California Boutique Tops Milbank Associate Summer Bonuses

Litigation boutique Hueston Hennigan is the latest law firm to hand out summer bonuses to its associates.

The extra payments range from $10,000 to $30,000, according to a person familiar with the matter. The Southern California boutique, whose lawyers have represented Amazon, Shopify, and Monster Energy, among other clients, issued similar bonuses last year.

The news comes one day after Milbank LLP announced mid-year incentives for its junior lawyers. Milbank is the first Big Law firm to issue summer bonuses, with extra payments ranging from $6,000 to $25,000. Manhattan law firm Otterbourg P.C. recently issued $15,000 summer bonuses for its associates.

Leading litigation boutiques, whose associate rosters are a fraction of those at the largest firms, have blown past the scales set by the industry’s biggest players in recent years. Hueston Hennigan employs about 40 associates across offices in California and New York, according to the firm’s website.

Hueston’s clients have included Tesla, Peloton, and ViacomCBS, now known as Paramount Global. Big Law’s Kirkland & Ellis also has turned to Hueston Hennigan to defend it in court over the last two years.