April Brings $115K Bonus Showers For Federal Clerks
Which firm is making it rain?
Bonus bucks are budding for federal clerks.
Back in January and February, we reported that the clerkship bonus market was heating up. Quinn Emanuel raised the stakes by offering a signing bonus of $105,000 for federal clerks who joined the firm post-clerkship. Hueston Hennigan quickly followed in Quinn’s footsteps, also offering up $105,000 signing bonuses for federal clerks who joined the firm post-clerkship. We thought this might be the beginning of a trend for law firms that wanted to compete to recruit the very best of the talent pool, but things got awfully quiet as far as additional money for clerks was concerned.
Winter’s cold on compensation for clerks has finally passed, and firms may be warming up to the idea of awarding them with bountiful bonus bucks. April seems to be bringing showers of cash for former clerks, and the first firm to step up to the plate appears to blow Quinn Emanuel’s signing bonus out of the water at first glance — but only when it comes to clerkship work completed at a specific federal court.
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In a brief press release published on LinkedIn, Fish & Richardson boasts that it’s “hik[ing] Federal Circuit clerk bonuses by nearly 30 percent.” Check it out:
Beginning in April 2018, Fish will offer $115,000 bonuses to clerks who have completed two years at the Federal Circuit (or a combination of one year at the Federal Circuit and one year at a federal district court). Clerks with 18 months at the Federal Circuit will receive a $105,000 bonus, and those with one year will receive a $100,000 bonus. Clerks from federal district courts will receive $50,000 bonuses.
Of course this IP-centric firm is willing to pay robust bonuses to Federal Circuit clerks, as the Federal Circuit is the only appellate court with jurisdiction over patent cases.
However, that gleaming $115,000 is for two years of service at the Federal Circuit (or one year coupled another year at a federal district court). A year and a half of clerking at the Federal Circuit will get a clerk the same $105,000 they’d get at Quinn or Hueston for just one year of clerking. Clerks who spent one year at the Federal Circuit will get $5,000 less than what they’d get at Quinn or Hueston, and clerks who worked only at the federal district court level will receive $55,000 less than what they’d get at Quinn or Hueston. Fish & Richardson cares the most about the Federal Circuit, and when the cash is crunched like this, it really shows.
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Nevertheless, congratulations to all Federal Circuit clerks who go on to find a home at Fish. All of that extra cash will make your days spent clerking even more worthwhile.
Are there any other firms that are ready to make the move to $105K clerkship bonuses (or $115K clerkship bonuses)? If you have information about any firm’s clerkship bonuses, you should email us or text us (646-820-8477) with all the details. Thanks!
Fish & Richardson Hikes Federal Circuit Clerk Bonuses by Nearly 30% [LinkedIn]
Staci Zaretsky has been an editor at Above the Law since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.
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