Twin Cities law firm increase first-year associate pay - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal
As the battle for good young lawyers intensifies, more massive law firms with a Twin Cities office have bumped compensation for first-year lawyers past the $200,000 mark.
It's the latest step by law firms to raise base pay for new associates — who have already seen big boosts during the pandemic. The Business Journal reported last summer that many of the big firms in town raised first-year associate pay to $180,000 — up from about $120,000 a few years ago.
Now, three firms with Twin Cities offices are going above $200,000 for at least some of their first-year lawyers, according to the National Association for Law Placement. DLA Piper, a London firm that has about a dozen lawyers in the Twin Cities, is offering up to $215,000, Washington, D.C.-based Jones Day (also about a dozen lawyers) $210,000 and Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath (250 lawyers) up to $205,000.
It's not clear how many local attorneys are actually getting the higher pay levels. Faegre, in a statement, said the NALP survey "reflects data for all firm markets and is not specific to the Minneapolis market" and declined to comment further.
And Norton Rose Fulbright, also a London-based law firm with a Twin Cities office, has bumped first-year associate pay to $215,000, according to Above The Law's salary tracker. But a Norton attorney said the firm hasn't raised local pay to that level.
Still, the raises are another sign of upward pressure on lawyer compensation, a trend accelerated by the remote-work surge and demand for legal services. New York City firms and the like are recruiting attorneys and offering New York rates — and letting those lawyers work anywhere they want.
"Law firms' geographic lines are blurring," said Peter Ekberg, the Minneapolis office managing partner for London-based DLA Piper. "Just generally, this is a really crazy market for big law firms."
Most big law firms in in the Twin Cities, based on local attorney headcount, aren't ready to make another compensation bump — at least not yet.
"The firms that have announced an increase to $215,000 for first year associates are largely outside of our market or do not have a significant presence here," said Justin Weinberg, Taft’s Minneapolis partner-in-charge, which offers $180,000 to first-year associates. "While base compensation is important, and we are at the top of the market, we have much more to offer. This includes a robust bonus program, top of market paid parental leave, a partnership track to one-tier of partner and a culture of inclusion and transparency."
The big firms based in Minneapolis like Winthrop & Weinstine, Maslon and Dorsey & Whitney echoed similar thoughts and said they're not moving figures up at the moment. Fredrikson & Byron declined to comment ,but the NALP shows first-year associate salary still at $180,000.
First-year attorneys who go to work at DLA Piper better be ready to put in some long days. DLA Piper, for example, expects a minimum of 2,000 billable hours annually. Firms such as Dorsey expect as few as 1,600 hours for a partner track.
Largest Law Firms in the Twin Cities
Ranked by Metro-area attorneys as of Nov. 1, 2021
| Rank | Name | Metro-area attorneys as of Nov. 1, 2021 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fredrikson & Byron | 277 |
| 2 | Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath | 255 |
| 3 | Dorsey & Whitney | 208 |
| View This List | ||
source: https://www.bizjournals.com/twincities/news/2022/02/24/law-firms-with-twin-cities-offices-push-first-year.html
Your content is great. However, if any of the content contained herein violates any rights of yours, including those of copyright, please contact us immediately by e-mail at media[@]kissrpr.com.