Biglaw partners had a very good 2025, and they worked a little less for it. Average Am Law 200 partner pay hit a record of nearly $1.55 million, up 10%, according to Major, Lindsey & Africa’s new partner survey, while average billable hours slipped 4% to 1,656. The median partner made $825,000, so most of the gains piled up at the top.
Now the part for anyone approving outside counsel invoices. Partner billing rates rose 11% in a year, to an average of $1,242 an hour. Fewer hours, higher rates, bigger paychecks… the math works nicely for the firms. If your budget keeps creeping up anyway, our guide to managing outside counsel has some ideas. And the men still out-earned the women by more than half a million dollars on average.
“When comparing equity and nonequity partners, equity partners reported an average billing rate of $1,359, which was 24% higher than the $1,070 reported by nonequity partners. According to the survey, this was the first time in the survey’s history that the average billing rate for nonequity partners was above $1,000.”
Read: Am Law 200 partners earned more in 2025, despite billing less at ABA Journal