Litigation | Houston; Seattle; Los Angeles; New York |
| Tenesgrity Law Group | $180,000 | Boutique | Patent Litigation | Redwood Shores, CA |
| Warren Lex | $190,000 | Boutique | Litigation | San Francisco |
| Wolf, Greenfield & Sacks, P.C. | $190,000 | Boutique | Intellectual Property | Boston |
* Salaries vary by geographic market.
