What is mid level compensation like? Forum

[pearson_specter_litt]

Hey guys, since Biglaw is talked about so much I've been wondering more about midlevel law firms and what they pay like.

Anyone know generally what the starting salaries are like in midlaw as well as progression?

Also, generally how much do midlaw partners earn compared to biglaw

[Toni V]

Mid-law encompasses such a wide zone this is a generalization. 120k with partners in the upper six figures. Take it down a notch or two in smaller markets.

[2013]

Mid-law encompasses such a wide zone this is a generalization. 120k with partners in the upper six figures. Take it down a notch or two in smaller markets.

That’s a little generous for partners.

I’d probably say most have starting salaries around 80k-120k depending on market.

Midlevels/seniors are probably anywhere from 110k to 200k depending on market (more compressed).

Partners are probably in the lower middle Sox figures (300k to 500k). Obviously there are going to be outliers, but if you consider that some of the Vault 100 firms have PPP below 1M (some significantly below), you can’t possibly believe that midlaw partners make more. Like I said, there are exceptions.

[BlackAndOrange84]

This is really market specific. In North Carolina, the top state and regional firms start first years around 145-160, but the pace of raises after that is pretty compressed compared to the current or old market rates for big law. Below that, there’s a number of firms starting anywhere from under 100 to 130. The other southeastern markets I’m familiar with are all fairly unique unto themselves, too, here I’m thinking Birmingham and Nashville.

All of this is to suggest it’s more or less impossible to generalize about “midlaw” both because every market is different and there’s wide variation within that subset of firms.

[Anonymous User]

I'm summering at a midlaw firm in a secondary market. Associates start at 70k, senior associates probably make around 150k. Partners make anywhere from 300k to 1 Mil depending on how much business they bring in and how long they have been with the firm

[Anonymous User]

Mid-law encompasses such a wide zone this is a generalization. 120k with partners in the upper six figures. Take it down a notch or two in smaller markets.

That’s a little generous for partners.

I’d probably say most have starting salaries around 80k-120k depending on market.

Midlevels/seniors are probably anywhere from 110k to 200k depending on market (more compressed).

Partners are probably in the lower middle Sox figures (300k to 500k). Obviously there are going to be outliers, but if you consider that some of the Vault 100 firms have PPP below 1M (some significantly below), you can’t possibly believe that midlaw partners make more. Like I said, there are exceptions.

I think this is pretty accurate from my experience. I've also seen mid-law firms with partners making barely over 100k/year.

It really depends on the work. Some firms may seem to be "mid-law" but are really insurance defense shops and they can't really pay that much as a mid-law firm doing corporate or more high-end litigation work. But this is also just sometimes the nature of the market where there simply isn't more high-end work/clients.

In my market, which is a secondary non-major market, starting salaries for mid-law are anywhere from 65k-100k. Each class usually gets about a 5-10k bump each year. The bonuses range from either nothing to 3-5k.