Kirkland
&
Ellis
is
recognized
as
one
of
the
nation’s
greatest
law
firms.
Not
only
does
the
firm
offer
a
compelling
combination
of
prestige,
profitability,
and
pay,
but
it
continues
to
shatter
the
market
on
partners
—
in
a
HUGE
way.
Bigger
is
still
better
at
Kirkland,
but
sometimes
moderation
is
best.
The
firm
just
announced
one
of
its
largest
partnership
classes
ever
at
200
lawyers
strong,
down
slightly
from
last
year’s
partner
class
of
205.
As
noted
by
the
American
Lawyer,
this
is
the
first
time
in
at
least
the
last
eight
years
that
Kirkland’s
new
partner
class
has
decreased
in
size
year-over-year.
Prior
to
the
Kirkland’s
announcement
of
its
2024
partner
class,
the
firm
welcomed
a
record
class
of
205
in
2023,
up
from
2022’s
then-record
class
of
193,
up
from
2021’s
then-record
class
of
151,
up
from
2020’s
then-record
class
of
145,
up
from
2019’s
then-record
class
of
141,
and
up
from
2018’s
then-record
class
of
122.
Noticing
a
trend
here?
Kirkland
is
very
generous
when
it
comes
to
handing
out
partnership
titles.
But
how
many
of
these
new
partners
will
enter
the
firm’s
equity
ranks?
Last
year,
Kirkland
had
539
equity
partners
(up
6.7%
from
the
year
prior)
and
969
nonequity
partners
(up
10%
from
the
year
prior).
It
sure
would
be
nice
to
be
an
equity
partner
at
the
firm,
because
its
profits
per
equity
partner
soared
to
about
$8
million
last
year.
The
firm
recently
made
it
easier
for
nonequity
partners
to
become
equity
partners
—
down
from
four
years
as
a
salaried
partner
to
three
—
but
it’s
still
quite
difficult
to
make
equity
at
the
firm.
Congratulations
to
Kirkland’s
latest
partnership
class.
You
earned
it
—
and
hopefully
in
the
future,
you’ll
really
earn
it
with
one
of
the
firm’s
multimillion-dollar
equity
partner
paydays!
Kirkland
Keeps
New
Partner
Promotion
Class
at
200
Lawyers
[American
Lawyer]
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
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Threads
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her
on
LinkedIn.