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Law360 (May 13, 2020, 6:01 PM EDT ) Perkins Coie LLP and Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP on Wednesday confirmed they have implemented pay cuts across their firms, joining the growing ranks of BigLaw outfits that have taken cost-cutting measures amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Seattle-based Perkins Coie confirmed Wednesday that it has deferred partner's compensation by more than 19% since March. Additionally, the firm will cut salaries for associates and professional staff starting in June.
The firm told Law360 it will enact a 15% salary reduction for nonpartner lawyers, a 15% salary reduction for professional staff making more than $200,000 and a 10% cut for staff members making between $125,000 to $200,000. Those making less than $125,000 annually will not be affected.
The firm said it has also deferred the midyear staff salary increases and bonuses and will wait until year's end to determine their bonuses. As of now, Perkins Coie has not laid off or furloughed any employees, it said.
Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath — which was launched in February after the merger of Faegre Baker Daniels LLP and Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP — is reducing attorneys' pay by 15%, the firm said in a statement to Law360 on Wednesday. Salaries for professional staff at the firm will be reduced on a graduated scale of up to 15%. The firm said there will be no reductions for staff or consultants earning less than $50,000.
Faegre Drinker already deferred one-third of partners' distributions in early April. In addition to making the salary reductions, Faegre Drinker has furloughed about 1.5% of its employees whose responsibilities are "primarily office-based," it said, adding that the firm will continue to provide benefits during the furlough period.
After its February combination, Faegre Drinker has roughly 1,300 attorneys, consultants and professionals. As part of that merger, the firm said, it also eliminated 1.5% of its staff workforce. All laid-off employees received severance pay.
"These decisions are not easy or made lightly," the firm said in a statement. "Faegre Drinker cares deeply for our colleagues and is committed to supporting those whose roles have been temporarily furloughed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as those whose roles were eliminated as a result of the firm's combination."
The two are the latest to join a long list of firms that have made financial adjustments in response to the economic upheaval caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. On Monday, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP, Thompson Hine LLP, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP and Eversheds Sutherland also confirmed a series of cost-cutting measures at their firms.
--Additional reporting by Michele Gorman. Editing by Stephen Berg.
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