Andrews Kurth raised base salaries for its top-performing associates on Jan. 1, says Robert Jewell, the Houston-based firm’s managing partner.

“What we decided, because of competition in our markets, was that our well-performing associates who had at least four years of experience were going to get a substantial salary increase starting in January rather than having to rely as much on how much their bonus is going to be at year end,” Jewell says.