NY GOES TO 180k! IT HAPPENED!!!! (CovingTTTon does a 180! Holder wept.) Forum

[imalreadyamember?]

ATL's "email service" for updates is pretty slow and bad so far. updating this thread is x20 more effective

Plus somebody always posts the news (albeit unconfirmed) on here first. Also ATL needs a better way to show the posts in order, in one spot. Who gives a fuck about the SA salary scale (sorry current SAs) enough to have that as the biggest post on the front page?

[Big Shrimpin]

^^^(DELG poast on last page)

exactly

id venture a guess that upwards of 75% of partners don't give a dry fuck about associate compensation other than that it cuts into their 2nd/3rd home fund

many here will be the same way if/when making partner

that's how the business works

[Actus Reus]

ATL's "email service" for updates is pretty slow and bad so far. updating this thread is x20 more effective

Plus somebody always posts the news (albeit unconfirmed) on here first. Also ATL needs a better way to show the posts in order, in one spot. Who gives a fuck about the SA salary scale (sorry current SAs) enough to have that as the biggest post on the front page?

Each new post for them is more page views and thus more ads. It's calculated to make them money.

[TLSModBot]

STB there is no excuse; apparently we've been pushing on them for 190 since 2007

[bern victim]

“With [Monday’s] announcement some big law firms demonstrate that they do not listen to what their clients have been saying over the past decade about the price of legal services,” said Kelley Drye & Warren chair James Carr, who assumed leadership of his firm last year. “While we continue to monitor the compensation market, in our view, sophisticated purchasers realize that they can obtain equal or better legal services at Kelley Drye for a fraction of the cost.”

“The Philadelphia firm leader, who requested anonymity in order to speak freely, added that he continued to be “blown away at the short memories of law firm leaders.” He said it’s possible the high-end legal services industry is heading into another downturn. In that type of climate, he added, firms are raising salaries only to then “chop the heads off their associates.”

I mean, it's true that associate pay factors into hourly rates, but how about the partners consider taking home a fraction less so they can pay their associates a market rate?

They have to pay the rainmakers, or the rainmakers will leave.

by my rough estimate, matching cravath would cost covington about $20k/yr per partner. for just $55 per day, less than your alimony payment to your first wife, you could change a junior associate's life.

[Anonymous User]

it's also the optics to clients, as we know

the mega institutional brands with clients that would follow them into the depths of hell can change things and not worry too much (and partners also losing $$ amount to furnish flowers in hamptons house for a weekend or two)

everybody else is going to have a more difficult decision to make

edit: i seriously wonder whether this becomes industry-wide or isolated to the traditional white shoe firms/punchy boutiques

[hoorahray]

by my rough estimate, matching cravath would cost covington about $20k/yr per partner. for just $55 per day, less than your alimony payment to your first wife, you could change a junior associate's life.

Cue up "In the Arms of an Angel" and get commercial on TV/Youtube/Spotify ASAP

[imalreadyamember?]

ATL's "email service" for updates is pretty slow and bad so far. updating this thread is x20 more effective

Plus somebody always posts the news (albeit unconfirmed) on here first. Also ATL needs a better way to show the posts in order, in one spot. Who gives a fuck about the SA salary scale (sorry current SAs) enough to have that as the biggest post on the front page?

Each new post for them is more page views and thus more ads. It's calculated to make them money.

Right, but they could have the pages themselves in a logical order and pin the actually important ones as the big-ass one instead of that stock photo of a child holding a brewski taking up 25% of the page. Their front page is a mess.

[wiseowl]

as if on cue, ATL sends four email updates in a ten minute span

[rpupkin]

ATL breaks the Covington news: http://abovethelaw.com/2016/06/biglaw-s ... ted-equal/

This is toxic. It will give cover to dozens of other V100 firms to not raise salaries in their non-NYC offices. Thanks, Covington!

[imalreadyamember?]

Debevoise says it will generally raise counsel salary by $35k each year. That tells me counsel will not remain employed very long. That's effing massive.

Edit: NVM I'm dumb. To be fair it's poorly written but I think it just means a one-time hike in yearly salary.

[Monochromatic Oeuvre]

As of today, the only "Covington" I have ever heard of is a city in Kentucky, and I wouldn't recommend that law students put a mediocre Cincinnati suburb on their bidlist.

Well if you haven't heard of them you're an idiot.

[jbagelboy]

Debevoise says it will generally raise counsel salary by $35k each year. That tells me counsel will not remain employed very long. That's effing massive.

its the same as what upper year associates are getting (+$35k). So it makes a lot of sense.

[Anonymous User]

When boomer Client X has six figures of loan debt, has to live in one of the three or four most expensive cities in the country, if not the world, and hasn't had a raise in a decade, we can have this conversation.

[LaLiLuLeLo]

When boomer Client X has six figures of loan debt, has to live in one of the three or four most expensive cities in the country, if not the world, and hasn't had a raise in a decade, we can have this conversation.

And the raise didn't even keep up with inflation and CoL. We're still earning less than our brethren a decade ago.

[Monochromatic Oeuvre]

outed as never having participated in major settlement negotiations

the first thing on the agenda is always a comparative accounting of the skill level of each side's respective attorneys

Yes, Mr. Johnson, you seem to have really really good facts and a sympathetic client. And this jurisdiction is certainly known for plaintiff-friendly verdicts. But don't forget that Mr. Simms is AV rated, went to Harvard Law School, and was on the school's moot court team.

(Non-Super Lawyer Rising Star)

[Anonymous User]

Don't forget that first-year bonuses were $35k to $40k before the Great Recession. All-in comp was still higher than today, even with the adjusted salary scale.

People discussing inflation by referencing CPI are missing the point; inflation in law school tuition and NY/SF/SV/LA rents have far outstripped increases in price levels in the general economy. We are considerably worse off than associates ten years ago.

[Anonymous User]

outed as never having participated in major settlement negotiations

the first thing on the agenda is always a comparative accounting of the skill level of each side's respective attorneys

Yes, Mr. Johnson, you seem to have really really good facts and a sympathetic client. And this jurisdiction is certainly known for plaintiff-friendly verdicts. But don't forget that Mr. Simms is AV rated, went to Harvard Law School, and was on the school's moot court team.

(Non-Super Lawyer Rising Star)

not flame, I saw a Kelley Drye partner bragging about this on LinkedIn this very morning.

[Big Shrimpin]

which brings me back to a common talking point i oft employ:

fuck this shitty profession

[Single-Malt-Liquor]

When boomer Client X has six figures of loan debt, has to live in one of the three or four most expensive cities in the country, if not the world, and hasn't had a raise in a decade, we can have this conversation.

And the raise didn't even keep up with inflation and CoL. We're still earning less than our brethren partners who joined the firm as first years a decade ago.

Fixed to add anger.

[soj]

.

[Monochromatic Oeuvre]

STB there is no excuse; apparently we've been pushing on them for 190 since 2007

Reading this is like reading an article from August 1939 on Warsaw's thriving arts scene.

[TLSModBot]

which brings me back to a common talking point i oft employ:

fuck this shitty profession

Serves us right for not being talented, intelligent, innovative, or comfortable with risk. And double serves you right if you're any of those things and still chose law.

[TripTrip]

How many Fortune 500 clients will now flock IN DROVES to Covington?

[LaLiLuLeLo]

In positive news, our poll works! I can say with scientific certainty that Weil and Cleary were among the first firms to match Cravath as a direct result of being the bottom two vote-getters in our poll, which lit some fire under their asses. Paul Comma Weiss was the first listed firm to match and also was among the lowest vote-getters.

With that said, I'm taking suggestions for a new poll question. What will happen to DC? How many Fortune 500 clients will now flock IN DROVES to Covington? How many children and stepchildren's love will Cov partners now be able to buy with all that money?

Meanwhile, Scott Edelman was FURIOUS that Milbank wasn't even on the poll, prompting him to race to be the first big firm to match.