A partner in a

law firm A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise consumer, clients (individuals or corporations) about their legal rights and Obligation, respon ...

accounting firm An accounting network or accounting association is a professional services network whose principal purpose is to provide members resources to assist the clients around the world and hence reduce the uncertainty by bringing together a greater numbe ...

consulting firm A consulting firm or simply consultancy is a professional service firm that provides expertise and specialised labour for a fee, through the use of consultants. Consulting firms may have one employee or thousands; they may consult in a broad ra ...

, or

financial firm A financial institution, sometimes called a banking institution, is a business entity that provides service as an intermediary for different types of financial monetary transactions. Broadly speaking, there are three major types of financial ins ...

is a highly ranked position, traditionally indicating co-ownership of a

partnership A partnership is an agreement where parties agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests. The partners in a partnership may be individuals, businesses, interest-based organizations, schools, governments or combinations. Organizations ...

in which the partners were entitled to a share of the profits as "

equity partner A partnership is an agreement where parties agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests. The partners in a partnership may be individuals, businesses, interest-based organizations, schools, governments or combinations. Organizations m ...

s". The title can also be used in

corporate A corporation or body corporate is an individual or a group of people, such as an association or company, that has been authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law as "born out of s ...

entities where equity is held by

shareholder A shareholder (in the United States often referred to as stockholder) of corporate stock refers to an individual or legal entity (such as another corporation, a body politic, a trust or partnership) that is registered by the corporation as the ...

Law firms

s, partners are primarily those senior lawyers who are responsible for generating the firm's revenue. The standards for equity partnership vary from firm to firm. Many law firms have a "two-tiered" partnership structure, in which some partners are designated as "salaried partners" or "non-equity" partners, and are allowed to use the "partner" title but do not share in profits. This position is often given to lawyers on track to become equity partners so that they can more easily generate business; it is typically a "probationary" status for associates (or former equity partners who do not generate enough revenue to maintain equity partner status). The distinction between equity and non-equity partners is often internal to the firm and not disclosed to clients, although a typical equity partner could be compensated three times as much as a non-equity partner billing at the same hourly rate. In America, senior lawyers not on track for partnership often use the title "

of counsel Of counsel is the title of an attorney in the legal profession of the United States who often has a relationship with a law firm or an organization but is neither an associate nor partner. Some firms use titles such as "counsel", "special couns ...

", which differs to the use the titles of

Counsel A counsel or a counsellor at law is a person who gives advice and deals with various issues, particularly in legal matters. It is a title often used interchangeably with the title of ''lawyer''. The word ''counsel'' can also mean advice given ...

and " Senior Counsel" used in most Commonwealth countries. Partner compensation varies considerably. A 2012 survey by Major, Lindsey & Africa found that law firm partners' average annual compensation was $681,000 ($896,000 for equity partners, $335,000 for non-equity partners) and tended to go up based on number of years in the partnership: *5 or fewer years: $399,001 *6–10 years: $633,001 *11–20 years: $790,001 *20+ years: $926,001

Accounting firms

Accounting firms Accounting, also known as accountancy, is the process of recording and processing information about economic entity, economic entities, such as businesses and corporations. Accounting measures the results of an organization's economic activit ...

were traditionally established as legal partnerships with partners sharing the profits. Today, the financial and consulting services firms which originated from accounting firms, such as the

Big Four accounting firms The Big Four are the four largest professional services networks in the world: Deloitte, Ernst & Young, EY, KPMG, and PwC. They are the four largest global accounting networks as measured by revenue. The four are often grouped because they ar ...

, retain the title of Partner as a senior position and to indicate a profit-sharing status. To become a partner is considered a significant career milestone. Based on the role, tradition or local regulations partners may include the: * Managing partner/country partner – partner in charge of the day-to-day running of the business * Senior partner – partner of many years of service * Principal – partner who is not a CPA/ CA A modern procedure is to take the role of associate partner before becoming a partner in some consulting services.

Financial industry

Many major

investment bank Investment is traditionally defined as the "commitment of resources into something expected to gain value over time". If an investment involves money, then it can be defined as a "commitment of money to receive more money later". From a broade ...

s were historically structured as partnerships, and some such as

Goldman Sachs The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational investment bank and financial services company. Founded in 1869, Goldman Sachs is headquartered in Lower Manhattan in New York City, with regional headquarters in many internationa ...

maintain a class of "partners" at the top of their corporate hierarchy. In such firms, the "partners" are typically the highest-compensated

managing director A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

s as well as more senior executives. The term is also used for senior executives in the

private equity Private equity (PE) is stock in a private company that does not offer stock to the general public; instead it is offered to specialized investment funds and limited partnerships that take an active role in the management and structuring of the co ...

industry. In these industries, partners are often compensated millions of dollars per year.

References

{{reflist Partnerships

Law firms

Accounting firms

Financial industry

See also

References