Net Worth of Senior Associates in Big Law

Never did the big law thing but was discussing with a friend…what do you think the net worth is of the average “senior” associate in Big Law. Let’s assume 6-8 years (or whenever they push you out if you’re not going to make counsel or partner).

My friend thinks most have $1m-$2m of net worth. But that seems high to me.

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That's high. I'd venture to say most have something in the $500-700k range, including home equity. I personally only know a few associates/junior partners that have $1M+. One had family money. One went to law school for free on scholarship and just stayed and lived like a hermit. One hit $1M once he made junior partner (but it's weird because the buy in impacts the net worth calc).

On the other hand, the non-junior partners+ are for the most part loaded from observation.

In general, just listen to a few Dave Ramsey videos (I don't like his advice but I love the awful financial scenarios people get themselves into). Tons of people call in with HH annual income of $300k+ and they have no savings, are loaded with credit card/car debt, etc. Most people are absolutely abysmal at managing their finances.

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Depends significantly on what debt they entered practice with, both student loan debt and otherwise. I imagine those living in HCOL areas also would have less saved/assets than those practicing in other metro areas.

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Kids and whether you have a partner that contributes are pretty big factors too. Also partner’s debts.

Most biglaw associates have lifestyle creep and think their job will last forever. The mentality is that if you bill a ton but get paid a ton, you should have a nice car, house, ect. to show for it. I’m 7 years in and have a net worth of 500k, but I know many of my peers have more expensive lifestyles or live in a HCOL area and probably don’t have as much.

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Here’s the thing … most people live paycheck to paycheck with a very small emergency fund regardless of how much they make. I am astonished that there are associates a every big law firm I have worked at that don’t even max out 401k

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I mainly ask so I can give my friend perspective - he thinks everyone in biglaw has high net worths and that if he doesn’t have millions that he’s not successful. I mean being a lawyer is such a small percentage of the population in general. Being in big law is an even smaller percentage. Staying in big law into partnership is even smaller.

FWIW, I’m 10 years out of a T14 law school, missed the boat on big law due to the job market. I have a net worth of $650k. But parents helped with some student loans, etc. I consider myself very fortunate. I don’t think I have the most money but I think I have more money than most of the population in general.

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Your friend sounds like he has a tiny pecker tbh…

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Depends greatly on debt and family money that they have received. Could have someone with the same situation except one had Daddy pay for college and law school and “help” with a $300k down payment, while someone doing it on their own and having loans could be drowning in hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt. Not to mention differences attributable to, e.g., whether they are the sole breadwinner for a family or are in a DINK relationship, other lifestyle choices, location, etc. Guess who had no family help and is the sole breadwinner for a family. 😀

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9 years in and I wish my NW was $1-2 million

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I am midlaw with $750k.

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Depends where you live (NY / SF vs Salt Lake City), how much debt from law school you have and if your parents supported / still support you financially. For many people in big law all the money they “save” in their first 3-4 years of practice is to pay back their student debt.

Also 6 year vs 8 year is a big gap. It’s much easier to save past the 5-year gap in expensive cities where a basic cost of living is ~$200k. Disposable income increases exponentially after 5 years.

This depends on how much you save & your lifestyle. NYC. No debt. I’m a third year and have only saved $150k…

More like tied to your desk so you end up ordering too much Uber eats.

I’m at around 500K in index funds. It would be higher but my wife and I paid for a medium expensive wedding ourselves, paid 150K in student loans and I’m in a HCOL.

I would not be surprised if our friends in Texas or Florida are at 2 million or more.

I have like 300k in student loans. Almost all my spare money is going towards those. I have a hard time believing I'll amass that much money once a senior associate.

This is what isn’t talked about. If you have a full freight of loans (250k+), you aren’t swimming in cash. What’s your rent situation?

Is this including 401k?

It depends on what they spend their money on. I went up the ranks in big law and wasted most of what I made at first on clothes, trips, shoes, watches, etc., when I was a younger associate. Then I formed a group that invested in commercial real estate once I came to my senses, stuck my savings into that, and no longer have to do the big law grind.

The watches did. Rolexes actually went up during the pandemic when you couldn’t find a new one for love nor money. They’re insured for lost twice what I paid for them. But I didn’t acquire my watch collection to make money. I just love watches and buy what I like. Not so sure about designer handbags appreciating though—unless it is something very unique like a Birkin bag or something like that. But I’m male so I don’t know much about women’s handbags!

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In purses, shoes and travel experience maybe - def not in real assets. Net worth is also not the reason I do this job, so probably not a good example.

We Stan stylish coworkers. There should be a tax deduction for designer purchases for those who work 60+ hours per week!

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