Powerhouse New York law firm Cravath Swaine & Moore has told its associates that their year-end bonuses will be much reduced, according to AboveTheLaw.
The really bad news, though, came lower down in the Cravath memo today, according to Above the Law, which posted the full text of the Cravath memo on its blog:
“Given the uncertainty of the economy and the business climate going forward, we will not be able to address the issue of whether there will be any year-end bonuses in 2009 until this time next year,” the firm writes in the memo. “However, associates should be prepared for the likelihood that the economy and the Firm’s financial performance next year will not show a significant improvement over this year and they may receive significantly reduced or no year-end bonuses next year.
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Bonuses at Cravath this year range from $17,500 (pro-rated) for the Class of 2008 to $30,000 for the Class of 2001, the memo states.
That compares to a bonus range of $35,000 to $60,000 for associates at Cravath last year, according to Dealbook.
