The competition between Big Law and some boutique plaintiffs firms has just turned fiercer when it comes to recruiting talent from top universities. Not only have plaintiffs firms gone out of their way to hold law school recruitment events that offer student mentorship programs or even one-on-one training for job interviews—some boutique firms are now also raising entry salaries for associates to record levels aiming to outcompete Big Law.

Los Angeles-based plaintiffs firm Dovel & Luner just announced a pay scale starting at $225,000 for first-year associates and ending at $360,000 for sixth-years, not including year-end bonus payments. That is above the most recent Big Law market-leading pay scale set by Milbank in January ranging from $215,000 for first-years to $350,000 for sixth-years. The Milbank scale goes up to $385,000 or more for eighth-years and above.

Class Annual Salary (excluding year-end bonus)
1st year   $225,000
2nd year   $235,000
3rd year   $260,000
4th year   $295,000
5th year   $335,000
6th year   $360,000
Source: Dovel & Luner