Firm Benefits Forum

[Anonymous User]

Anything on Jones Day? I know they have a lot of offices, but any info is helpful

[Anonymous User]

Hey, thank you so much for this. The emphasis on vacation sanctity pushed by the firm and corroborated by associates was a big plus for me. It's good to hear from an anonymous source that it's a real thing.

Um, one dumb question on taking cars home and Seamless. At what point is it reasonable to start pushing on the guidelines? Do you think brand new associates should be careful with it, or is it something that really isn't audited at all?

Same anon - doesn't matter at all, they are no more or less likely to catch you or care based on your year. From day one I basically adopted a personal reasonableness policy and have never been scrutinized. If you are a 2L or 3L this will be quite a hot topic of debate when you start I'm sure, some people are (unnecessarily imo) super up tight about it and can't imagine someone not strictly adhering to the rules.

[Anonymous User]

Dechert:

10K salary advance (paid back in 10 installments)

Bar costs and bar classes

Health plan: Individual HDHP is $70/month employee; firm covers $480/month. $2,000 annual deductible, but firm contributes $1,200 a year to your HSA.

Firm covers basic dental and $50k life insurance

No 401k match

$75/month for cellphone (automatic once a month).

Seamless and Uber/black car if staying after 8

Wageworks commuter benefits

4 weeks vacation

[Anonymous User]

What about STB ?

[Anonymous User]

Anyone have info on Baker Botts?

[Anonymous User]

Foley Lardner?

[Anonymous User]

I'll try to remember to do this for PW this weekend. Interesting the random places that DPW is better and worse.

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone know anything about Bryan Cave?

[Anonymous User]

here's a throwback to the old days.

https://mobile.nytimes.com/2007/11/22/b ... legal.html

Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, a 600-lawyer firm based in New York, offers employees a service akin to a personal issues coach and psychotherapist through a deal with Corporate Counseling Associates of Manhattan. The consulting firm has a battery of staff psychologists and social workers to provide advice on issues including stress, anxiety, depression and divorce.

Anyway-
people have asked to create something like this benefit list periodically. It's not happened.

Maybe if you want info on a specific firm, ask about that. Or even better when you get offers and are going to ick a firm based on benefits rather than culture, fit, practice group, etc.

Would love to hear about DPW perks and benefits if anyone has any inside scoop?

Before Starting
$7500 advance (interest fee) paid in Juneish following 3L, repaid in 10 monthly installments beginning January of your first year

$6000 paid back in 16 biweekly installments

Bar class of your choice paid for, you can direct pill or reimburse firm doesn't care, no pushback on Themis ipad package

Same

Firm will put you up in a hotel in Buffalo or Albany, if Albany it will be an airport hotel and they provide a shuttle to the test site, if Buffalo you stay within walking distance of test center. If you are coming in from out of state but qualify to take it at Javits they will put you in a NYC hotel. Saratoga you could book your own and they would reimburse.

Same

100% of brokers fee up to $2500, no stipulation on what broker

Don't know

Movers provided if you are moving from >50 miles, have to go through their provider, does not pay for packing (but does pay for delivery of boxes and tape and stuff)

Don't know

After Starting
Bonus on cravath scale, absolutely no stated or implicit hours requirement

Same

4 weeks vacation accruing in monthly increments. Most people take all 4 weeks (or if not 4 then 3) and those providing vacation coverage goes to heroic lengths to protect associates - this gets worse as one gets more senior, not for lack of effort by anyone at the firm but moreso because of clients not really caring so long as you are answering their email. If you are short on vacation days you can borrow forward with no pushback. If you have time left when you quit a max of 5 or 10 days is paid out (even if you can accrue beyond that)

Same/Don't know

Equinox is $50 for just Grand Central, $110 for all access, can get NYSC or Crunch for like $30 all access

$750 yearly gym credit + deals on gyms

Firm will give you an iphone, no longer offers blackberry as an option to incoming associates. If you want to keep two phones they support that, if you want to go to one phone and use the firm provided phone they support that (and i've not heard a single horror story about the firm creeping on your phone - they specifically mentioned Tinder as something they didn't care about during orientation). If you want a single phone but want the newest and greatest you are mostly on your own, they give you whatever version of iphone they give you (often a year behind because of Apple's release cycle).

Same

Health insurance is high deductible with a $1k annual stipend put into an HSA - for an individual with no dependents it's ~$300/month deducted from your paycheck if you take dental and vision

HDHP and two PPO options

No 401k match, standard suite of Fidelity options including de minimis fee index funds and more creative funds with higher (but i think invariably <1%) management fees

Same

Seamless policy is $25 and you need to work 10 hours - neither the dollar limit or the hours worked requirement is actively enforced or even regularly audited so it's more a guideline than a rule but i look forward to a brave soul talking about how terrible it sounds

Up to $35 after 7, nobody cares if you go over or don't work late (7 might not even be the correct time)

Black car available and waiting anytime after 7 or so, stated policy is you need to work past 8:30. Again, not enforced or audited, i generally take a cab home (since the black cars send you west initially which is not where I or most associates live) at any point after 7:45 or so

Black car/cab after 8:30(?), again nobody pays attention or cares if you use it early

Subsidized cafeteria with a lot of variety, same provider as several other law firms so not a real advantage but a convenient option

Subsidized cafeteria in the office that other building tenants have access to

24/7 word processing support

Same

4-6 attorneys per secretary, usually evenly spread between partners/seniors/juniors

Same

Sit with groups and share offices for between 2 and 4 years. All offices have windows, desk set up is senior person behind junior person (so senior can see junior's screen) - substantial majority of second years are in the back desk except for groups that are both large and confined to one floor

Sit with practice group, share an internal office for first two years, individual internal office years 3-4, external office after that


If you or anyone has more specific questions i'm happy to answer.

Wow thank you so much! If anyone has info about Weil re: anything that might differ from the above, that'd be great.

Weil in bold

[Anonymous User]

Wait you don't get a solo external office until you're a 5th year at Weil?

wtf

[Anonymous User]

Interested in any information about Milbank, beyond what's on the website.

$10k salary advance. Pay it back $1k/mo when you start. Direct bill or reimburse all bar expenses (barbri, hotel, food, etc).

No 401k match

I guess I can't be that helpful, because I honestly don't know, but I got the cheapest health plan and it's about 220/mo. Opted out of dental and vision.

Will cover moving expenses (direct bill movers).

LA office gets a parking stipend if you opt out of parking.

$35/mo for cell data if you use a personal phone.

Can get firm AmEx or get on the firm Verizon plan.

Will pay for bar fees directly.

OP here, thanks for the input, updated info in original post

This was great - thanks!

To add a few:

No gym reimbursement, but corporate rates with gyms by the office.

Food budget is $30, must work after 8.

No bizdev meal budget.

NY office gets car service if you work late.

LA office has a barista (lol wut).

LA first years share offices (gotta pay for the barista).

And not really a benefit, but something I didn't even know until I started - no billable minimum to get a bonus, just have to do 20 pro bono hours. Really underrated and for some reason, undersold.

[Anonymous User]

Anything on K&E?

[Anonymous User]

Wait you don't get a solo external office until you're a 5th year at Weil?

wtf

What's the difference between individual internal and external offices?

[Anonymous User]

Wait you don't get a solo external office until you're a 5th year at Weil?

wtf

What's the difference between individual internal and external offices?

External offices have windows. I think Weil had frosted glass throughout whether internal or external but obviously internal offices lack a natural light source

[Anonymous User]

Would love to hear about non-NY/DC/Chicago Kirkland & Ellis offices.

[Anonymous User]

What about McDermott Will & Emery?

[Anonymous User]

Wait you don't get a solo external office until you're a 5th year at Weil?

wtf

What's the difference between individual internal and external offices?

External offices have windows. I think Weil had frosted glass throughout whether internal or external but obviously internal offices lack a natural light source

They've recently redone/are redoing the floors with frosted glass throughout, so all offices have natural light to some extent. Internal vs. external is just what it sounds like, external offices are on the perimeter with a window.

It's obviously not ideal not getting a solo external office until year 5, but that's the price you pay for being in literally the most expensive office space in all of Manhattan (world?).

[Anonymous User]

Sheppard Mullin LA:

Bar stipend: $8k paid out just after graduation (grant, not a loan). Firm pays for Themis or BarBri. You're on the hook for all of the fees related to the bar exam (finger printing, hotels, etc).

Relocation benefits: paid

Health benefits: the firm just moved from fully covering everything to associate contributions. That said, it's still great. If you're single it's around $250 a month for full medical, dental, and vision.

Salary advance: n/a

Gym stipend: nothing direct. You get a pittance back from the firm via the healthcare providers if you jump through some hoops that aren't worth the time.

Phone/internet/laptop: Firm provides a laptop. $70 per month for mobile/data reimbursed. $60 (I think) per month for home DSL/cable service. $400 every two years for a new phone/mobile device.

401k: n/a

Bonuses: Below market and paid as late as possible.

Meals: bill over 10 hours per day and you can expense $25. They are very strict on this.

24/7 word processing support

3-4 attorneys per secretary

Own offices (which are quite large compared to other LA firms)

No vacation policy ("just hit your hours and go on vacation whenever"). While this policy seems great on the face, it actually sucks because if you can't hit your hours for reasons that are outside of your control, it looks bad if you do vacation. You're also expected to be available on vacation. Obviously this varies group to group.

Firm has a full suite at Staples for every event and several sets of Dodgers tickets. They are for business development, but it's still relatively easy to get tickets.

Thanks for the detailed response!

RE the bolded: Do you get the full $8k or do you receive $8k minus a withholding for taxes? And if so, how much is withheld?

And regarding the bar exam, you list ancillary things (e.g. fingerprinting) that Sheppard doesn't cover, but are you saying that they don't cover the cost of the bar exam itself as well? Do they only pay for the bar prep course?

[RaceJudicata]

Sheppard Mullin LA:

Bar stipend: $8k paid out just after graduation (grant, not a loan). Firm pays for Themis or BarBri. You're on the hook for all of the fees related to the bar exam (finger printing, hotels, etc).

Relocation benefits: paid

Health benefits: the firm just moved from fully covering everything to associate contributions. That said, it's still great. If you're single it's around $250 a month for full medical, dental, and vision.

Salary advance: n/a

Gym stipend: nothing direct. You get a pittance back from the firm via the healthcare providers if you jump through some hoops that aren't worth the time.

Phone/internet/laptop: Firm provides a laptop. $70 per month for mobile/data reimbursed. $60 (I think) per month for home DSL/cable service. $400 every two years for a new phone/mobile device.

401k: n/a

Bonuses: Below market and paid as late as possible.

Meals: bill over 10 hours per day and you can expense $25. They are very strict on this.

24/7 word processing support

3-4 attorneys per secretary

Own offices (which are quite large compared to other LA firms)

No vacation policy ("just hit your hours and go on vacation whenever"). While this policy seems great on the face, it actually sucks because if you can't hit your hours for reasons that are outside of your control, it looks bad if you do vacation. You're also expected to be available on vacation. Obviously this varies group to group.

Firm has a full suite at Staples for every event and several sets of Dodgers tickets. They are for business development, but it's still relatively easy to get tickets.

Thanks for the detailed response!

RE the bolded: Do you get the full $8k or do you receive $8k minus a withholding for taxes? And if so, how much is withheld?

And regarding the bar exam, you list ancillary things (e.g. fingerprinting) that Sheppard doesn't cover, but are you saying that they don't cover the cost of the bar exam itself as well? Do they only pay for the bar prep course?

I don't know Sheppard Mullin specifically, but I'd assume taxes are withheld. My firm gives a similar stipend and taxes are withheld. Also, even if taxes weren't withheld, you'd have to pay taxes on the money at the end of the year.

[Anonymous User]

Wait you don't get a solo external office until you're a 5th year at Weil?

wtf

What's the difference between individual internal and external offices?

External offices have windows. I think Weil had frosted glass throughout whether internal or external but obviously internal offices lack a natural light source

They've recently redone/are redoing the floors with frosted glass throughout, so all offices have natural light to some extent. Internal vs. external is just what it sounds like, external offices are on the perimeter with a window.

It's obviously not ideal not getting a solo external office until year 5, but that's the price you pay for being in literally the most expensive office space in all of Manhattan (world?).

Eh. Plenty of firms have offices in very expensive locations in Manhattan and never stick attorneys in internal offices. (And may don't make you share an office, either).

[Anonymous User]

Sheppard Mullin LA:

Bar stipend: $8k paid out just after graduation (grant, not a loan). Firm pays for Themis or BarBri. You're on the hook for all of the fees related to the bar exam (finger printing, hotels, etc).

Relocation benefits: paid

Health benefits: the firm just moved from fully covering everything to associate contributions. That said, it's still great. If you're single it's around $250 a month for full medical, dental, and vision.

Salary advance: n/a

Gym stipend: nothing direct. You get a pittance back from the firm via the healthcare providers if you jump through some hoops that aren't worth the time.

Phone/internet/laptop: Firm provides a laptop. $70 per month for mobile/data reimbursed. $60 (I think) per month for home DSL/cable service. $400 every two years for a new phone/mobile device.

401k: n/a

Bonuses: Below market and paid as late as possible.

Meals: bill over 10 hours per day and you can expense $25. They are very strict on this.

24/7 word processing support

3-4 attorneys per secretary

Own offices (which are quite large compared to other LA firms)

No vacation policy ("just hit your hours and go on vacation whenever"). While this policy seems great on the face, it actually sucks because if you can't hit your hours for reasons that are outside of your control, it looks bad if you do vacation. You're also expected to be available on vacation. Obviously this varies group to group.

Firm has a full suite at Staples for every event and several sets of Dodgers tickets. They are for business development, but it's still relatively easy to get tickets.

Thanks for the detailed response!

RE the bolded: Do you get the full $8k or do you receive $8k minus a withholding for taxes? And if so, how much is withheld?

And regarding the bar exam, you list ancillary things (e.g. fingerprinting) that Sheppard doesn't cover, but are you saying that they don't cover the cost of the bar exam itself as well? Do they only pay for the bar prep course?

They withhold taxes.

They only pay for barbri/themis. You are on the hook for everything else related to passing the bar and getting admitted--fingerprints, bar exam fees, C/F fees, hotels, airlines, food, etc.

[Anonymous User]

Sheppard Mullin LA:

Bar stipend: $8k paid out just after graduation (grant, not a loan). Firm pays for Themis or BarBri. You're on the hook for all of the fees related to the bar exam (finger printing, hotels, etc).

Relocation benefits: paid

Health benefits: the firm just moved from fully covering everything to associate contributions. That said, it's still great. If you're single it's around $250 a month for full medical, dental, and vision.

Salary advance: n/a

Gym stipend: nothing direct. You get a pittance back from the firm via the healthcare providers if you jump through some hoops that aren't worth the time.

Phone/internet/laptop: Firm provides a laptop. $70 per month for mobile/data reimbursed. $60 (I think) per month for home DSL/cable service. $400 every two years for a new phone/mobile device.

401k: n/a

Bonuses: Below market and paid as late as possible.

Meals: bill over 10 hours per day and you can expense $25. They are very strict on this.

24/7 word processing support

3-4 attorneys per secretary

Own offices (which are quite large compared to other LA firms)

No vacation policy ("just hit your hours and go on vacation whenever"). While this policy seems great on the face, it actually sucks because if you can't hit your hours for reasons that are outside of your control, it looks bad if you do vacation. You're also expected to be available on vacation. Obviously this varies group to group.

Firm has a full suite at Staples for every event and several sets of Dodgers tickets. They are for business development, but it's still relatively easy to get tickets.

Thanks for the detailed response!

RE the bolded: Do you get the full $8k or do you receive $8k minus a withholding for taxes? And if so, how much is withheld?

And regarding the bar exam, you list ancillary things (e.g. fingerprinting) that Sheppard doesn't cover, but are you saying that they don't cover the cost of the bar exam itself as well? Do they only pay for the bar prep course?

They withhold taxes.

They only pay for barbri/themis. You are on the hook for everything else related to passing the bar and getting admitted--fingerprints, bar exam fees, C/F fees, hotels, airlines, food, etc.

Can confirm. They pay for the bar course through direct-billing. The 8k less taxes is meant to cover everything else.

[Anonymous User]

Anyone for Winston & Strawn?

[Anonymous User]

Wait you don't get a solo external office until you're a 5th year at Weil?

wtf

What's the difference between individual internal and external offices?

External offices have windows. I think Weil had frosted glass throughout whether internal or external but obviously internal offices lack a natural light source

They've recently redone/are redoing the floors with frosted glass throughout, so all offices have natural light to some extent. Internal vs. external is just what it sounds like, external offices are on the perimeter with a window.

It's obviously not ideal not getting a solo external office until year 5, but that's the price you pay for being in literally the most expensive office space in all of Manhattan (world?).

Eh. Plenty of firms have offices in very expensive locations in Manhattan and never stick attorneys in internal offices. (And may don't make you share an office, either).

https://www.ft.com/content/8eb214e0-506 ... 144feab7de

This article seems to say that by virtue of being in the GM Building in NYC, Weil pays considerably more for office space than even their counterparts in NYC.

[Anonymous User]

Any input on Orrick Herrington?