Law firm managing partners’ expressed greater optimism in the economy and legal market for the second half of 2017, according to a report released by Citi Private Bank.
The quarterly survey polled law firm leaders, 106 of which are among Am Law’s top 200 firms. Over half of those who participated in the survey expressed confidence that the second half of the year will be considerably or somewhat better than the first, indicating an uptick in overall confidence from the previous quarter.
The projections, according to the Am Law Daily, “may prove to be a bullish outlook for an industry that has been dogged by stagnant demand, particularly among Am Law Second Hundred firms.”
See the full report and article on The American Lawyer.
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As law firm billing rates are rapidly increasing overall, a new study shows that firms that raised their rates more slowly are starting to see better revenue growth. According to the report, released by Thomson Reuters’ Peer Monitor, law firms that increased their billing rates at a more gradual pace are experiencing an increase in demand from their clients. Although the demand for legal services overall is down, the study shows that some firms are getting a much higher volume of work than others. “Firms that are willing to take less of a rate increase seem to be doing better with demand,” said Leonard Lee, an analyst at Peer Monitor.
In the first half of 2015, Am Law 100 firms saw a drop in demand by 0.2 percent, similar to Am Law Second Hundred firms, which saw a decrease of 0.4 percent. However, mid-sized firms that benefitted from a softer increase of billing rates saw a 1.6 percent increase in demand overall. The report warned its readers that this is not a proven method to increase revenue, and there may be other factors to consider. “Over the last few years, a lot of work seems to be moving down market,” Lee said. He explained that the study gives averages and every firm is different, but the data shows a definite correlation between rate increases and revenue.
See the full report and article on The American Lawyer.
Contact Bill Sugarman for more information.
The American Lawyer released their annual Global 100 report, ranking the top law firms across the world. The report is based on gross revenue as well as number of attorneys and profits per partner. Attorney headcount saw an increase this year, with an annual growth of 6.4 percent. Overall, gross revenue grew by 3.1 percent for The Global 100, and profits per partner increased, on average, by 4.9 percent.
Latham & Watkins reigned in at No. 1 again this year, with the highest gross revenue of The Global 100. Close behind leader Latham was Baker & McKenzie and DLA Piper in spots 2 and 3, respectively. Skadden also remained in its respective spot from last year, coming in at number 4, with a higher revenue per lawyer average than each of the other top 5 firms. Kirkland advanced one spot to No. 5 this year, knocking Dentons down to number 6.
See the full rankings and more of the highlights from the AmLaw Global 100 on The American Lawyer.
Contact Bill Sugarman for more information.
According to Am Law Daily, mixed opinions were exchanged last week at the International Bar Association’s annual conference, regarding the risks and benefits of law firms’ global development. Lawyers traded their thoughts during a panel discussion on Wednesday. “We were forced by our clients,” to expand abroad, said Antonio Barba, a partner with the Spanish law firm Cuatrecasas, Goncalves Pereira.
Peter Pantaleo, general counsel at DLA Piper, said, “I can guarantee any law firm in this room can make a small fortune going abroad, if they’re prepared to lose a large one.” Pantaleo explained the risks, alluding to DLA Piper’s office in Singapore and the losses it faced in an effort to open its doors. DLA also recently closed their office in Venezuela because of the political risk at hand. Other firms, such as Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, are facing the same problems. The firm planned on expanding to Hong Kong and Shanghai last year but pulled out because of global setbacks they’re facing.
The most substantial risk for law firms that are expanding globally is the clash of cultures in different countries, according to the American Lawyer. “Clients are deeply turned off when they walk into a room in Bogota and see me sitting there,” said Elliott Portnoy, Denton’s CEO, who is based in Washington.
On the other hand, the American Lawyer points out, there are definite benefits to a firm’s global expansion. Pantaleo went on to explain that the Swiss verein model works well for DLA Piper and other firms. The structure allows offices to work more independently while protecting each country’s revenue. The partners don’t have to worry about foreign tax policies, and the model makes it easier to adjust compensation and staffing.
View the full article from the Am Law Daily on the American Lawyer.
Contact Bill Sugarman, a legal recruiter, for more information.
Crain’s reported their annual list of Chicago’s largest law firms. The report, consisting of the top 25 firms in the city ranked by attorney headcount, is accurate as of June 30, 2016. The list includes the firms’ revenues, number of attorneys worldwide within each firm, and a breakdown of the number of attorneys in each practice. Two new firms joined the top 25 this year and two surpass the rest in terms of attorney headcount and revenue growth.
For over a decade, Kirkland & Ellis has remained number one with 574 local attorneys and firm wide revenue growth of 7.2 percent. Sidley Austin and Mayer Brown also managed to hold their respective positions on the list, coming in at number two and three. Jenner & Block had the highest percentage change on the top 25 this year, a 14 percent increase in both number of attorneys and revenue growth. Jenner, coming in at No. 4, now has 307 local attorneys. Winston & Strawn LLP ranked as the fifth largest firm, despite a 1.4 percent decrease in number of attorneys from last year. New to the list this year were Swanson Martin & Bell and SmithAmundsen in spots 22 and 23.
Similar to last year, almost half of the firms on the list experienced a decrease in the number of local attorneys. Schiff Hardin faced the biggest loss, an 18.8 percent drop from last year. Another was Locke Lord, which concurrently had the largest increase in revenue, a 40 percent rise to $597.2 million.
See the full article and rankings on Crain’s Chicago Business.
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The American Lawyer released this year’s national and regional midlevel firm rankings, based on a satisfaction survey of associate responses. The survey analyzes key workplace elements such as: compensation and benefits package, training and support, relations with partners and associates, satisfaction level of the work, billable hours’ policy, and management’s openness about strategies and partnership opportunities. The participating firms were ranked on a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest score possible.
On the national scale, Paul Hastings earned first place again. From a survey of 51 respondents, the firm received the highest satisfaction score, a 4.763 out of 5. In numerical order, the succeeding firms in the top 5 are: Los Angeles’-based O’Melveny & Myer, Cozen O’Connor based in Philadelphia, internationally-operated Clifford Chance, and nationally-based Gibson, Dunn, & Crutcher.
From a local perspective, the American Lawyer provides an overview of the top firms organized by major city. Of the top 18 markets, the scores are reflective of respondents only in that firm’s office in the designed city, not the firm as a whole. It comes as no surprise that national leader, Paul Hastings, is ranked No. 1 in multiple major cities, such as: Chicago, New York, Orange County, and Washington D.C. The same is true for nationally ranked No. 2 firm, O’Melveny, which is No. 1 in San Francisco and Silicon Valley. In the Texas market, Dallas’ top firm is Gibson Dunn, and in Houston, the leading firm is Orrick. In California, Chicago-based Winston & Strawn landed No. 1 in the Los Angeles market, and San Diego’s leading firm is Sheppard Mullin. No. 3 nationally ranked, Cozen O’Connor, leads the Philadelphia market.
See more of the highlights from the AmLaw National and Regional Midlevel Firm Rankings on the American Lawyer.
Contact Bill Sugarman for more information.
The gap in gender parity in the legal industry remains somewhat stagnant, but there are Big Law firms that have adopted new cultures and strategies to attract and retain women lawyers. The National Law Journal highlights those firms in their annual survey of the top 100 firms with the highest number of women attorneys. The rankings were based on survey responses from 254 of the 350 largest U.S. law firms.
New York-based Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewry is the leading firm for women again, a repeating factor since 2011. With 62 percent of its attorneys being women, and 48 percent of partners, Fragomen has been a frontrunner in retaining women attorneys for years. Partner, Cynthia Lange, who joined the firm in 1986, tells the American Lawyer, “It starts from the top. Even 30 years ago, they were fabulous at recognizing women.” Behind Fragomen, the top 5 on the list are: Minneapolis-based Foley & Mansfield; Ford & Harrison; Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete of Atlanta; and Best Best & Krieger of Riverside, California.
Employment firm Jackson Lewis, at No. 8, has promoted a number of part-time attorneys to partners, says Stephanie Adler-Paindiris, co-leader of the firms’ class actions and complex litigation practice group. Adler-Paindiris explains, “There’s an understanding from above about the importance of family and people’s lives.”
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison deputy chair, Valeria Radwaner, explains her firm’s outlook, “We have to give women visibility in the community, encourage them to take leadership positions and run practice groups. We encourage them to say, ‘Yes.’ That’s how they become leaders.” Paul Weiss at No. 31 is the highest ranked Big Law firm in New York that made the list, with 40 percent of its attorneys being women and 22 percent of partners. The firm has created programs designed to motivate women attorneys and develop their careers. Radwaner notes that programs alone don’t create meaningful change. She says, “At the end of the day, the program mixed with the tone from the top is really what I think makes the difference.”
See more of the highlights from the 2016 NLJ Top 100 Firms for Women on The American Lawyer.
Contact Bill Sugarman for more information.
The National Law Journal released the 2016 Intellectual Property Hot List: a special report recognizing 15 law firms that performed exceptionally well in intellectual property. In no particular ranking, each of the 15 firms stood out for handling remarkable IP cases in 2015. Ranging in size, from Biglaw to small, IP boutiques, some firms lead victorious cases that impacted major industries.
Jenner & Block gained recognition for saving rapper, Jay-Z, who faced a copyright infringement battle for using a sample of an Egyptian composer’s song in one of his own in 2000. Andrew Bart, partner at Jenner, argued and won the case on the first day of trial. The Chicago-based firm also claimed big wins on the patent side for their clients: Hospira Inc., Dow Chemical Co., and Nissan North American Inc. Attorneys at Jenner are now working on new litigation cases over the innovative technology associated with gene editing.
According to the NLJ report, California-based Cooley faced a $500 million patent infringement case representing Qualcomm Technologies Inc. against ParkerVision Inc. involving converting electromagnetic signs from high to low frequency. Timothy Teter, a younger generation partner at Cooley, argued the case, resulting in the three-judge panel reversing the original verdict.
Biglaw Kirkland & Ellis made the IP Hot List, in large part, due to their extraordinary patent litigation team. Kirkland partners, Dale Cendali and Daniel Bond, handled a copyright case for Nike Inc. in 2015. Photographer Jacobus Rentmeester accused the Nike brand of copying a 1984 photo he took for Life magazine of Michael Jorden to use for its famous “Jumpman” logo—a $2 billion brand. New York partner Greg Arovas told NLJ, “There’s really substantial trial work done by some of the less senior people in the department.”
Los Angeles-based Sheppard Mullin, a firm less than half the size of Kirkland, won a unanimous case against the U.S. Supreme Court. Incredibly, the case in point, Hana Financial v. Hana Bank, was one that had not been brought to the high court in almost 100 years. Sheppard also gained a notable win in its six-year litigation fight in Intellect Wireless v. HTC, ultimately resulting in the court awarding HTC Corp. $4.1 million. According to the National Law Journal, the firm’s IP practice has grown three times in size since 2006.
Among the other dominating Intellectual Property firms that made the 2016 IP Hot List were: Covington & Burling, Debevoise & Plimpton, Fish & Richardson, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, Goodwin Procter, Irell & Manella, Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton, Morrison & Foerster, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein & Fox, and Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr.
See more of the highlights from the NLJ 2016 IP Hot List on the National Law Journal.
Contact Bill Sugarman for more information.
The American Lawyer released the 14th annual A-List: an analysis and ranking of the 20 top Big Law firms. The firms that made the AmLaw A-List cut are the best-of-the-best and are rated according to performance in four key areas: financial success, pro bono commitment, diversity and associate satisfaction.
AmLaw Second Hundred firm, Irell & Manella, reigns in at Number 1 this year, proving that size isn’t everything, with only 126 lawyers. The Los Angeles-based firm made an impressive leap from the bottom of the list (No. 18 in 2015), due to a significant increase in associate satisfaction and pro bono scores. Kirkland & Ellis landed spot No. 8, slipping from fifth place last year, due to a decrease in the diversity category. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom took 16th place, thanks to the double-weighted revenue per lawyer category. Skadden moved up one spot, despite low associate satisfaction and decreasing diversity scores.
New firms added to the AmLaw A-List this year are: Chicago-based Jenner & Block, Covington & Burling out of Washington, D.C., and New York-based Willkie Farr & Gallagher. Those three firms forced out the following: Hughes Hubbard & Reed, Williams & Connolly, and Weil, Gotshal & Manges.
Additionally, the American Lawyer announced a list of the next 20 A-List firms (No. 21-40), the Ones to Watch. A few firms on the list made last year’s Top 20 but faced shortcomings in vital areas, forcing them out in 2016. Hughes Hubbard & Reed, previously a Top 20 A-List firm, faced a hit in the associate satisfaction category, knocking them down to Number 21. Chicago-based Winston & Strawn performed well, up from 57th to 34th place this year, thanks to a substantial increase in associate satisfaction.
Please contact Bill Sugarman , a legal recruiter, for more information.