Where the numbers are
As of April 2026, Susman Godfrey is paying $180,000 for a single federal clerkship. Quinn Emanuel is at $175,000. Cravath sits in the $125,000–$150,000 range. The Cravath base associate scale hasn't moved since 2024 (first-year associates are still at $225,000), but the effective first-year package for a top litigation lateral coming out of a federal clerkship now routinely exceeds $600,000 in total compensation.
A decade ago, the federal clerkship bonus was a retention gesture. It was sized to say "we're glad you clerked," not to move a candidate between firms. That changed sometime in late 2023 and has now gone somewhere very different.
Why this is different from past bonus cycles
The 2016 and 2018 market-wide bonus cycles moved across the whole associate class. This one doesn't. It targets a very narrow slice of the market (roughly 150 to 200 attorneys per year) and it's structured to pull them away from each other, not to reward an existing cohort.
Two firms are doing almost all the pulling. Of the lateral searches we've run for top-tier litigation practices over the last 12 months, Susman Godfrey and Quinn Emanuel appear as the counter-offer or the destination in a meaningful share of the conversations. When they're in the mix, the competitor offer climbs fast.
What it means for firms that aren't competing at this level
Firms sitting at $125,000 for a single clerkship are not technically out of market, but they are out of the conversation for a candidate who has a Susman or Quinn offer in hand. Our honest read: if a firm isn't at $150,000 minimum for a single federal clerkship by mid-2026, it will not be a credible destination for top lateral litigation associates coming out of a clerkship. Full stop.
That's a strategic question, not a compensation one. Some firms will choose not to compete for that candidate. That's a legitimate choice, but it should be made deliberately, not by default because the comp committee hasn't revisited the number since 2023.
The 1L signing-bonus wrinkle
At least 15 AM Law 100 firms are now offering $25,000–$50,000 signing bonuses to 1Ls accepted into summer programs. This is new. It's effectively an early-commitment incentive: firms trying to lock in the strongest 1L candidates before the 2L recruiting cycle opens.
The effect on the lateral market is indirect but material: if a firm locks in its best 1Ls with signing bonuses and then also funds the clerkship-bonus race, total top-of-market compensation spend per attorney is materially higher than it was two years ago. Firms that haven't adjusted their compensation committee planning to reflect both moves are underbudgeting.
What we tell candidates weighing a premium bonus
A $180,000 clerkship bonus is a signal about what the firm expects to extract in return. That's not a criticism. It's a fact of the comp structure. Our candidates who've taken the largest bonuses are, on average, working more hours and are subject to tighter performance review cycles than candidates at firms paying half that figure.
That's a real trade-off, and it should be surfaced before signing. A candidate who takes the biggest offer and washes out in 14 months has done worse than one who took 60% of that offer and stayed for four years. The math matters for retention and for the candidate's career arc, and it is one of the conversations we have with every top-of-market candidate before they sign.