Cooley, DLA, Fenwick and Sheppard match LA associate pay hikes

Cooley Godward, DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary, Fenwick & West and Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton announced yesterday that they are bumping up associate salaries, following the lead of LA-based firms.

All four firms - either based in California or with a strong Californian presence - matched the newly emerging benchmarks for first-years of $135,000 (£77,000). Cooley, which is based in Palo Alto, is also lifting other years by $5,000 (£2,800) to $10,000 (£5,700), while Sheppard, based in LA, is raising other years by $5,000 (£2,800).

Lawyers with four years PQE at both firms will now earn $170,000 (£97,000) and lawyers with seven years PQE $210,000 (119,000), as is the case with the other LA and now Bay Area firms that have increased pay in recent weeks.

Fenwick & West, based in Mountain View, upped first-year pay by $10,000 (£5,700), from $125,000 (£71,000) to $135,000 (£76,700). The firm is deciding if it will also bump base pay for other years.

DLA Piper told first-year associates in its major markets that their salaries would be increased to $135,000 (£77,000) yesterday. The $10,000 (£5,700) increase will apply to associates in LA, San Francisco, Silicon Valley and San Diego, as well as other U.S. markets including Baltimore, Chicago, New York, Boston, Washington DC, and Northern Virginia. Other markets will be determined over the next week, O'Malley said.