Ed. note: Welcome to our daily feature, Quote of the Day.
I don’t believe we’re seeing a bubble with respect to partner compensation. Demand for legal services is up, billing rates seem stable, and given interest rates and the state of the capital markets, the market isn’t even moving near full speed.
— Scott Yaccarino, a New York recruiter for elite firms and co-founder of Empire Search Partner, in comments given to American Lawyer on the ever-increasing partner pay that’s seen at top Biglaw firms. The gold standard on compensation for top partners was recently as much as $20 million, but some industry insiders now say that number has climbed to $25 million or even $30 million for legal MVPs on the lateral market. “I think it’s going to keep going up,” said law firm management consultant Kent Zimmermann of the Zeughauser Group. “It’s never come down for the best people.”
Staci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on X/Twitter and Threads or connect with her on LinkedIn.
