Milbank is raising associate compensation again, handing out increases of $10,000 to $20,000 depending on class year and setting the new scale to take effect July 1, 2026. More senior associates will get the larger bumps, and summer associates are also in line for a share of the increase.

The move matters because Milbank has been one of the firms most closely tied to the modern Biglaw salary race. It kicked off the modern salary era in 2016, then followed with additional increases in 2018, 2021, January 2022 and at the end of 2023. Each round has helped reset the market, and this one arrives with the same basic message: pay at the top of the market is still moving upward.

The size of the increase will vary by class year, but the pattern is clear enough. Juniors are not getting the biggest jump, while the later classes are. That leaves Milbank once again rewarding experience more heavily than entry-level service, even as it widens the overall associate scale. Summer associates are included too, which extends the raise beyond the permanent ranks and signals that the firm wants the message to land across the pipeline.

That familiar pattern is what makes the announcement more than a one-off compensation adjustment. Milbank has repeatedly pushed salaries higher, and the firm knows the effect that can have across the market. Raises at this level have a way of forcing attention from competitors, because other firms do not like sitting below a new benchmark for long. Cadwalader moved within hours of Milbank’s 2022 announcement, and Cravath came in over the top after the 2023 raise.

What is not yet spelled out is how the $10,000 and $20,000 increases break down by class year. The broad direction is visible, but the exact cutoffs are still the missing piece. If history is any guide, the rest of the market will not stay still for long once Milbank’s July 1, 2026 scale goes live.