How common is it for a lawyer to give his legal assistant a bonus at the end of the yea? Smallish Canadian city, massive firm. Is this a new trend, within the last 5 or how many years?

like
Posting as :
works at
You are currently posting as works at

I was always told that it’s common practice for lawyers to give their legal assistant a small “bonus” if you want to call it that at the end of the year. Most attorneys I know give their assistants some money at the end of the year. This is separate from the firm’s bonus. It’s more of a thank you. Amount varies depending on the size of the firm and what level associate/partner you are.

like

Forgive me OP, I see that you would ideally be the gift recipient. In consideration of my and others' comments, know that the only certainty barring a firm mandate for gifting is guaranteed by your excellent work, work ethic, and loyalty. And if you don't receive an annual gift, know that you are in the company of the bulk of the hardest, best working in NA (most associates don't even get a holiday card except from clients), and trust that your excellent work will be noticed and you'll be selected to partner someone (like me!) who would assuredly give you verbal, written, and financial accolades. No point in asking in house except a sr person in your position; you'd just look mendacious. Good luck!

I wouldn't call it a bonus, but I give my assistant a gift or gift card around the holidays each year. Usually $200 or less. At a national Canadian firm.

like

The firms I’ve worked for, big and small, have always given an annual bonus or Christmas bonus and sometimes both. Guess it depends on the firm.

like

Not common to give LA’s a bonus. Bonus is usually between the firm and employee, which could include a LA.

Mine always have been a paralegal for 11 years.

Related Posts

Fellow consultants in Denver, what’s your compensation like? I’m at $130k base.

like

Honasa (mamaearth) - what is the salary bracket for manager media position?

like

Been feeling very low for a very long time. Working with a Big Four for 7+ years (since graduation) and was excited to join consulting as I get easily bored, wanted to grow at an exponential scale and wanted to travel for work. Cut to now, though I am well sought after for my skills and consistently got 25%+ bonus, I feel I have achieved nothing cuz I didn't get the promotions that I worked for, people have been chosen over me for overseas travel and destroyed my social life. Venting only! :)

like

Hi Guys, I have 4.5 yrs of Automation experience. I have exp in Selenium, Java, katalon, protractor and cucumber. I also have a master's in software engineer from California and worked in US for 2.5yrs. I relocated to India couple years ago but I haven't been able to achieve the salary slab that I would like for my exp. Current CTC is 9lpa.
What should I do or change about my approach for a better salary?

Hi all, I have about 7 years of professional experience but only one year as a Customer Success Manager. I work on mid market accounts currently. I love my job, but would prefer to support a more robust platform that will allow me to add more value for my customers.

I’d appreciate your thoughts on what compensation you might expect for a CSM transitioning to a new company with one year of experience.

To clarify, I don’t have an offer yet, I’m just looking to make a move.

Thank you!

like

How many pro-bono hours do you bill each year?

Does your firm's bonus structure actually take into account pro-bono hours, or do they just say that without meaning it?

#probono

like

Hello! I’m gearing up for my year end comp conversation and I’d like to be a better idea of what people are making to ask for a raise. I work for a large asset manager and sell alternative investments (PE, RE, Credit, Infra etc) to RIAs, family offices, and multi family offices. I’m currently an associate, but am hoping to get VP this cycle. Any insight on what your comp looks like and how it’s structured would be super helpful!

like

I am ready to transition my Salesmen to a base salary with commission to incentivize new hires & reward my long term guys. My industry is aftermarket auto parts. I am leaning towards a 2% commission but am flexible and just need help in figuring out salaries.

Hello All, I am looking for base salary for Sr Manager Medical Affairs Healthcare Innovation Technology (HIT) for imaging. I have 12 yoe and looking to be competitive with negotiating salary.

like

What is the salary range in Accenture for Level 7 in the Applied Intelligence Team? Job location - Bangalore

like

Hi fishes
I got an offer from Accenture today night
Fixed 6.5 for management level 11
Can someone please help me is it a fair offer?
And there is no any discussion happened with me regarding salary
Please help me

like

I am serving notice period and in october month salary I haven’t received night shift allowance while other members of team have received it. Can anyone please confirm if there is such rule that within notice period Night shift allowance goes on hold and will be paid in FnF. Or should I raise this concern with my manager.

like

Hello Everyone..Anyone who knows about the Salary range of Manager L2 in PWC AC Blore under Business Acumen team?

like

What is the maximum salary Wipro can offer to 4 YOE. Designation - Consultant Wipro

like

If I join cognizant 2-3 days prior to joining date, will there be any joining bonus ?

like

Hi Fishes,

What is average salary offered for senior product manager at S&P global market intelligence? Yoe-7 relevant-5

I am being offered 26lpa which includes 15% variable component plus employer contribution to PF. So, the fixed component is just 21. How much more can I negotiate for? Have existing offer of 23l (all fixed)

How much will be in hand salary if Barclays gives a CTC of 25 LPA?
Is the employer contribution towards PF deducted from the CTC?

like

Did anyone come to know about your tier or hike or bonus? Please do share...
Soooo much waiting....

likehelpful

Do all FAANG companies offer a joining bonus?

likehelpful

More Posts

I’m so grumpy about new campus hires. Sometimes I’m judgmental (your hobby is “working on your golf swing,” really?). Sometimes I’m just exhausted by the worried earnestness. Sometimes I’m amazed that they seem to have zero useful skills, yet they’ll be making 150k easily in the not too distant future.

funnylike

How far do you require depts be with negotiating commercial contract terms before your legal review? I’m talking routine low value and risk contracts (e.g., vendor services), where Legal terms won’t kill the deal. My clients blindly forward contracts. I say “are you sure this term is ok?” And often get “no.” They’re surprised because they never read them. Checking the temp to see what others experience, what might be normal. I feel contract training in my clients’ future...

like

Crying for my RSUs….started at my company about 6 months ago and got some RSUs split over 3 years. Turns out the stock price at time of my hiring (which is what was used to calculate the number of shares over the three years) was the highest it’s ever been. Stock price has been cut in half since then, along with my RSU value. 😭 how do I cope?

likefunny

Best cashback credit cards in the UAE?

like

Hi peeps, Looking for thoughts on adding a social media feed to the homepage of our B2B Tech Industry website. My thoughts are that it will help get our webinars and personality on our homepage without overly cluttering it up, but does it also navigate people away from our page? Maybe a banner ad on our homepage for the webinars is better? TYIA

like

Can someone rejoin TCS

like

Hello Folks from TCS, I need your help, My visa process for Germany is already going on and it shall be completed by ending Feb or early march. I am now having an offer from IBM and I want to use this offer to further cement my onsite position
Should I resign and then talk with management or directly have a discussion stating that I have an offer and When can my travel request be raised post visa stamping

like
like

I am serving notice period and in october month salary I haven’t received night shift allowance while other members of team have received it. Can anyone please confirm if there is such rule that within notice period Night shift allowance goes on hold and will be paid in FnF. Or should I raise this concern with my manager.

like

Here is my go-to interview question, "What is the difference between data science and data analytics?"

What questions does everyone else include when interviewing or is the best question you've been asked in an interview?

like

Any insight into clerkship bonuses at BakerHostetler?

like

Anyone feel way over their head when they started clerking (district level, but fine with hearing appellate perspective as I’ve got one of those locked down later)? I did not feel this way when I started big law.

like

I have been promised a promotion three times now, but when the time comes, I'm told I'm not there yet. Why promise something if you clearly don't want to execute it?

like

Hi All,

I submitted my resume in Accenture portal 3 months back and now I got shortlisted for interview.

My yoe is 3.6, but the interview is scheduled role "Application lead project". Is this normal?

Are there any chances they might reject me as the interview is for lead role while my YOE fall in senior analyst / analyst role.

Thanks,

like

Anyone ever mount a tv in their apartment and then suddenly hear way more noise from your neighbor?

like

I just learned that I get to argue all of our pre-trial motions and do a direct examination at an upcoming trial. What are your best tips for preparing and setting yourself up for success? I want to hear them all! I’m beyond excited for the opportunity. It’s for our biggest client, so I really want to impress!

like

I am going to India for a month. May have to change my return date. Any suggestion on what insurance/other option to reduce the ticket update cost impact.

Can anyone please share working experiences till now working with Deloitte India? Deloitte Deloitte India

like

Do you see substantial gaps between internal auditing outcomes on one side, and expectations of stakeholders on another side?

like

What third party applications are most of you guys using for internal audit management and sox testing? (I.e. workiva) and would you recommend it?

Additional Posts in Law

For those of you required to be in office- do people use the phone and email to contact you or do they still come by in person? People in my office seem not to understand how the phone works...

like

I recently had a specialist partner send me a fairly nasty email after I (a transactional first year) was told to ask them to review something ASAP that had clearly been on my partner’s radar for over a week. Why am I taking the (honestly justified) blame for this? Surely it should be obvious that I’m just the messenger here.

like

I feel like I’m wasting my time waiting on CA bar results 😭, any tips on how I can use this time effectively?

like

Horrible anxiety about considering a new job....
I was one of the big firm stealth layoffs in covid and joined a boutique firm in Sept. They came sort of close to matching my salary but I moved to SoCal and have an opportunity to jump back in to big law and get $100k raise. The people at the small firm are so nice, but hours are nuts and if I’m going to work this much, I might as well get paid more, right? Is it too soon? How do you tell them when the managing partner took you under his wing?

like

Second year associate here. How should I deal with the one partner in my practice group who seems to exclusively give me lousy assignments that we’ll never get paid for? I get great work from everyone else.

like

Is there an appropriate way to turn down an assignment because it is non-billable? Two of the partners I work for keep asking me to write client bulletins and articles with them, which is great, but now I’m starting to worry about meeting my billable hours requirement.

like

Oil and gas attorneys what do you do?

like

I am concerned with fulfilling billable hours requirement. I’m required to hit 2100 hours yearly and I’m at ~1,500 hours and I think I’ll hit 150-180hours this month. What will happen if I don’t hit my targeted amount by the end of my year.

likehelpful

How much time is acceptable to bill to admin per day?

like

I’m on the Board of entity A (volunteer basis) and I’ll have an interview for a legal counsel position at entity B. Entity A and B have a partnership such that me working for entity B will create conflict of interest. Should I disclose my relationship with entity A during the initial interview with entity B’s hiring manager? If so, what should I say? I don’t want my volunteer job at entity A potentially jeopardizes my full-time job at entity B.

like

Any insight into Barnes and Thornburg, especially in Minneapolis? Culture? Hours requirement? Comp???

like

We have motion sensor lights in my office and the sensor is far from my desk. Consequently, if I'm on a long WebEx, the lights go out and it's embarrassing. The building won't change the sensor. Anyone find a solution for this (aside from standing up and moving, which would be very awkward)? I can't rearrange my office.

funny

For associates who have lateraled in the last 6 months or so, what made you decide to move? Has your situation improved since moving? I’m a transactional mid-level & I’ve interviewed with some great firms recently. I’m struggling to get excited though…it just seems like no matter where I go I’ll be overworked & under appreciated. Hoping there are some positive stories out there to give me hope. Haha

like

Which one would you choose?

1) Am100 firm with 1900+ billable hour requirement, very reputable in the region
2) Am200 firm with 1750+ billable hour requirement, less reputable in the region because it’s a satellite office, pays $35k less than option 1

like

First year litigator still waiting for that summer slowdown everyone keeps talking about….at this point I could take 2 months off and still hit the billable target. I was told there would be “ebbs and flows” but this has just been a 9 month barrage with no end in sight

likehelpful

Brand new baby lawyer dumb question - I am tasked with drafting response to request to produce. How long should this take? And follow up… how do I bill this?

like

Anyone at Pryor Cashman have intel on firm culture, work/life balance, and comp?

like

Have a call on Friday with the CEO of an environmental entrepreneurship non-profit. It could lead to a professional opportunity and maybe even billable work I can refer to my firm down the line. I’m going in with an open mind but little concrete information on his entity and goals and ways I could get involved. What questions would you ask such a person?

like

Just had a hearing on my motion to compel where OC told the judge we hadn’t conferred before filing the motion. Not only did I attempt to confer on 3 separate dates, I attached the emails and his response that he refused to confer to my motion. Judge didn’t care, as soon as she heard him say we hadn’t conferred she denied the motion. Not asking a question, just needed to vent.

like

What is a reasonable pay increase? This will be my first pay increase. I make 70k now and will be starting my second year at big law. I had 3 years of prior experience before joining the firm.

like

New to Fishbowl?

Download the Fishbowl app to
unlock all discussions on Fishbowl.
That was just a preview…
Sign Up to see all discussions
  • Discover what it’s like to work at companies from real professionals
  • Get candid advice from people in your field in a safe space
  • Chat and network with other professionals in your field
Sign up in seconds to unlock all discussions on Fishbowl.

Already a user?
Login here

Share

Embed this post

Copy and paste embed code on your site

Preview

Download the
Fishbowl app

See what’s happening in your industry
from the palm of your hand.

A phone with Fishbowl app

Scan your QR code to download
Fishbowl app on your mobile

Download app

Sign up for free to view this conversation on Fishbowl

By continuing you agree to Terms of Use and Privacy Policy

Already have an account? Log in

Sign up for free to continue using Fishbowl

By continuing you agree to Terms of Use(New) and Privacy Policy(New)
Messaging rates may apply

Already have an account? Log in

For account settings, visit Fishbowl on Desktop Browser or

General

Legal