McDermott says the cuts were in response to client concerns. The firm’s first year associates still collect their full $160,000 salary. But the firm has announced that associate salaries will be frozen for 2009.
Summer associates were not informed of the salary cut until they arrived for work. The firm says it has always been its practice to inform summers of their compensation information when they start, rather than sooner.
McDermott Will & Emery LLP, founded in 1934, is a prestigious international law firm headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. It is one of the top 10 largest law firms in the United States and one of the 20 largest in the world.