Cravath kept it classy this year, avoiding any temptation to lose ground on their Christmas bonuses, but, then again, not outdoing last year’s roster either. They stayed the same, with Class of 2013 pro-rated at $10,000, class of 2012 at $10,000, 2011 at $14,000…all the way up to class of 2005 at $60,000.
Cravath represents a sort of standard or barometer in the bonus matter, and the little bit of Christmas generosity lets the legal talent feel their expertise and assiduosity is respected and rewarded.
It is refreshing, therefore, to see that though 2013 was a tepid year, Cravath was able to front the same bonuses as before. With market instability, and of course the worst market we’ve seen since pre-recession, times after the housing bubble burst in 2007 and sent the economy roiling out of control, only for housing to finally regain its standing, and for most the economy to slowly nose their way closer to fine, the legal market has been the one exception that hasn’t regained its stature, but remains a mine field. Given that that is the case, Cravath’s solid and stolid persistence in these bonuses must count as some sort of consolation for their lawyers, who after all had to work very hard to get where they are at.