Short Description
Founded in Los Angeles in 1890 — at a time when the city had fewer than 50,000 inhabitants and California law was still being written — Gibson Dunn has grown into one of the most powerful and strategically aggressive law firms in the world, and is currently in the middle of one of the most consequential growth phases in its 135-year history.
Under Chair and Managing Partner Barbara Becker, who took the helm in 2021 and relocated from New York to London at the start of 2025 to personally lead the firm’s European expansion, Gibson Dunn has posted 29 consecutive years of revenue growth, reaching $3.6 billion in 2024 — a 16% year-on-year increase — with PEP soaring 28% to $7.2 million.
The London office, generating $238 million annually, is the firm’s fastest-growing internationally, with the firm having executed a systematic lateral hiring campaign that has pulled partners from A&O Shearman, Linklaters, Sullivan & Cromwell, Milbank and others. Gibson Dunn’s identity is built on what it calls “destination practices” — areas where it intends to be the market’s first call — and on a reputation for the highest-stakes, most politically charged legal work in America.
The firm has represented Donald Trump, Apple, Chevron, the city of Grants Pass before the Supreme Court, and some of the most significant private equity sponsors globally. It is a firm that courts controversy as readily as it courts clients, and whose political and cultural profile in 2025 is as distinctive as its financial one.
Market Tier
Global Elite — ranked 5th on the Am Law 200 and 6th on the Global 200 by revenue at $3.6 billion, with 2,228 attorneys. PEP of $7.2 million in 2024 places Gibson Dunn 7th globally, in the same elite tier as Davis Polk, Simpson Thacher and Paul Weiss. The combination of rapid revenue growth, rising PEP, and deliberate office expansion makes Gibson Dunn one of the most closely watched strategic stories in global law right now.
Global Spread / Office Footprint
More than 2,200 attorneys across 22 offices in North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. US offices: Los Angeles (HQ), Century City, New York, Washington DC, San Francisco, Palo Alto, Orange County, Dallas, Denver and Houston. International: London, Paris, Brussels, Frankfurt, Munich, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Beijing, Hong Kong, Singapore and São Paulo.
In late 2024 and through 2025 Gibson Dunn scaled its offices in Riyadh and Abu Dhabi to capture Vision 2030-driven deal flow and sovereign wealth fund activity. The London office, under new co-heads Robert Carr and a disputes partner, is the strategic priority — the firm promoted 11 London lawyers to partner in 2025, its largest-ever London cohort, accounting for around a quarter of the firm’s global intake.
Practice Profile
What They’re Known For: Private equity (M&A and fund formation), high-stakes litigation, international arbitration, appellate and constitutional law, mergers and acquisitions, white collar defence and government investigations, energy and infrastructure, executive compensation
Where They’re Building: London is the most visible current growth front — private equity, private credit, finance and restructuring are the declared priorities, with the firm executing a systematic lateral hiring strategy to build full-service capability in the City. Recent London mandates include advising Apollo on its $745 million financing secured against Virgin Atlantic’s Heathrow slots and advising on the $2.7 billion Soho House buyout.
In the US, the firm’s regulatory and government investigations practice is growing rapidly in the current political environment — Gibson Dunn has deep connections to the current administration through multiple partners with government experience, and is well-positioned to advise companies navigating the most consequential regulatory period in a generation. The firm committed over $150 million to digital transformation and AI through 2026,integrating generative AI into litigation and transactional workflows.
Revenue & Financials (2024)
Gross revenue of $3.6 billion, up 15.7% year-on-year — consistent with the firm’s history of double-digit revenue growth since Barbara Becker’s tenure began in 2021. PEP increased 28.4% to $7.2 million.
The London office contributed $238 million of total revenue. The 28% jump in PEP was achieved alongside a 10% reduction in the equity partnership — a deliberate tightening that concentrates returns and signals the firm’s intention to compete at the very top of the PEP rankings rather than grow headcount for its own sake. The 2024 result marks the firm’s 29th consecutive year of revenue growth — a record unmatched by any firm of comparable size in BigLaw.
Pay & Career Progression
London: NQ salary of £180,000 — joint highest in the City alongside Quinn Emanuel and Davis Polk. Trainee salaries of £60,000 in year one and £65,000 in year two. US associates are paid on the full Cravath scale from $225,000 at year one to $435,000 at year eight or above, with market-rate year-end bonuses.
Pipeline: Gibson Dunn currently takes on around 10 trainees per year in London, increasing to 15 from September 2027. The firm recruits preferentially through its vacation scheme. London trainees can take seats in dispute resolution (arbitration, investigations, litigation), corporate, energy, competition, tax, technology, real estate, finance and restructuring, employment, projects and asset finance.
An international secondment to the Abu Dhabi office is currently available, with the firm indicating it continuously reviews additional secondment options as the office network grows. The firm offers pro bono work on a 1:1 billable credit basis, unusual and meaningful in a market where pro bono is often a lower priority.
Culture Snapshot Gibson Dunn’s culture is, in 2025, impossible to describe without reference to its political profile — and the firm does not try to avoid that profile. It has represented Donald Trump in multiple matters, acted for fossil fuel companies in First Amendment litigation, defended Apple against a £1.5 billion class action, and represented the city of Grants Pass in the Supreme Court case allowing bans on homeless encampments in public spaces. Among the ranks of its London partnership is Charles Falconer, who served as Lord Chancellor and justice secretary under Tony Blair, a signal that the firm’s political range in the UK is deliberately broader than its US reputation might suggest.
Internally, the firm describes a “free market” system that gives lawyers flexibility to chart their own career goals rather than a rigid seat rotation — associates are expected to be entrepreneurial about building their practice from early on.
The culture is demanding, the hours are significant, and the work is genuinely high-profile. For lawyers who want to work on the most contested, highest-stakes matters in the market — and who are comfortable with a firm that does not shy away from controversy in the clients it represents or the positions it takes — Gibson Dunn is one of the most compelling and distinctive destinations in global law right now.