Top US firms are offering $50k to secure future lawyers early

Top law firms in the US are offering up to $50,000 to first-year law students who commit early to their summer associate programmes.

Firms including Milbank, Sidley and Latham are among those using the payments to secure places in their 2027 summer classes - the main pipeline into junior associate hiring in the US.

The structure is broadly consistent. Students agree to join a firm’s second-year summer programme and spend the summer after their first year at law school working in public interest roles such as charities, non-profits or government agencies. In return, they receive a stipend or signing bonus.

Law.com reports that at least 15 Am Law 100 firms are now offering between $25,000 and $50,000 under the schemes.

Sidley is offering $50,000 under its Professional Pathways programme, while Milbank pays $50,000 in two instalments. Latham, meanwhile, offers a $25,000 stipend, while Davis Polk recently increased its payment from $25,000 to $50,000.

Race for early talent

The payments reflect a shift in how elite US firms recruit, with hiring happening earlier and more aggressively than before.

A recent report by the National Association for Law Placement (NALP) - the US organisation that collects data on law firm hiring - found that 80% of summer offers in the 2025 cycle came through employer-led recruiting, rather than traditional law school channels such as on-campus interviews. Most offers - 85% - were made by the summer after the end of students’ first year.

Summer associate programmes are the main route into US Big Law, functioning as extended, paid internships - typically around 10 weeks - that convert into full-time associate roles.

Summer associates are paid like first-year lawyers, pro-rated. Latham, for example, offers its summer interns a salary of more than $18,000 a month.