Biglaw Salaries going up? Forum

[Anonymous User]

All the V100 sat. offices did, so I'm guessing the home grown people did too.

Rumor K&E was offering 100k signing bonus last spring to anyone going to Houston for O&G wrk.

I doubt that or they would have gotten more people to jump. Anyone at UT can be "going to Houston for O&G."

[Desert Fox]

All the V100 sat. offices did, so I'm guessing the home grown people did too.

Rumor K&E was offering 100k signing bonus last spring to anyone going to Houston for O&G wrk.

I doubt that or they would have gotten more people to jump. Anyone at UT can be "going to Houston for O&G."

Oh sorry, I meant laterals with a few years under their belt.

[Anonymous User]

Oh my bad, that's more likely. Looking at the bios though, it doesn't look like they poached many associates from the top TX firms.

[BigZuck]

Kirkland Houston was really aggressive during OCI, I think they offered 2Ls 10K extra just to summer there and then 10K if you accepted their offer to work full time. I heard rumors that as of like February they were still looking for more 2Ls but not sure if that's true.

Houston has quite a few outposts that I think pay market bonuses- Skadden, Latham, etc.

[Mal Reynolds]

I'm not sure I would feel confident enough going to a new outpost office even for a firm like K&E. But the opportunities in the long run might be killer. Like getting in on the ground floor with clients and partners and making yourself a baller.

[BigZuck]

meh, nevermind, that post was just kind of baseless 2L speculation and I'm a coward who can't hide behind an anon shield

[BigZuck]

I'm not sure I would feel confident enough going to a new outpost office even for a firm like K&E. But the opportunities in the long run might be killer. Like getting in on the ground floor with clients and partners and making yourself a baller.

I only know of one UT person going there (obviously there could be a lot more though). In screeners they would say things like "Here you're either going to be a rockstar or you'll be gone in 6 months" which I guess could appeal to some or turn others off. I'm surprised the extra 20K didn't appeal to more people. It seems like in general most UT people feel super comfortable going to Baker Botts/V&E/maybe even Fulbright over some of the national players like Kirkland/Skadden/Latham

[rpupkin]

I only know of one UT person going there (obviously there could be a lot more though). In screeners they would say things like "Here you're either going to be a rockstar or you'll be gone in 6 months"

LOL

[Mal Reynolds]

I'm not sure I would feel confident enough going to a new outpost office even for a firm like K&E. But the opportunities in the long run might be killer. Like getting in on the ground floor with clients and partners and making yourself a baller.

I only know of one UT person going there (obviously there could be a lot more though). In screeners they would say things like "Here you're either going to be a rockstar or you'll be gone in 6 months" which I guess could appeal to some or turn others off. I'm surprised the extra 20K didn't appeal to more people. It seems like in general most UT people feel super comfortable going to Baker Botts/V&E/maybe even Fulbright over some of the national players like Kirkland/Skadden/Latham

That doesn't even sound good in the abstract. I can't imagine what it would be like in reality.

[Anonymous User]

One of my classmates who went to Kirkland ended up killing himself after a year, so maybe that's what they mean.

[BigZuck]

Yeah, I mean, pretty much all that stuff I heard like second and third hand so appropriate heaping of salt of course.

[Anonymous User]

Kirkland Houston was really aggressive during OCI, I think they offered 2Ls 10K extra just to summer there and then 10K if you accepted their offer to work full time. I heard rumors that as of like February they were still looking for more warm 2L bodies but I don't know if that was true.

Houston has quite a few outposts that I think pay market bonuses- Skadden, Latham, etc.

Yeah I know they hired a couple 3L's over the last couple months; including one who ditched their 2L firm for K&E.

[Anonymous User]

Kirkland Houston was really aggressive during OCI, I think they offered 2Ls 10K extra just to summer there and then 10K if you accepted their offer to work full time. I heard rumors that as of like February they were still looking for more warm 2L bodies but I don't know if that was true.

Houston has quite a few outposts that I think pay market bonuses- Skadden, Latham, etc.

Yeah I know they hired a couple 3L's over the last couple months; including one who ditched their 2L firm for K&E.

.

[Yukos]

An office full of people who were sold by that pitch sounds unimaginably awful.

[rpupkin]

An office full of people who were sold by that pitch sounds unimaginably awful.

In fairness to Kirkland, I doubt this was any kind of organized pitch. Maybe a dumb associate said something like that (which would itself tell you something), but no law firm would intentionally present itself to law students like that.

[Desert Fox]

An office full of people who were sold by that pitch sounds unimaginably awful.

In fairness to Kirkland, I doubt this was any kind of organized pitch. Maybe a dumb associate said something like that (which would itself tell you something), but no law firm would intentionally present itself to law students like that.

insert on balance in balance joke here.

[Anonymous User]

People also choose NYC over other cities for law prestige of the biggest deals and city prestige of NYC. So NYC vs other cities isn't really a concern at this point either.

If law students stopped choosing prestige, tuition would go down by 20%+ and salaries up by 10%.[/quote]

Things might've changed years ago if people stopped picking Cleary over Boies, S&C over Kirkland, or NYC over Texas (or really any other market besides SF), or if they ever gave a shit about Cahill or Duval. Next to Wachtell, V&E has a colorable claim to being the highest-paying large firm in the country. Law students should be banging down their door.[/quote]

I think most people would pick Boies over Cleary. Also, tons of people lateral from places like S&C/Skadden to Kirkland for higher pay. Maybe 2Ls will pick S&C cuz it's ranked higher, but mid-levels care more about money.[/quote]

You're right. Sorry, meant to clarify that it's 2Ls doing those things in large numbers.

Aside from some firm in Houston paying $180k, I read where Dechert raised Philly to $160k. If they do this in their other markets (Boston, SF, LA, Charlotte, etc.) then NYC will become a high COL market that just pays scale.

People also choose NYC over other cities for law prestige of the biggest deals and city prestige of NYC. So NYC vs other cities isn't really a concern at this point either.

If law students stopped choosing prestige, tuition would go down by 20%+ and salaries up by 10%.

Things might've changed years ago if people stopped picking Cleary over Boies, S&C over Kirkland, or NYC over Texas (or really any other market besides SF), or if they ever gave a shit about Cahill or Duval. Next to Wachtell, V&E has a colorable claim to being the highest-paying large firm in the country. Law students should be banging down their door.

V&E pays above market?

At Houston taxes/COL, a V&E Houston first-year is taking home $100k AFTER payment on 2000 sq ft. No large firm except for WLRK could claim anything close (except for W&C at their new scale, but they're below DPW for midlevels). That was the gist (although apparently some people at V&E were in fact getting above market bonuses).[/quote]

I don't think that's right. Charlotte is a significantly cheaper (and better) city and there are at least 4 firms there that pay 160 + full NY Davis Polk bonuses. That puts them at about the highest buying power of anywhere else, given it's the cheapest of the markets that pay 160k + full NY scale bonus structure.

[Anonymous User]

Aside from some firm in Houston paying $180k, I read where Dechert raised Philly to $160k. If they do this in their other markets (Boston, SF, LA, Charlotte, etc.) then NYC will become a high COL market that just pays scale.

People also choose NYC over other cities for law prestige of the biggest deals and city prestige of NYC. So NYC vs other cities isn't really a concern at this point either.

If law students stopped choosing prestige, tuition would go down by 20%+ and salaries up by 10%.

Dechert already pays 160k in those markets. Philly and Princeton, NJ were the only one of their US offices that didn't pay full NY rates + NY bonuses.

[Monochromatic Oeuvre]

I don't think that's right. Charlotte is a significantly cheaper (and better) city and there are at least 4 firms there that pay 160 + full NY Davis Polk bonuses. That puts them at about the highest buying power of anywhere else, given it's the cheapest of the markets that pay 160k + full NY scale bonus structure.

I haven't seen a COL comparison that says Charlotte is "significantly cheaper" than Dallas/Houston, but it looks comparable. Add it to the list of places I wish I were from so I weren't stuck in NYC.

Pittsburgh and Tampa are the only other cities that cheap I know with Biglaw outposts, but I don't know if anyone there is $160k+DPW.

[Anonymous User]

People pick S&C because it's a backdoor to Goldman and who doesn't want that.

Well whoever is doing this is an idiot.

[TTTooKewl]

People pick S&C because it's a backdoor to Goldman and who doesn't want that.

Well whoever is doing this is an idiot.

ty for your contribution

[Mal Reynolds]

People pick S&C because it's a backdoor to Goldman and who doesn't want that.

Well whoever is doing this is an idiot.

That was the joke bro.

[rpupkin]

People pick S&C because it's a backdoor to Goldman and who doesn't want that.

Well whoever is doing this is an idiot.

This guy is posting anon because he went to SullCrom thinking he'd lateral to Goldman as a midlevel. Sorry bro.

[Big Shrimpin]

Chicago is the perfect mix of low COL and living in a nice city.

ya if u r an eskimo or love to be cold 9 months of the year

mfh winter has me wanting 2 move 2 CA, ill bring my own water

LA Biglaw is where it's at, man. Perfect weather, lower COL, less stress, less slave-driving, and same pay (if you're at a NYC market-paying firm, which thankfully I am). LA is way better than the high strung, narcissistic, and overly-priced shithole that is MFH. Please bring extra water with you

beginning office transfer process now

[Big Shrimpin]

An office full of people who were sold by that pitch sounds unimaginably awful.

In fairness to Kirkland, I doubt this was any kind of organized pitch. Maybe a dumb associate said something like that (which would itself tell you something), but no law firm would intentionally present itself to law students like that.

insert on balance in balance joke here.

NEVER FORGET THIS VIDEO PPL