Milbank Lifts Associate Pay to $455,000 as McDermott Quickly Matches
Updated
Updated · Bloomberg Law · Jun 2
Milbank Lifts Associate Pay to $455,000 as McDermott Quickly Matches
3 articles · Updated · Bloomberg Law · Jun 2
Summary
Milbank raised associate salaries by $10,000 to $20,000 on Tuesday, setting a new pay scale of $235,000 to $455,000 across seniority levels.
McDermott Will & Schulte became the first firm to match the new scale, and recruiters said other large firms are likely to follow faster than in 2024.
2025 financial gains at most of the 100 largest U.S. law firms, combined with heavy associate workloads and two years without raises, helped drive the increase.
Milbank had offered $6,000 to $25,000 summer bonuses in August 2025, but recruiters said a base-pay increase signals a stronger long-term outlook for Big Law hiring and profitability.