Today
is
September
3.
Labor
Day
has
come
and
gone.
It’s
been
nearly
a
full
month
since
Milbank
announced
that
it
would
be
handing
out
special
bonuses
to
associates
($6,000
to
$25,000,
based
on
class
year).
Other
midsize
and
boutique
firms
have
already
stepped
in
to
award
summer
bonuses
to
their
associates
—
firms
like Vartabedian
Hester
&
Haynes ($5,000); Otterbourg ($15,000);
Bell
Nunnally
(up
to
$15,000);
and Hueston
Hennigan ($10,000
to
$30,000,
based
on
hours).
Business
is
booming,
but
Biglaw
has
more
or
less
ignored
the
firm’s
announcement.
Why?
What’s
going
on?
If
Biglaw
firms
are
planning
to
match
these
bonuses
by
year’s
end,
why
not
just
notify
your
attorneys
now?
You
don’t
need
to
wait
for
Cravath’s
blessing.
We
all
know
that
Cravath
is
going
to
match,
just
as
well
as
we
all
know
that
no
firm
wants
to
be
left
behind
in
the
ultra-competitive
associate
compensation
race.
We’ve
said
it
once,
and
we’re
more
than
happy
to
say
it
again:
stop
delaying
the
inevitable.
All
you
need
to
do
is
let
your
hardworking
associates
and
counsel
know
that
your
firm
will
match
these
bonuses
—
and
whatever
other
bonuses
that
may
later
come
along
—
sooner
rather
than
later.
The
first
day
of
Fall
is
September
22.
Biglaw
firms
have
just
a
few
more
weeks
to
announce
their
summer
bonuses.
If
your
firm
announces,
please
let
us
know
ASAP,
so
we
can
spread
the
news
and
hopefully
make
the
market
do
something.
Remember
everyone,
we
depend
on
your
tips
to
stay
on
top
of
this
stuff.
So
when
your
firm
matches,
please
text
us
(646-820-8477)
or email
us (subject
line:
“[Firm
Name]
Summer
Bonuses”).
Please
include
the
memo
if
available.
You
can
take
a
photo
of
the
memo
and
send
it
via
text
or
email
if
you
don’t
want
to
forward
the
original
PDF
or
Word
file.
And
if
you’d
like
to
sign
up
for
ATL’s
Bonus
Alerts
(which
is
the
alert
list
we’ll
also
use
for
salary
announcements),
please
scroll
down
and
enter
your
email
address
in
the
box
below
this
post.
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.
Staci
Zaretsky is
the
managing
editor
of
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 Bluesky, X/Twitter,
and Threads, or
connect
with
her
on LinkedIn.