Gut check - I’m a 2021 grad making $195k in DC. Billable goal is 1800. Bonus is negligible regardless of reaching / significant exceeding goal. I’m good at what I do, always exceed goal significantly and have a good reputation. I am feeling a little lowballed / like I’m not hitting my earning potential. Thoughts?

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I'm a a DC mid sized firm with lock step pay for associates. If you want to earn more, you'll have to go to big law. In my experience with the pay scale for two to three mid sized firms in DC with billable minimums in the 1800s, that's what they pay senior associates in their DC offices. If you hit 1950-2000, you'd be eligible for a bonus. One large firm I know pays "senior counsel" level people around $300k, and they pay their first year's $195k, so they'd pay more than what you're making now. But it may also depend on practice area.

In sum - you're low for big law, on par for mid sized. Super high for small law. And somehow, they all have the same billable requirements. 🤷🏼‍♀️

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You’re right—being in DC my perception is more like less than 1000 lawyers is midlaw, but technically the threshold is a lot lower.

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I’m class of 2021 in big law. Salary is $310k, bonus if I hit 2000 hours (my firm requirements are 1850 billable, 150 certain non billable) brings me over $400k. So yes higher salary is out there. But whether you’re being lowballed really depends on what work you do and firm. Non big law firms simply don’t bring in big law money, but usually they have other factors that make the lower salary acceptable.
Unfortunately, breaking into big law after first year is quite difficult—I don’t know anyone who has done it. But even another mid law firm will probably pay over $200k before bonus, so that’s probably your best bet.

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I do not understand this myth of not being able to break into biglaw. I was the only one of my group of friends who went biglaw right after law school. All of them are now in biglaw after doing some combo of local agency work, small firm stuff, etc. If you have a solid skill set in a relevant practice area and keep putting your name out, you can break in.

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What practice?

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In biglaw you'd be making close to 400k so yea

What practice area?

Mostly corporate health care work

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