‘We got offers!’
We’ve had yet another incredibly slow season in terms of summer associate gossip. We suspect that one of the main reasons for that — on top of their fears of indebtedness and unemployment — is that summer associates were happily working in the hopes of earning HUGE paychecks after graduating from law school. Not all law firms boosted first-year associate salaries to $190K, but summers at those that were on their very best behavior.
Money makes the Biglaw world go ’round, and it also makes summer associates act like a bunch of little goody two-shoes. That being the case, you’d think that this summer’s offer rates would be absolutely awesome. But are they? Let’s find out which firms have handed out offers to 100 percent of their summers — information that rising 2Ls will want to know as on-campus interviewing season is already in progress or about to begin at many of the country’s most elite law schools.
While we know that many firms have already issued offers, some are still waiting until summer associates are back in school. Unfortunately, there hasn’t been a peep about a 100 percent offer rate at a single law firm yet — not because it isn’t happening per se, but because we simply haven’t heard about it yet.
And what about the Biglaw firms that were hesitant to raise salaries in the first place but made the leap nonetheless? Was that pie-in-the-sky $190K starting salary a bit too high for firms to willingly make offers to entire summer classes? That’s a scary thought for those awaiting offers.
If you have offer rate information to share, please email us (subject line: “[Firm Name] Summer Associate Offer Rates”), or text us (646-820-8477). We’ll keep you anonymous. If and when we receive enough information, we’ll do a follow-up story.
Thanks a bunch, and to those of you who have already landed offers, congratulations!
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 Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.