That dream of a cushy job at a Biglaw firm just keeps getting farther and farther away.

Research by the NALP, a legal careers research group, shows the new median salary for first-year associates has dropped from the recent high of $160,000 reported in 2009 to $145,00.

Ouch.

While some of the largest firms in America's major cities still pay first-years $160,000, that's just not the norm anymore.

"Overall in firms of more than 700 lawyers salaries of $160,000 accounted for 46% of reported first-year salaries, compared with 54% in 2011, 58% in 2010, and 65% in 2009," according to the NALP.

Here's a breakdown of the current salary chart, first posted by Above The Law: