Biglaw
firms
with
single
partnership
tiers
are
now
few
and
far
between,
with
more
big-name
firms
showing
that
they’re
ready,
willing,
and
able
to
welcome
nonequity
partners
to
their
ranks.
One
top
Biglaw
firm,
however,
has
decided
to
stay
true
to
its
single-tier
partnership
model
—
at
least
for
the
time
being.
Earlier
this
summer,
we
reported
that
Ropes
&
Gray,
the
#7
firm
in
the
country
by
gross
revenue, had
been
flirting
with
creating
a
nonequity
partnership
tier.
This
was
in
the
wake
of
other
storied
firms
welcoming
nonequity
partners
to
their
ranks
in
recent
years,
starting
in
November
2023
when
Cravath
created
a “salaried
partner
tier.” That
move
gave
other
highly
ranked
firms
permission
to
tread
the
same
path,
including
Paul
Weiss,
which
announced
its new
two-tier
partnership
plan in
March
2024;
WilmerHale,
which added
a
nonequity
partnership
tier in
August
2024;
Cleary,
which
announced
its
own new
partnership
platform in
October
2024;
Skadden,
which
began
considering
a nonequity
level in
February
2025;
and
Schulte
Roth
&
Zabel,
which
announced
an income
partnership
tier in
March
2025.
Ropes
now
seems
to
have
settled
on
its
single
partnership
tier.
In
an
interview
with
the
American
Lawyer,
partner
Dan
Stanco,
a
member
of
the
firm’s
policy
committee,
said
it
would
be
“premature”
to
say
the
firm
will
be
incorporating
a
nonequity
partnership
tier.
So,
for
now,
the
firm
will
retain
its
equity
partnership
scheme,
but
who’s
to
say
what
the
future
holds.
Ropes
—
which
brought
in
$4,989,000
in
profit
per
equity
partner
in
2024
—
is
one
of
the
last
firms
in
the
Am
Law
100,
to
retain
an
all-equity
partnership.
As
previously
noted
by Bloomberg
Law,
the
largest
law
firms
in
America
could
soon
have
more
nonequity
partners
than
equity
partners
by
the
end
of
2025.
Is
your
firm
planning
to
increase
its
nonequity
partnership
ranks?
Please
please
text
us
(646-820-8477)
or email
us and
let
us
know.
Thanks.
Ropes
&
Gray
Sticking
to
Single-Tier
Partnership
For
Now,
Aiming
For
Better
Collaboration
[American
Lawyer]
Earlier:
Top
10
Biglaw
Firm
Is
Considering
Creating
A
Nonequity
Partnership
Tier
Staci
Zaretsky is
the
managing
editor
of
Above
the
Law,
where
she’s
worked
since
2011.
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