Sullivan and cromwell salary scale

Compose a 2-3 page paper that addresses the exercise posed in “Your Turn – Climb the Legal Ladder” beginning on page 195 of the Mikovich text. APA formatting standards must be followed. A minimum of 3 scholarly resources from outside of class need to be used.

1-Think about the research evidence discussed in the book. Would you expect the Sullivan & Cromwell associates to feel their pay structure is fair? What comparisons would they likely make? What work behaviors would you expect Sullivan & Cromwell’s pay structure to motivate? Explain

-To determine if the associate attorneys will find the system fair, think of how they progress to the next ‘step’ –Comparisons would be with how other firms pay their associates –Work behaviors that motivate employees can vary, but think bonuses with billable hours..

2-What about associates who joined the firm four years ago? If the salaries for new associates increased by $20,000, what would you recommend for other levels in the structure? Explain.

-This is a common issue for many organizations as starting wages increase in the market. Hint: Consider how associates are paid. Billable hour goal results in compensation hike each year.

3-Partners make around 10 times the highest-paid associates. A Wall Street Journal writer laments that law firms form “giant pyramids… (in which) associates at the bottom funnel money to partners at the top.” What is missing from the writer’s analysis? Hint: Speculate about the likely differences in content and value of the work performed by partners compared to associates. Any parallels to Merrill Lynch’s FAs and SVPIs?

-This is fairly straightforward. The partners went through the same process as the associates, and worked their way up. Think--Why are they paid more? –Think job content…

4- A few years ago, Sullivan & Cromwell announced that year-end bonuses would be cut in half, with a maximum of $17,500 for early-career associates and $32,500 for eighth-year associates. In the following two years, bonuses were cut further. However, the trend was then reversed with bonuses subsequently being increased (to range from $30,000 to $65,000 for associates) and more recently, Exhibit 1 shows further increases in bonuses. What drives these bonus decisions and how they vary over time? How does this bonus variability over time compare to variability in salaries over time at Cromwell & Sullivan? What explains the difference in the way salaries and bonuses are managed over time?