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Corner Office: Uses and Abuses of the Two-Tier Partnership

By Melchior S. Morrione
June 29, 2007

Once upon a time, becoming a partner in a law firm meant you became an owner of the business and shared in the profits with the other equity partners. The typical career path for associates joining a firm out of law school was to work hard for about seven years, at which time you would either be admitted to the partnership or be asked to leave the firm.

This so-called up-or-out practice became increasingly difficult for firms to continue due to the explosive growth in demand for legal services. Throwing out seven-year associates, who the firm was not entirely sure were ready to be partners, but who had developed valuable practice skills and experience serving clients, no longer seemed like a good idea.

So by the late 1990s, many law firms adopted a practice that significantly changed the original partnership paradigm. They created a new position, called nonequity, income, or contract partner, into which associates who were not admitted as equity partners could be placed. In effect, they created a two-tier partnership. This permitted them to retain associates longer, with the prospect that equity partnership might still be in their futures. But it was seldom made clear just how far into their futures.

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