2021 Special Bonuses Forum

[Anonymous User]

Word on the street is that Willkie dropped special bonuses today that were equal to last year’s special bonuses. Can anyone confirm?

[Monochromatic Oeuvre]

Yep. Same amounts as the fall bonuses last year. Half paid June 30, the other half September 30.

[2013]

Interesting. Maybe firms will do this to downplay the 10%+ increases to profits per equity partner that are regularly being reported by amlaw.

[VentureMBA]

I hope a firm follows up by doubling this.

[Ultramar vistas]

Right time to do it, and pretty smartly played by spreading it out. A lot of associates exiting right now for QoL reasons even as firms rack up record profits. This isn’t going to change anyone’s mind who is dead set on leaving, but it might keep the edge case on board for a few more months.

[SummerAssociate1689]

Good to see special bonuses apparently becoming the norm. But worried this may be an excuse for firms to delay hitting 210 starting. With low interest rates, lots of dry powder and capital commitment covenants in SPAC formation, I'm assuming that the next few years are going to be wildly profitable for law firms. Makes no sense not to retain mid levels with higher salaries.

[Anonymous User]

The timing of this bonus (half paid in June, half in September) makes me wonder if Wilkie is having trouble retaining people, or is proactively worried about an active lateral market.

[lolwutpar]

Ugh come on. Yay bonus, but daddy needs to remodel his kitchen. Hope other firms do not follow suit on the timing.

[Anonymous User]

My firm is bleeding people (even though they claim it's no more than usual) so I think the payout structure is probably their only means of trying to keep people. Especially with the signing bonuses being thrown around lately.

[Anonymous User]

My firm has also been losing lots of associates and staff recently. I wonder if folks everywhere are just itching for a change after a grueling year of covid, or if only certain firms are losing people. It's very difficult to tell as an associate.

[Anonymous User]

cleary corporate is comically understaffed. i am done if we don't match this

[Anonymous User]

.

[MillllerTime]

cleary corporate is comically understaffed. i am done if we don't match this

Same at K&E. Also bleeding midlevels.

[Anonymous User]

cleary corporate is comically understaffed. i am done if we don't match this

Same at K&E. Also bleeding midlevels.

Interesting -- I did hear that K&E is hiring in all practice areas. What's causing so many people to leave?

[JorgeMichael]

cleary corporate is comically understaffed. i am done if we don't match this

Same at K&E. Also bleeding midlevels.

Interesting -- I did hear that K&E is hiring in all practice areas. What's causing so many people to leave?

It’s a toxic place to work.

[Anonymous User]

cleary corporate is comically understaffed. i am done if we don't match this

Same at K&E. Also bleeding midlevels.

Interesting -- I did hear that K&E is hiring in all practice areas. What's causing so many people to leave?

The workload is painfully crushing right now at K&E in every corporate and corp-adjacent practice group. It is just not worth the hit to your mental health to work this much and be available all the time. Think we will see even more defections if no special bonuses announced...

[objctnyrhnr]

For a firm like K&E that has more business than they know what to do with, is struggling to retain associates, and is desperate for laterals...why not just go ahead and be the first mover to 200k (or even 210)?

Is this just partner greed holding them back, or is there something else to it? From my uninformed perspective, that kind of publicity (both external and internal) sounds like exactly what they might need right now...plus I’m hopeful as I work at a firm that’s a consistent follower but never a market mover.

[Anonymous User]

KE (at least in my office) also was fairly conservative in summer hiring these past few years. There have been a few times when I (a midlevel) have been wondering where my junior to whom I could farm some tasks went. I think he/she/they just never existed because we didn't expect to be this busy.

[Definitely Not North]

I'm not sure this is worth it if it means I have to start looking at ATL again

[Anonymous User]

Hopefully the insane business will allow some mid levels, seniors and NEPs to parlay flexible WFH arrangements. If I had to go to the office, my life would be intolerable now because I wouldn’t have time to see my family and children for many days straights. It’s manageable with WFH.

[Anonymous User]

For a firm like K&E that has more business than they know what to do with, is struggling to retain associates, and is desperate for laterals...why not just go ahead and be the first mover to 200k (or even 210)?

Is this just partner greed holding them back, or is there something else to it? From my uninformed perspective, that kind of publicity (both external and internal) sounds like exactly what they might need right now...plus I’m hopeful as I work at a firm that’s a consistent follower but never a market mover.

Partners never share the wealth until they absolutely have to. Right now, the quality of life is so bad, and so many people are choosing evenings and weekends over the biglaw salary and the “shattering” Kirkland bonuses (lol) they may actually have to finally let some of the cash trickle down. But I wouldn’t bet on it.

Generally I just think there is a cultural shift happening where younger associates are no longer willing to suffer for the lottery ticket level chances at equity partnership that a V50 now offers. Equity partners got theirs, and then pulled up the ladder behind them, and they need to reset the balance. Will they? Probably not.

[Anonymous User]

Hopefully the insane business will allow some mid levels, seniors and NEPs to parlay flexible WFH arrangements. If I had to go to the office, my life would be intolerable now because I wouldn’t have time to see my family and children for many days straights. It’s manageable with WFH.

Same.. but I'm a junior. WFH has made me think I will last much longer in this job than I thought I would (if allowed to continue WFH at least a couple days a week).

[Anonymous User]

Do people feel pretty confident this will get matched? Seems hard to imagine the big NY players would ignore this.

[Anonymous User]

cleary corporate is comically understaffed. i am done if we don't match this

Same at K&E. Also bleeding midlevels.

Interesting -- I did hear that K&E is hiring in all practice areas. What's causing so many people to leave?

We're not losing people, it's that the volume of work is pretty much unprecedented. There is so much and it's coming in from every angle.

I'd imagine other firms have similar volumes of work and my friends at other vault shops in the v50+ bracket are getting non-equity partnership/potential fast-track for junior equity partnership and other incentives dangled in front of them to stay, so harder to bring over people with large one-time bonuses and higher annual bonuses when other firms are just slapping partnership on the table.

[Anonymous User]

My firm has also been losing lots of associates and staff recently. I wonder if folks everywhere are just itching for a change after a grueling year of covid, or if only certain firms are losing people. It's very difficult to tell as an associate.

My practice group is also losing people, and they haven't been replaced yet. Morale across transactional groups seems pretty abysmal.