It’s
been
about
two
years
since
Biglaw’s
last
salary
increase,
and
that
surely
means
associates
are
due
for
another
one
soon…
right?
The
Cravath
scale
currently
ranges
from
$225,000
to
$435,000,
and
unfortunately,
it’s
looking
more
and
more
like
lawyers
may
need
to
lower
their
expectations
for
a
compensation
hike.
Not
only
is
there
“less
pressure
on
firms
to
increase
salaries
in
order
to
remain
competitive,”
but
the
M&A
market
—
Biglaw’s
lifeline
—
is
sputtering,
leading
industry
insiders
to
cast
even
more
doubt
upon
raises
for
associates
in
2025.
As
noted
by
Bloomberg
Law,
the
timing
doesn’t
seem
to
be
right
for
raises.
Here
are
some
additional
details:
M&A
work
is
“the
engine
of
the
[Biglaw]
firms,”
said
Michelle
Fivel,
partner
and
co-founder
at
search
firm
Hatch
Henderson
Fivel.
It’s
also
a
bellwether
for
associate
hiring
across
firms,
even
in
seemingly
unrelated
practices
like
litigation.Deals
activity
ticked
up
by
nearly
19%
in
the
first
half
of
the
year
compared
to
the
same
time
last
year,
but
not
nearly
at
the
rate
expected
when
President
Donald
Trump
won
a
return
trip
to
the
White
House.
Trump’s
tariff
wars
and
global
unrest tamped
down earlier
expectations
for
an
M&A
boom.“New
deal
flow
is
not
what
had
been
hoped
for
with
a
Republican
administration
coming
into
the
White
House
and
doing
the
things
that
traditionally
are
seen
as
business
friendly,”
Fivel
said.
“That
is
kind
of
a
disappointment,
and
frankly,
a
surprise,”
she
said.
This
M&A
malaise
is
just
one
of
the
things
that
led
Ru
Bhatt,
a
New
York-based
recruiter
for
Major
Lindsey
&
Africa,
to
say,
“I
don’t
think
that
this
is
probably
the
year
that
there
will
be
any
sort
of
raises
when
it
comes
to
base
pay.”
Even
if
one
firm
does
decide
to
make
a
salary
move
in
a
down
market,
other
firms
will
surely
match
—
but
not
all
will
be
able
to
do
so,
says
Summer
Eberhard,
a
California-based
legal
recruiter
at
Lateral
Link.
“While
[Biglaw]
firms
want
to
be
competitive
on
compensation,
some
face
genuine
constraints
due
to
their
rate
structures,
client
mix,
and
financial
position.
For
some,
matching
may
not
be
viable,
regardless
of
their
intention
to
remain
competitive
for
top
talent.”
With
the
talent
wars
over
and
the
markets
unpredictable,
bigger
salaries
may
not
be
on
the
table,
but
that
doesn’t
necessarily
mean
bigger
bonuses
won’t
happen.
“I
wouldn’t
be
surprised
if
a
firm
comes
out
and
decides
to
share
a
little
bit
more
of
that
wealth,”
Bhatt
said.
“But
at
the
same
time,
there’s
a
lot
of
uncertainty
and
people
are
being
really
cautious
in
the
market.”
What
do
you
think
will
happen
come
year
end
in
terms
of
salaries
and
bonuses?
Cross
your
fingers,
associates!
Remember
everyone,
we
depend
on
your
tips
to
stay
on
top
of
compensation
updates,
so
when
your
firm
announces
or
matches,
please
text
us
(646-820-8477)
or email
us (subject
line:
“[Firm
Name]
Bonus/Matches”).
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
also
use
for
salary
announcements),
please
scroll
down
and
enter
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address
in
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If
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previously
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notification
within
minutes
of
each
bonus
announcement
that
we
publish.
Thanks
for
your
help!
Associate
Salaries
Plateau
as
Big
Law
Grapples
With
Listless
M&A
[Bloomberg
Law]
Staci
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 Bluesky, X/Twitter,
and Threads, or
connect
with
her
on LinkedIn.