Personal Lives

Wealthy Lawyers Take Social Nosedive

  •  
  •  
  •  
  • Print

Pity the poor BigLaw partners and other financially successful lawyers. While many have never been richer and remain well-to-do by ordinary standards, they have taken a social nosedive in recent years compared to megabucks private equity investors and hedge fund titans.

Although many BigLaw partners are taking home seven-figure profits, they are considered little more than middle-class in ultrarich enclaves in New York City and Palo Alto, reports American Lawyer in a magazine article reprinted by New York Lawyer (reg. req.). However, those in Silicon Valley seem to complain less about their downtrodden social status, according to a recruiter.

“Face it, we have no status,” an unnamed partner at a major firm moans to the legal magazine, concerning his place in the pecking order at the private school in New York City that his sons attend. “We go to these school functions, and this well-heeled group looks right through you. They won’t give you the time of day. You’re just one step ahead of the doorman.”

Give us feedback, share a story tip or update, or report an error.