Salaries at the firm are on a set lock-step system, with increases to salary made annually in January and bonuses awarded in February or March.  In mid-2009, the firm announced associate salary cuts ranging from 5% to 20%, depending on the associate's utilization rate (i.e., whether the associate is currently on track to meet the annual billable hours requirement). Bonus amounts in most offices are based on both hours and merit considerations, while bonuses in New York are discretionary and consistent with the New York market.  Lateral Link Members gripe that the firm is a laggard with respect to bonus amounts, with one member calling the disproportionately low bonus structure "ridiculous" compared to other peer firms. 

While the firm offers a full spectrum of formal training opportunities through its internal Pillsbury University training program, Lateral Link Members say the effectiveness of the training "depends on what group" an associate is in, with some groups more "supportive" about taking "the time to train their associates," while "other groups just throw the associate in the fire."  The firm has a formal mentoring program, but Lateral Link Members report that few attorneys actually take advantage of it.  In addition, Lateral Link Members say there are very few training opportunities for senior associates.  The firm has a free-market system, and most associates usually settle into working relationships with one or two partners, from whom they get the majority of their work.  Some Lateral Link Members say they get major responsibility early on as long as they "drum up [their] own work," but others complain that increased responsibility doesn't come "until [the] fifth year or [later]."  The firm has a strong track record in terms of diversity and most recently received a 100% score on the Corporate Equality Index from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.  Additionally, female managing partners lead 4 of the firm's 13 offices.  In 2008, the firm conducted stealth layoffs in both its East Coast and West Coast offices, and in early 2009, it announced a "voluntary" departure offer as an option to attorneys and staff who it otherwise planned to lay off.  As a result, morale is reportedly low, particularly in the real estate and corporate departments, where associates are "nervous" due to the lack of work.

The firm's billable hours expectation is 1,950 hours.  However, Lateral Link Members say this is a rather arbitrary number, because associates must bill in excess of that to get even a base-level bonus.  Also, associates who do not bill at least 1,800 hours do not advance in salary to the next class level.  First-year associates get up to 75 hours of billable credit for training time.

While some Lateral Link Members report that face time "usually doesn't matter," others worry that if they "are not around enough and social enough, partners tend to think [they] are not excited about the practice and not willing to assist the group."  The firm provides four weeks of annual vacation, which do not roll over.  One Lateral Link Member says that "it's a joke to say that we get [four] weeks vacation," since it is "impossible to use...[it] and make billable hours."  According to Lateral Link Members, associates regularly work on weekends but can usually do so from home.

The firm focuses much of its pro bono efforts on traditional representation of indigent clients, but it recently garnered attention for its work on behalf of Guantanamo Bay detainees and its victory in the Supreme Court regarding the right to habeas corpus.  All associates are required to perform a minimum of 20 pro bono hours.  Pro bono work in excess of 20 hours will be credited to the billable hours requirement up to 100 hours.  Firm wide, 62% of associates perform an average of 46 hours of pro bono annually each.

There are two partnership tracks at the firm, and most Lateral Link Members report that partnership is an attainable goal at the firm  Associates in their fifth year of practice are considered Senior Associates and advance to a special training program in anticipation of partnership, although some Lateral Link Members report that the training program is in name only and that very little guidance is given to senior associates about the criteria for making partner.  A senior associate of any level is eligible for partnership, but most tend to be considered after seven or eight years of practice.

Benefits at the firm include a cafeteria in the Washington, DC, and New York offices, subsidized gym memberships in certain offices, monthly social gatherings, iPhones, backup childcare, and "free Zipcar memberships."  New associates are provided with a $10,000 salary advance and relocation benefits, including direct billing with preferred movers, cost of airfare, and car transport services.

The firm offers summer associate programs in most of its domestic offices and encourages summer associates to rotate through a variety of practice areas.  The firm has reduced its summer program for 2009 from 12 weeks to 10 and delayed the start date of new associates until January 2010. The firm has also announced it will be canceling its summer programs in its West Coast offices in 2010.  Additionally, the firm has initiated both a voluntary departure program and a public interest deferral program.  The voluntary departure program provides a $60,000 stipend to new associates who choose not to join the firm, while the public interest deferral program provides a $5,000/month stipend through January 2011 to pay for the employment of a new associate at a public interest organization.