The workload is very large translating into very long hours and the financial rewards are very high. Depending on the area of law and law firm the hours will be approximately 65 - 90 hours per week. Some current first and second year associates report that in some large firm's litigation departments an 8 a.m. - 12 midnight workday is common. Also, a significant amount of work is performed on weekends although usually the work can be performed at home. Some of the more liberal large firms only require the associates to be in the office from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Some of the specialty practice areas have less of a workload and therefore less working hours i.e. Transactional Patent Law, which requires a hard science background and passing the patent bar exam.

Overall pay is very high for associates; Depending on the location and size of the firm the first year associate pay can be approximately $140,000 - $205,000 per year. Many first year associates do not like the long work hours as their social life suffers greatly and many leave after 2 years. Although, many associates really like the large law firm experience and work in large firms their entire careers.