2021 End of Year Bonuses Forum

[ChairmanKaga]

My guess is nobody wants to announce and get trumped, so we might be waiting until Davis Polk announce.

[TigerIsBack]

My guess is nobody wants to announce and get trumped, so we might be waiting until Davis Polk announce.

Then someone should just go first with an untoppable number...

I don't think if someone truly doubled the scale that anyone would come over the top on that (but I certainly welcome being proven wrong here).

[texas1100]

What time do the first bonus announcements usually come? Like 3pm?

ATL stories were before noon in 2019 and 2020, but afternoon in 2018.

https://abovethelaw.com/2020/11/breakin ... t-cravath/
https://abovethelaw.com/2019/11/breakin ... -are-here/
https://abovethelaw.com/2018/11/breakin ... l-bonuses/

This is the kinda posting we need. Thanks!

[Anonymous User]

Re "why isn't this part of recruiting" because students don't want to hear "you'll make above market if you bill 2500". They want to hear "we're a lifestyle firm where you can bill 2000 and that's it".

lol at 2000 hours being described as a lifestyle firm. I get that it feels like that given COVID work conditions but the ordinary expectation of this industry to get 2000 hours of billables out of every attorney every year is nuts in a broader context

[Anonymous User]

What time do the first bonus announcements usually come? Like 3pm?

ATL stories were before noon in 2019 and 2020, but afternoon in 2018.

https://abovethelaw.com/2020/11/breakin ... t-cravath/
https://abovethelaw.com/2019/11/breakin ... -are-here/
https://abovethelaw.com/2018/11/breakin ... l-bonuses/

This is the kinda posting we need. Thanks!

You can tell the formula of these when you read the first and second together.

[Anonymous User]

I’m at Milbank and I don’t think we will announce first this time since Davis Polk keeps one upping us every time we do that.

I don’t think Davis Polk will announce first either for fear of milbank exacting revenge.

So no bonuses this year IMO

[Anonymous User]

Any firm who raises the scale only to be toppled by DPW instantly becomes the third most prestigious firm next survey only behind WLKR and DPW.

[Anonymous User]

Any firm who raises the scale only to be toppled by DPW instantly becomes the third most prestigious firm next survey only behind WLKR and DPW.

Yeah I don't know why anyone would be afraid of a raise getting topped from a prestige standpoint. Milbank still gets major props for kicking off raises multiple times.

[objctnyrhnr]

Which firms have the earliest EOY? Usual movers aside, eventually somebody’s gotta start running out of time to announce this, right?

[Anonymous User]

Which firms have the earliest EOY? Usual movers aside, eventually somebody’s gotta start running out of time to announce this, right?

You don't have to pay bonuses the day your fiscal year ends. Also...it is very normal for bonus announcements to be late November (apparently they used to be early December?).

STB announced bonus raises on 11/21/14.

[TLSposter1990]

Which firms have the earliest EOY? Usual movers aside, eventually somebody’s gotta start running out of time to announce this, right?

You don't have to pay bonuses the day your fiscal year ends. Also...it is very normal for bonus announcements to be late November (apparently they used to be early December?).

STB announced bonus raises on 11/21/14.

Agreed. We may not hear anything for another 7-10 days, though I would still expect something before Thanksgiving. I do not think the delay (relative to the past couple of years) necessarily implies anything about the scale; firms have various reasons for not wanting to jump the gun too quickly - including a peer firm coming over the top. Have faith, friends, that the record profits and favorable market conditions will lead to a significant increase in the scale and/or special bonuses regardless of when they are announced.

[eastcoast_iub]

This speculation is a huge waste of time. Wake me when there is actual news.

[Anonymous User]

This speculation is a huge waste of time. Wake me when there is actual news.

This is all we have.

[Anonymous User]

Historically bonuses have not been announced on Fridays

[Anonymous User]

This speculation is a huge waste of time. Wake me when there is actual news.

This comment on speculation was well used time though.

[Wanderingdrock]

This speculation is a huge waste of time. Wake me when there is actual news.

This comment on speculation was well used time though.

Just so long as nobody is as productive as they would have been had firms already announced. The partners have to learn their lesson one of these years.

[TigerIsBack]

This speculation is a huge waste of time. Wake me when there is actual news.

This comment on speculation was well used time though.

Just so long as nobody is as productive as they would have been had firms already announced. The partners have to learn their lesson one of these years.

There is a lot of sarcasm and hyperbole around this site, but I feel like this actually has to be true. I completely stop checking this site once my firms announces the bonus scale and get back to work 24/7 instead of 23/7.

Edit: Not true in the sense that they will ever learn their lesson, but that there is some lesser productivity while we all speculate waiting for someone to just make a decision. I guess this is how the other side feels waiting for my markup...

[Anonymous User]

Historically bonuses have not been announced on Fridays

The 2014 raise was announced on a Friday.

https://abovethelaw.com/2014/11/bonus-s ... t-cravath/

[Anonymous User]

Historically bonuses have not been announced on Fridays

The 2014 raise was announced on a Friday.

https://abovethelaw.com/2014/11/bonus-s ... t-cravath/

That was Friday the 21st. This is Friday the 12th. Historically bonuses have not been announced on Friday the 12th.

[Anonymous User]

First announcement will come Tuesday the 16th. You heard it here first.

[Anonymizer]

Why Tuesday the 16th?

[Anonymous User]

This is killing me. Come the fuck on let's get this party started.

[Anonymous User]

First announcement will come Tuesday the 16th. You heard it here first.

Is this a sick joke, pure speculation, or a legit insider scoop?

[Joachim2017]

First announcement will come Tuesday the 16th. You heard it here first.

Is this a sick joke, pure speculation, or a legit insider scoop?

Why would you think those are the only 3 options?

[Anonymous User]

First announcement will come Tuesday the 16th. You heard it here first.

Is this a sick joke, pure speculation, or a legit insider scoop?

Why would you think those are the only 3 options?

Not OP, but FWIW my firm has a town hall that day, so wouldn’t be shocking.