as the battle for top legal talent becomes increasingly competitive.
While reported average compensation of white, Asian Pacific, and Hispanic partners all rose in the past decade, that of Black partners actually fell from $565,000 in 2010 to $539,000 in 2018 — a 4.5% decrease. By comparison, average compensation for white partners in 2018 was $864,000. "What hamstrings them now is that they're not quite sure how to fix it," Lowe said. "Continuing to make sure that everyone's given a seat at the table is really important."
Average compensation for male partners in 2018 clocked in at $959,000, whereas that for female partners was just $627,000. Equity partners, who own a share of the firm, reported 67% higher average pay than non-equity partners, and their compensation is growing nearly four times faster than that of their non-equity counterparts.Davis Polk just abandoned its strict lockstep pay model. 4 recruiters lay out why competitors will have to follow to retain rainmaking lawyers.