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Law360 (September 3, 2020, 6:11 PM EDT) -- Kelley Drye & Warren LLP has joined the ranks of law firms rolling back some of the austerity measures enacted earlier this year in response to the coronavirus pandemic, saying Thursday that it will begin partially restoring salary adjustments for affected attorneys and staff.
Kelley Drye on April 14 unveiled its plan to cut pay by 10% for lawyers and other staffers earning more than $100,000 a year, and to reduce equity partner draws by as much as 20%. The firm also postponed administrative staff raises that were planned for July 1.
On Thursday, chair James Carr said the 10% pay cut for associates, special counsel and staff earning more than $100,000 annually will be reduced to 5%, which the firm said will take effect on Sept. 16.
"The firm implemented a number of cost-cutting measures this spring to minimize the economic impact of the coronavirus crisis and to protect the financial health of the firm," Carr said in a statement. "Thanks to these actions and your dedication to our clients, we are now in a position to restore some of the salary reductions implemented in May."
He added that the partner reductions would remain in place for now.
Earlier this year, Carr said the firm was facing "unprecedented challenges" from the pandemic, noting that the firm's clients were focusing on business needs and that invoice payments had slowed.
In the face of the pandemic and the resulting economic downturn, firms around the world implemented cost-cutting measures such as furloughing employees and slashing salaries. A handful of firms have at least partially rolled back these measures in recent weeks.
Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP last week began unwinding pay cuts that went into effect during the early stages of the pandemic, confirming that staff and attorney compensation were set to return to prepandemic levels. Loeb & Loeb LLP also recently announced it would be decreasing its cuts to attorney and staff pay by 60%.
Meanwhile, Baker McKenzie announced Tuesday it is cutting lawyers and staff in its North American offices as it looks to reduce its budget amid the business slowdown caused by the pandemic, and Davis Wright Tremaine LLP this week said it will roll back some of its austerity measures but also lay off some of its furloughed staff.
--Additional reporting by Hailey Konnath, Emma Cueto and Xiumei Dong. Editing by Alyssa Miller.
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