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,
recently
decided
to
stay
true
to
its
single-tier
partnership
model,
announcing
a
near-record
size,
all-equity
partnership.
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;
Schulte
Roth
&
Zabel,
which
announced
an income
partnership
tier in
March
2025;
and
Debevoise,
which
created
its
nonequity
partnership
track
in
June
2025.
In
September,
a
member
of
the
firm’s
policy
committee
said
it
would
be
“premature”
to
say
the
firm
would
be
incorporating
a
nonequity
partnership
tier. With
the
firm
mulling
the
addition
of
non-equity
partnership
track,
we
wondered
what
the
future
may
hold
for
the
elite
firm.
With
the
announcement
of
its
latest
partnership
class,
we
now
know
that
Ropes
is
still
on
board
with
a
single-tier
partnership.
As
noted
by
the
American
Lawyer,
the
firm
was
only
able
to
come
to
this
decision
following
what
firm
chair
Julie
Jones
described
as
a
“rigorous”
process.
Here’s
a
peek
into
what
that
process
involved
at
Ropes
&
Gray:
Jones
said
[it]
involved
looking
at
the
firm’s
partner
cohort,
its
talent
retention
and
the
progression
rate
to
partner.The
firm
also
looked
at
its
peers
and
their
partnership
cohorts
by
seniority,
and
did
case
studies
of
peers,
including
firms
that
recently
decided
to
move
to
a
two-tier
structure,
she
said.
(Cleary
Gottlieb
Steen
&
Hamilton;
Wilmer
Cutler
Pickering
Hale
and
Dorr;
and
Debevoise
&
Plimpton
are
among
those
that
have
recently
adopted
a
second
tier.)Ropes
partners
were
also
surveyed,
and
they
participated
in
group
discussions,
Jones
said,
noting
that
the
firm
also
interviewed
clients
on
the
issue.
“We
believe
in
making
decisions
that
involve
sufficient
analysis.
We
did
not
see
that
a
multi-tier
partnership
was
causative
to
performance,”
she
said.
Jones
said
that
the
firm
will
not
be
revisiting
the
partnership
tier
issue
in
2026,
or
anytime
in
the
near
future.
She
offered
a
statement
on
the
matter,
saying,
“A
unified
partnership
enables
Ropes
to
deliver
the
best
service
and
outcome
for
clients,
build
the
most
talented
lawyer
base
in
elite
law,
and
maintain
our
special
culture.
We
pride
ourselves
on
the
mantra:
‘one
firm,
one
partnership,
one
focus:
our
clients.’”
Ropes
welcomed
a
partnership
class
of
21
on
Monday,
coming
close
to
its
record
of
24
new
partners
in
2021.
The
firm
prominently
named
each
of
its
new
partners
in
a
welcome
notice,
even
providing
photos
and
bios
of
each
of
its
talented
attorneys.
When
asked
if
the
firm
would
ever
consider
pulling
a
stunt
like
that
or
Kirkland
&
Ellis
—
which
declined
to
name
its
2025
partnership
class
—
Jones
answered
honestly,
saying
she
could
never
see
Ropes
doing
such
a
thing.
“We
are
really
proud,”
she
said.
“You
have
the
emotional
moments
with
these
colleagues.”
Congratulations
to
Ropes
&
Gray
on
committing
to
a
single-tier
partnership,
and
congratulations
to
each
of
the
firm’s
new
partners.
This
decision
makes
the
firms
stand
out
among
its
peers,
and
as
noted
by
Jones,
is
now
a
real
“differentiation”
in
the
Biglaw
landscape.
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,
Recommitting
to
Single
Tier
After
a
‘Rigorous
Process,’
Makes
Fresh
Round
of
Partner
Promotions
[American
Lawyer]
Earlier:
Top
10
Biglaw
Firm
To
Remain
A
Single-Tier
Partnership
—
For
Now
Top
10
Biglaw
Firm
Is
Considering
Creating
A
Nonequity
Partnership
Tier
Staci
Zaretsky is
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managing
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Above
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Law,
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since
2011.
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