Chicago's benefits bar is one of the oldest and deepest in the country. Let's find the group whose work matches your ambition.
From a former BigLaw litigator. I've sat in your chair.
I place executive compensation and benefits attorneys at AmLaw 100 firms and top boutiques in Chicago. Quietly, and only when the move genuinely makes sense for you.
15 minutes. Completely confidential. Firms pay my fee, never you.
Executive Compensation & Benefits ยท Chicago
Chicago benefits work spans the full field, and the deal side is growing.
Chicago has carried a serious benefits bar for generations, built on the manufacturers, insurers, and plan sponsors headquartered across the region. What has changed is the mix. The city's private equity and M&A growth keeps pulling comp lawyers into deal support, while the traditional plan counseling, fiduciary work, and multiemployer practice remains a genuine core rather than a legacy.
I track which Chicago groups lean deal side versus plan side, which serve the region's corporate headquarters directly, and who is adding at your level. Before you move, I'll tell you plainly which practices are growing and which are maintaining.
Most recruiters have never done your job. I have.
Before I recruited attorneys, I was one, a litigator at Weil Gotshal and Finnegan Henderson. I know what a 2,200 hour year feels like, how partners really size up a lateral, and what it's like to be the one making this call. That's the difference between someone who forwards your resume and someone who fights for your career.
I know how partners read a lateral
Time inside BigLaw means I can tell real comp and benefits responsibility from plan administration support, and I know how to frame your experience for the side of the practice you want more of.
I won't send you where you don't fit
No blasting your resume across the market. I learn your practice first, then take you to the handful of Chicago groups that genuinely match where you're headed.
Discreet from the first call
What we discuss stays between us. Nothing about you reaches a firm until you tell me yes, for that specific opportunity, in writing.
A simple, confidential process that respects your time.
Three steps, no pressure, and an honest read from someone who has been on your side of the desk.
A quiet first call
Fifteen minutes to understand where you are, where you want to go, and the things you won't compromise on.
A shortlist that fits
A tight set of Chicago executive compensation roles matched to your practice and your life, each one with a clear reason it's on the list.
I go to bat for you
I take your story straight to the hiring partner, run point on interviews, prep you for every round, and negotiate the offer.
The Chicago executive compensation work I place for.
- Deal side comp support for Chicago's private equity and M&A market
- Plan design and counseling for the region's corporate headquarters
- Fiduciary advice and ERISA governance for plan sponsors
- Multiemployer and collectively bargained plan work
- The move between plan side and deal side practice, in either direction
It's structure, not effort
Sometimes the bottleneck isn't you. It's deal flow.
If your firm isn't winning the matters in your practice area, there's no work to hand down, no matter how proactive you are. Months of quiet start to read like underperformance when the real problem is structural. A busier platform fixes in weeks what staying can never fix at all. The answer isn't grinding harder. It's the right firm.
Real stories, real career moves.
Hear how attorneys made their next move.
"I didn't think this kind of role was possible for me. It was."
Associate, Appellate (AmLaw Firm)
"Steven understood where I was trying to go and built a path to it I couldn't have found on my own."
Counsel, M&A (AmLaw Firm)
"It felt discreet, thoughtful, and personal. I never once felt sold."
Partner, Elite Litigation (Boutique)
"His read on how to position my experience, prep for interviews, and negotiate the offer was excellent."
AmLaw Firm
Moving isn't disloyalty
Most associates think lateraling is risky. Staying still is riskier.
Firms expect laterals. They don't take it personally. The attorneys who advance fastest aren't the ones who never leave. They're the ones who move when their firm can't support what comes next. Your career isn't built on loyalty. It's built by being deliberate about where you spend your 2,000 billable hours.
Questions you're probably already asking.
Is this actually confidential?
Completely. What we discuss stays between us, and if we move forward your resume doesn't reach anyone until you give me a yes for that specific opportunity, in writing.
My practice is mostly plan counseling. Can I move toward deal side comp work?
Chicago is a good market for that turn, because many groups here run both sides and staff across them. The technical foundation transfers, and deal pace is the adjustment. I'll point you to the groups that actually let benefits lawyers cross over rather than promising it.
How do you get paid?
Firms pay my fee, not you. There's no cost to you at any point in the process.
Do I need to be actively looking to reach out?
No. Most attorneys I work with are exploring, not decided. A conversation costs you nothing and tells you a lot.
Do you only work with Big Law, or boutiques too?
Both. Chicago has a strong bench of specialist executive compensation boutiques alongside the big flagship practices. The right answer depends on the work and the life you want, and I'll help you compare them honestly.
Why work with you instead of another recruiter?
I practiced in BigLaw for six years before I switched to recruiting. I don't just know the market, I know what it's like to sit in your chair. I won't waste your time with roles that don't make sense, and I'll be straight with you about what's realistic.
About Steven
Before I recruited attorneys, I was one. Six years in BigLaw gave me a perspective most recruiters don't have. I know how partners weigh a lateral, how firms think about fit, and what it actually feels like to be the one making this decision.
Nine years and hundreds of placements later, I do one thing: help attorneys who've outgrown where they are find the right next role. Associates, counsel, and partners at AmLaw 100 firms and top boutiques. You set the pace, I keep everything quiet, and I stay focused on what's right for you.
"He introduced me directly to people who were relevant to my experience. I ended up with options that made sense for where I'm going."
The next move starts with one conversation.
15 minutes. Completely confidential. Firms pay my fee, never you.
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