how much do partners make at local firms - what kind of range are we looking at?

also, I've heard of people not wanting to make partner, so maybe in those situations the answer to your question is more clear cut?

Notwithstanding the terms of any employment or partnership agreement, my feel is that in the international firm context, as you may be advising only on one aspect of a multi-jurisdictional matter, client loyalty may be more towards the firm than to you (if they like keeping the entire matter within the one firm across the globe), so it's harder to build a big book of clients. is that a fair statement?