Tom Borman

Tom Borman is a regular LawFuel contributor writing on the top law firms and best law firm lists in American law. He has written recently about law firm pay rates, major law firms like Kirkland & Ellis, law firm SEO and related legal matters. He can be contacted through news@lawfuel.com

Dechert Raids McDermott With 20‑Partner Team as It Re‑Enters Chicago and Targets Texas

Headlining, LawStars /

Dechert has fired the opening shot of 2026’s lateral wars, lifting a 20‑plus partner team – including a top‑ranked complex litigation and accounting defense squad – from McDermott and using it as the launchpad for new offices in Chicago, Dallas and a disputes outpost in Houston.

Dechert has brought in more than 20 lateral partners across litigation, corporate and securities, IP and employment from McDermott Will & Schulte, anchored by a preeminent U.S. complex litigation practice and a Chambers Band 1 accounting defense team.

The group is led by Chicago trial and strategy heavyweight law star Mike Poulos, formerly partner in charge of global strategy and an executive committee member at McDermott, who becomes Dechert’s vice chair and global head of strategy.

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Willkie Farr Hit With $735m Fraud Suit: Franchise Group, Conflicts And Big Law Risk

Big Law, Featured, US Law /

Willkie Farr & Gallagher is now at the centre of a $735 million fraud suit that doubles as a warning shot for Big Law about conflicts, gatekeeper liability and deal‑side risk management.​ The firm has already been stung by a major talent walkout last year over its deal with the Trump administration. BRC Group Holdings

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BigLaw’s $4.6 Trillion Year Sees Kirkland & Top Firms Dominate

Big Law, Headlining, UK Law /
top law firm salaries

M&A Market Soars to Record $4.6 Trillion Tom Borman, LawFuel contributing editor BigLaw firms continue to sit at the top table when it comes to mega deals with the market showing 2025 deals valued at $4.6 trillion in global transaction value – a 49 percent surge over 2024 figures, according to the London Stock Exchange

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From Assange to Maduro – Law Star Barry Pollack’s Great Gamble in the Most Unlikely U.S. Trial

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From WikiLeaks to Venezuela: Barry Pollack Takes on the Maduro Defense in a Case That Could Reshape International Law Tom Borman, LawFuel contributor Fresh from orchestrating Julian Assange’s dramatic release from a British prison cell, Washington power lawyer Barry Pollack has now assumed what may prove to be the most geopolitically important defense case of

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Big Law’s Capital Squeeze Sees Partners Pay Up, Firms Power On

Big Law, Headlining /
Biglawpay

The legal profession has always had a peculiar relationship with money. Partners, after all, are supposed to be owners of their firms, yet increasingly, they’re being asked to prove their commitment with their wallets.

Welcome to the world of capital contributions, where making equity partner isn’t just about your billable hours anymore. It’s about how much cash you can pony up to join the club.
Here’s the thing about Big Law’s approach to partner capital: there isn’t one.

Survey data from about 80 Am Law 200 firms reveals a system that’s, to put it charitably, all over the shop.
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US Law Firms Double Down on Super Size London Takeover

Big Law, Headlining, UK Law /
us law firms london

US law firms have turned London into their most important international bridgehead, increasing their lawyer ranks in the City by nearly 60 percent over the past decade and reshaping the U.K. legal market in the process.​

The number of lawyers working in London offices of U.S.-headquartered firms rose from 4,889 in 2015 to 7,710 by the end of 2024, a 58 percent increase over ten years.​
In total, 84 U.S. firms now have a London presence, underlining the City’s role as the key European hub for U.S. practices.
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Top European Firms Are Letting Gen AI Draft First – And Partners Aren’t Complaining

Headlining, Law Firms, Legal AI /
Lawyers and AI - Why worry?

European law firms have finally found something that can draft faster than a sleep‑deprived mid‑level – and it doesn’t ask for a bonus or threaten to lateral. New research from The Global Legal Post and LexisNexis shows leading firms in Germany, Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands quietly handing first‑draft duty to generative AI tools, especially for contracts and complex commercial documents.​

The focus is not sci‑fi robot lawyers, but something far more radical for BigLaw, making use of the knowledge the firm already has.

By plugging Gen AI into internal precedents, know‑how banks and document automation systems, these firms are generating “house style” drafts that reflect prior deals, client preferences and jurisdiction‑specific quirks rather than yet another generic template no one quite trusts.​

Senior partners say the attraction is simple providing better quality at lower cost, delivered with guardrails around confidentiality and auditability that won’t make the GC’s risk committee choke either.
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The Public Want Blood: Class Action Awareness Hits Five-Year Peak

Briefings, Featured, Press Releases, UK Law /
class action lawsuits in UK

The British public have developed rather a taste for watching corporations squirm in court. Portland’s latest Reputation and Accountability report reveals that awareness of class actions has reached its highest level since 2020. The citizenry are increasingly keen to see litigation deployed as a cudgel against corporate misbehaviour.

Based on a poll of nearly 2,000 UK adults, the study shows 27 percent now report high awareness of class actions, up from 24 percent last year. This is despite the Competition Appeal Tribunal experiencing a slight dip in filings during 2024. The public, as Portland drily observes, is starting to notice. Log in to read more . . .

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Reddit Ranks Law Firms by How Cool They Sound (Spoiler: Most Don’t)

Best Firms, Law Firms, Law Marketing /
law firm branding - top sounding law firm list - reddit law - Lawfuel

BigLaw’s Sonic Boom And The Definitive Ranking of Law Firm Names That Actually Slap Tom Borman, LawFuel writer Let’s be honest: when you’re picking a law firm, the first thing you care about is whether the name sounds like it could crush your enemies in court… or whether it sounds like the accountant your mum

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Boutique Torpedoes BigLaw Bonus Scale With US$172K Payou

Big Law Salary Scale, Featured, Law Firms, US Law /
boutique law bonus - exceeds big law bonus - lawfuel & biglaw bonus schedule

The bonus wars were starting to look boring with the announced payouts we just reported, then a boutique firm waltzed in and lit a match under the whole market.

According to Above the Law, Wilkinson Stekloff (the litigation boutique that basically runs on caffeine, confidence and extraordinary trial results) has thrown down year-end associate bonuses ranging from US$22,500 to US$172,500. – Read more on LawFuel . .

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