White & Case partners are set to learn how changes to performance evaluations will reshape their pay, as the firm moves to better reward top contributors.
A revamp of partner evaluation criteria, introduced late last year, means partners will now be assessed on three areas: financial results; client engagement and collaboration with other partners.
The simplified system replaces a previous framework based on seven criteria.
All three criteria, each of which comprises a number of metrics, are underpinned by partners’ ability to demonstrate that they are ‘living the White & Case values’.
The upcoming remuneration round will also see partners learn how they have been assessed against a revised partner credit system, introduced in October 2024, that is intended to better reward both collaboration and hours spent on client work.
The changes added an ‘execution partner’ category to existing credit criteria including ‘inventory partner’, ‘matter partner’ and ‘origination partner’.
The new execution partner credit will only apply to matters opened since it was introduced, meaning that its initial impact will be gradual.
Partners inside the firm told LB that White & Case’s merit-based pay system remains unchanged. However, as remuneration is reviewed by the firm’s leadership team and compensation committee around March each year, equity partners have yet to learn how the revamp will affect their profit share.
The rejig appears to have been well-received by many partners, with some telling LB that it fairly rewards those putting in the hours and collaborating with colleagues.
One partner said: ‘The changes are long overdue. The new system is a much more sophisticated and fair way of recognising people’s contribution.’
They continued: ‘The focus on collaboration is a really good thing. If you want to have bigger relationships, they have to be multi-partner relationships – and you have to incentivise people to deliver on those.’
Partner profit distributions are dependent on their position on a 27-rung pay scale, with equity share increasing or decreasing based on performance. The higher a partner is on the scale, the bigger the gap between each rung.
Another partner at the firm said of the system: ‘There is no gravitational force pulling you up the ladder. You have to justify every step.’
