Biglaw
firms
across
the
country
continue
to
announce
bonuses
this
holiday
season.
Yesterday
afternoon,
one
of
the
most
successful
law
firms
in
America
let
eligible
associates
know
that
they’d
be
receiving
a
match
of
Milbank’s
generous
year-end and special
bonuses.
But
that’s
not
all
—
the
firm
also
let
associates
know
that
enhanced
performance
bonuses
were
up
for
grabs.
The
firm
in
question
is
DLA
Piper,
which
brought
in
$3,829,531,000
gross
revenue
in
2023,
putting
it
at
No.
3
on
the
Am
Law
100.
Here’s
what
the
bonus
grid
looks
like
at
the
firm:
Bonus
eligibility
at
DLA
is
based
on
seniority,
performance
rating,
productivity
(the
firm
has
a
2000-hour
billable
goal),
compliance
with
firm
policies,
and
good
standing
status.
This
year,
those
who
meet
the
criteria
for
market
bonuses
will
also
receive
special
bonuses.
In
what
a
source
described
as
“excellent
news,”
DLA
Piper
is
offering
bonuses
above
and
beyond
the
prevailing
market
rate
for
associates
who
have
gone
above
and
beyond
in
terms
of
billable
hours
and
“exceptional”
client
service.
Here’s
an
excerpt
from
the
firm’s
memo
with
the
details:
[B]onus-eligible
associates
with
a
performance
rating
of
four
or
five
will
receive
a
bonus
increase
commensurate
with
their
performance
rating,
and
bonus-eligible
associates
who
exceed
the
2,000-hour
expectation
will
receive
bonus
increases
based
on
each
100
billable
hour
threshold
they
meet,
up
to
2,700
hours.
Associates
who
met
their
hourly
goals
by
December
16
will
receive
their
year-end
and
special
bonuses
on
December
27,
with
enhanced
bonus
payouts
to
be
paid
on
February
7,
2025.
Those
who
meet
their
hours
by
December
31
will
receive
all
bonus
payments
on
February
7,
2025.
Congratulations
to
everyone
at
DLA
Piper!
(Flip
to
the
next
page
to
see
the
full
memo.)
Remember
everyone,
we
depend
on
your
tips
to
stay
on
top
of
compensation
updates,
so
when
your
firm
announces
or
matches,
please
text
us
(646-820-8477)
or email
us (subject
line:
“[Firm
Name]
Bonus/Matches”).
Please
include
the
memo
if
available.
You
can
take
a
photo
of
the
memo
and
send
it
via
text
or
email
if
you
don’t
want
to
forward
the
original
PDF
or
Word
file.
And
if
you’d
like
to
sign
up
for
ATL’s
Bonus
Alerts
(which
is
the
alert
list
we
also
use
for
salary
announcements),
please
scroll
down
and
enter
your
email
address
in
the
box
below
this
post.
If
you
previously
signed
up
for
the
bonus
alerts,
you
don’t
need
to
do
anything.
You’ll
receive
an
email
notification
within
minutes
of
each
bonus
announcement
that
we
publish.
Thanks
for
your
help!
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 Bluesky, X/Twitter,
and Threads, or
connect
with
her
on LinkedIn.
