I m not planning to be a partner here. You get trained, get resume star quality, and that s it. Ending his third year, he s already looking at what only the whitest of the white shoes would consider second-tier firms, trying to figure out which ones he wants to target when he makes his move. Look before you leap, revisited Those dot coms look inviting, but remember the investment banks and how great they looked just a decade ago, during the wave of salary increases and accompanying mass defections from the New York firms. Ten or 15 years ago we lost associates to investment banks and those kinds of firms, but when those firms hit the wall they just fired people.
Law firms tend to be more concerned about how people feel, and they ride out the waves better.
Even if you re a partner, you can t just relax in the corner office and have the associates do all the work. On top of that, partnership no longer equals security. You could be a partner for 20 years, and if you have a bad year your compensation will be hurt or you ll be pushed out. So whether or not it s matching the salary giants, there are other ways you can live more comfortably while remaining at your firm. Witness discretionary bonuses, retention bonuses, sabbaticals, and new titles.