For law firm partners and administrators
Model what a lateral or current attorney can be paid under the 3x rule. Move the levers to see what it takes to reach the number they asked for: more hours, a higher rate, or origination credit on work others bill.
3x rule: attorney revenue ≈ 3 × attorney compensation
Slide to explore, or type an exact number in the box. The starting numbers are an example.
The attorney
Share of billed time actually collected after write-downs and carrier audits.
Origination
Fees other attorneys at the firm collect on work this attorney brings in.
Your firm's formula
Hours above this earn the hours bonus.
Year-one compensation
$199,800
$20.2K below the $220.0K ask| Base1,800 hrs × $300 × 92% ÷ 3.0 | $165,600 |
| Hours bonus100 hrs above 1,800 × $92 | $9,200 |
| Origination credit10% of $250,000 | $25,000 |
| Total | $199,800 |
Pay from their own hours is $174,800. Their own collections of $524,400 ÷ 3.0 support $174,800.
Their own collections
$524,400
Plus originated collections
$774,400
Pay as share of both
25.8%
John Jakovenko is a fractional COO for law firms and the author of The Millionaire Law Firm. He builds compensation plans that partners can defend and attorneys can understand.
Illustrative only. This calculator does not account for benefits, payroll taxes, overhead or your partnership agreement, and it is not legal, tax or financial advice. The hours bonus is set at the rate divided by the multiple, rounded down to the dollar, so each bonus hour stays inside the formula. © The Jakovenko Group.