Law Firm Partners Made BANK Last Year And There’s Nothing Clients Can Do About It

// Every few years, law firms announce raises for their associates — usually on the order of about 5 percent — and clients collectively lose their minds. “This better not be passed along to me!” they collectively wail, knowing that it will absolutely be passed along to them and they’re absolutely going to pay it. The raises are almost always below inflation when you take into account the length of time between compensation bumps, but that doesn’t stop the complaints.

Meanwhile, no one ever seems to complain about the partners raising their rates. Maybe clients just value partner work more. Or maybe they can’t look their business relationship in the eye and threaten to yank money the same way they can rail against faceless associates. Either way, partners are costing clients roughly 3 percent more every year.

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Except for last year, that is, when partners boosted their billing rate by a whopping 5.4 percent on average. And that’s coming off a 2022 cycle where rates went up 4.5 percent. At least according to the 2024 CounselLink Trends Report from — unsurprisingly but I needed a way to get this link in there so just roll with it — LexisNexis CounselLink.

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The cost of living over the last two years saw more inflation than normal. And while, at this point, that’s almost entirely housing and car insurance (with a bit of market manipulation for good measure), the partner rate boom is noticeably out of line with the long-standing trend.

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Of course these increases are driven more by Biglaw than anyone else, with the largest firms accounting for a major step up from their smaller peers.

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That’s not surprising though. What is a little surprising is the market with the highest median partner rates. Did you think New York? Well, then you don’t understand what the word “surprising” means.

Boston? It’s an important market but that’s an absurd rate hike for one year.

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There are a ton of additional observations in the report that you should check out to better understand how to value your practice. Or, if you’re a client, it’s a good rage read while you’re signing checks.

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Joe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news. Joe also serves as a Managing Director at RPN Executive Search.

Topics

Biglaw, Billable Hour, Compensation, Lexis/Nexis CounselLink, Money, Partners