The firm's compensation system reflects and promotes our culture of collegiality and teamwork. Your compensation is confidential — no one outside the firm's Management Committee will know what you earn. You will not see your billable hours or anyone else's posted at the firm.
Our starting salary for entry-level associates is $120,000 per year in our Minnesota and Colorado offices and $100,000 per year in our Iowa office. We also offer a $10,000 salary advance upon joining the firm.
At the end of each calendar year, our Management Committee engages in a thorough review of each lawyer's contribution to the firm and sets the total annual compensation for each associate, special counsel and partner. To guide the Committee's review, we give each lawyer the opportunity to prepare an annual report of his or her overall activities. We then evaluate associates, special counsel and partners alike by the same ten factors, which include not only your billable hours, but also other criteria such as ability as a lawyer, standing in the profession and the community, time and attention given to the practice of law, ability to satisfy and develop clients, non-billable endeavors, teamwork, and development of new areas of expertise. These are the core values that we have used for decades in assessing both compensation and partnership.
We believe our system measures the full contributions of each lawyer and reflects the values of a professional partnership. Unlike other firms that rely on lockstep compensation, we reward our lawyers based on their individual contributions and performance. And we take care that the compensation we offer meets or exceeds any of the top firms in our regions.
We have built a reputation as a family-friendly firm, with policies and generous benefits that help working lawyers balance their professional practice with the demands of raising children and participating actively in the community. Several of our lawyers work reduced schedules, including a number of lawyers who have become partners while working part-time. We also offer salary continuation during child care leave.
Our benefits program is highly competitive, and includes the following:
- Comprehensive health, dental, disability, and life insurance
- An opportunity to participate in a 401(k) savings plan
- Reimbursement of expenses associated with admission to the Minnesota, Colorado, or Iowa bar, including the bar review course and examination fee
- Reimbursement of costs to relocate you to one of our cities, and we provide a moving company to assist with your move
- Reimbursement of associates for their annual attorney licensing fee, membership in the state and local bar association and the costs of Continuing Legal Education course requirements
- Flexible spending accounts for medical and dependent care reimbursement
- Pre-tax payroll deductions for qualified parking expenses and our Metropass program
- Back-up child care services
- Laptop computers and BlackBerrys
MORE INFORMATION FOR NEW LAWYERS
Compensation and Benefits | Professional Development | Mentoring | Becoming a Partner | FAQ
Privacy Notice | Faegre & Benson main site | Career Opportunities