First-year associates have enjoyed above-inflation salary growth over the past decade, with market rates for starting salaries up 47% since 2015, compared to inflation of 41%.

With the US Big Law market expected to follow the lead of Milbank and McDermott Will & Schulte in ramping up salaries, the 2026 market rate is climbing to a record $235,000, a 4.4% year-on-year increase.

But a lower cost of living is helping make Texas a more attractive option for associates, according to a new report into the Big Law associate experience published by Chambers, the leading data and intelligence partner for lawyers, firms and in-house teams.

While the East Coast and New York in particular continue to be the center of gravity for Big Law careers, accounting for 34% of associate positions, Texas is emerging as an increasingly popular location for early career lawyers. Dallas and Houston now account for 3% and 4% of nationwide positions respectively, with the rise driven by energy, corporate and litigation work.

The research also found that, despite the rapid expansion of AI, associates are still being hired; firms are using AI to increase capacity, not reduce headcount. What’s changing is what first-years spend their time on. For example, first-years told researchers they are increasingly expected to review and refine AI output rather than draft from scratch.

Chambers surveyed 8,200 associates across 82 top US firms as well as gathering data on compensation, hours and headcount.

The research found that Texas-based associates could expect to see far more money left in their bank accounts at the end of the month compared to their peers, due to high rents in cities such as New York, Palo Alto and San Francisco. Houston-based associates were left with an estimated $12,158 per month compared to just $7,398 in New York.

Associates clocked up an average of 47-49 hours a week, with New York, Dallas and Boston associates working the longest hours and Palo Alto averaging the lowest at 45.6. The most common in-office requirement was three days a week (48% of firms) but the reality is that almost half of associates are spending four to five days in the office.

Pro bono hours worked continued to slide this year, down to an average of 60 hours a year in 2025 compared to 65 in 2022.

Litigation and corporate may be the two most popular areas of practice but first-year associates working in them are less happy than many of their colleagues. Based on four measurements – happiness, motivation, partnership achievability and plan to stay five plus years, both score below the average for the whole cohort. That may reflect early days in those areas of practice – less time in the courtroom than they may have expected for litigators, and more work like due diligence reviews for corporate lawyers.

By contrast, those in banking & finance and real estate scored above average on each measure.

Dallas associates were the most likely to anticipate building long-term careers at their firms, with 66% planning to stay for at least five years compared to 39% in New York which had the lowest scores for retention.

Considering their long-term ambitions, 59% of associates across Big Law felt partnership was achievable at their firm. Real estate and intellectual property associates were the most optimistic, with 68% and 67% respectively saying the role was achievable compared to 54% of litigators and 56% of corporate/M&A associates.

Women were less likely to feel partnership was achievable than men (53% vs 66%) and ethnic minority associates felt it was less of a realistic prospect for them compared to their White counterparts (53% vs 62%). This is perhaps unsurprising when considering that 51% of associates are female, a figure that falls to 28% at partner level, while ethnic minorities make up 26% of associates but just 17% of partners.

Cait Evans, global talent head of research at Chambers, says: “The associate salary war is back on after Milbank and McDermott Will & Schulte set the bar last month with a $10,000 pay hike. While we did see a relative slowdown in 2022/2023, the overall picture is a decade of above-inflation increases that sees Big Law associates paid the highest starting salaries in the profession.

“For those based in growing Big Law markets in Texas, the financial gains go further. While New York continues to dominate, with more top law firm associates than the next four most popular cities combined, it will be interesting to see the extent to which growth in alternative locations and the comparative financial gains on offer influence associate preferences in the coming years.

“For the majority, partnership is still considered a realistic aspiration but the greater pessimism of women and ethnic minority associates remains a systemic issue that the profession needs to address.”

ENDS

For further information, please contact:  

Louise Eckersley, Black Letter Communications on 0203 567 1208 or email:

[email protected] 

Aicha Marhfour, Black Letter Communications

[email protected] / + 44 (0) 203 567 1208 

There were 8,200 associate respondents to Chambers’ 2026 associate survey covering 82 of the top US law firms. They were surveyed between September 2025 and January 2026. Chambers carries out its talent survey twice a year in the US and UK.

Chambers is the leading legal data and intelligence partner for lawyers, firms and in-house teams.

Across more than 200 jurisdictions, it conducts over 366,000 research interviews and surveys with in-house counsel every year, and receives 66,000 submissions from 10,000 firms worldwide, providing unrivalled insight into the legal sector.

This research powers Chambers Rankings – the definitive guide to the best legal talent – and Chambers Intelligence, which delivers the insights helping forms and in-house teams to succeed.

Chambers’ independent, rigorous research identifies the exceptional and charts the path to success, enabling legal professionals to see with clarity, decide with confidence, and plan with ambition.

Chambers is led by CEO, Tim Noble.