While much of the legal industry has spent the past few weeks scrambling to match Milbank’s new salary scale , Axinn, Veltrop & Harkrider has a different problem: they’re already ahead of it.
The boutique antitrust and litigation powerhouse raised its first-year associate base salary to $250,000 in 2025 , that’s $15,000 above the new Milbank floor of $235,000, and its scale remains above market across class years. So, Axinn is handing out firmwide special bonuses ranging from $10,000 to $25,000, paid by July 15.
Per a memo dated June 23, 2026, the bonuses cover all associates, counsel, and eDiscovery attorneys. Here’s the associate bonus scale:
Legal work isn’t slowing down, and the firms that win won’t be the ones working harder — they’ll be the ones working smarter.
The memo is notably transparent about the firm’s thinking, “That commitment extends to maintaining our position as a market leader in compensation, with our associate salaries remaining above the newer scale adopted by some of our competitors. The Firm continues to evaluate market developments and will make adjustments where appropriate, consistent with our investment in exceptional talent.”
One housekeeping note, associates must be in good standing as of July 8, 2026 to qualify for the special bonus, which will be prorated based on start date where applicable. Counsel and eDiscovery attorneys will receive separate communications about their bonuses.
Congratulations to everyone at Axinn — already earning above market, and now getting a bonus on top of it. Not a bad place to be in the summer of 2026.
Law firms and legal departments are writing the future of the profession in separate rooms. What happens when they actually work together?
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Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast , and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer . AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter @Kathryn1 or Bluesky @Kathryn1
Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast , and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer . AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter @Kathryn1 or Bluesky @Kathryn1
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