Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld has added a team of private equity partners in London and New York from Sidley Austin, including members returning to the firm, being Gerald Brant, Jeffrey Kochian and Brittany Harrison from Sidley Austin (pictured). The other is Jonathon Hamill who is recruited for the London office. The firm’s media […]
Akin Grump Sees Partners Return To The Fold in PE Recruitment Read More »
The firm that pays its partners $12 million a year just can’t stop losing them. Here’s why that paradox may be the most important story in Big Law right now.
Wachtell Lipton broke every profitability record in Am Law 100 history in 2026 — and watched nine partners walk out the door to rivals offering something the numbers alone couldn’t match. What’s really driving the exodus from Wall Street’s most envied firm, whether the lockstep model can survive the age of the $80 million guarantee, and what it all means for the future of elite legal practice: it’s all inside.
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$230bn in Five Days, Two Partners Out the Door – Wachtell’s High-Stakes Reckoning Read More »
A 30-person federal indictment has implicated attorneys from Wachtell, Latham, Willkie, Goodwin, Cleary, Sidley, Weil and DLA Piper in what prosecutors call one of the most sweeping M&A intelligence networks ever prosecuted on American soil.
The access a law firm grants its attorneys is built on a simple, foundational covenant: what comes through the door stays within those walls. For a decade, federal prosecutors allege, a network of Ivy League-trained lawyers decided that covenant was negotiable — and that confidential merger data was simply a different kind of billable asset.
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Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison has parted ways with several litigation associates following its annual performance review cycle, possibly marking a structural change from the relatively recently annointed firm chair Scott Barshay (pictured).
According to reporting by The American Lawyer, the New York-based firm, which has long prided itself on avoiding public layoffs, including during the 2008 financial crisis and the 2022 financial correction . . Log in to read more . . .
A&O Shearman has cut up to 20 business services roles in its London office as the firm continues its post-merger push for smarter, tech-driven operations. The reductions, which hit finance, marketing and IT teams, were confirmed by the firm on 7 May. No partners or fee-earning lawyers were affected. An A&O Shearman spokesperson said the
A&O Shearman Job Cuts Amidst Post-Merger Push For Tech-Driven Ops Read More »
Global law firm Freshfields announced today that Alessio Evangelista has joined the firm as a white collar defense and investigations partner in our Washington DC and New York offices. Alessio brings more than 18 years of experience serving in the U.S. Department of Justice and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) within the U.S. Department of Treasury. His practice
Former DoJ White Collar Defense Expert Joins Freshfields Read More »
Cleary Gottlieb announced that David Christmas will join the firm’s London office on May 5 as a partner in its top-tier Global Funds practice David’s practice focuses on fund formation across a range of alternative asset classes, and he also has significant experience in GP-led secondary transactions. “The continued expansion of our global funds and
Cleary Gottlieb London Office Recruits Seventh Partner Hire This Year Read More »
Sheppard has continued its aggressive expansion of its high-stakes patent litigation and trials practice, hiring a 15-lawyer intellectual property team from Perkins Coie, the firm announced Thursday. This follows the departures from the Seattle office earlier in the year. The new partners include Veronica Ascarrunz, Robin Brewer, Andrew Klein, Tom Millikan, and Joseph Reid. The
Sheppard Bolsters IP Litigation Powerhouse with 15-Lawyer Team from Perkins Coie Read More »
Davis Polk today announced that the firm will open an office in Los Angeles, its first in Southern California. The office will be led by leading litigator Jason Russell, who joins the firm today as a partner in the Civil Litigation practice. Partner Rob Morrison, who joined Davis Polk in 2025 to extend the reach
A decade ago, $6 million was considered a breathtaking partner payday at a top US law firm. Today, that figure barely cracks the Am Law 100’s top ten. The 2026 Am Law 100 rankings, reflecting 2025 financial performance, tell the story of an industry that has fundamentally reset what “profitable” means: $178.95 billion in aggregate revenues, a $12.15 million average payout for equity partners at Wachtell Lipton, and Kirkland & Ellis becoming the first law firm in history to surpass $10 billion in annual revenue.
The rich got richer, the gap widened, and almost nobody at the top is apologising for it.
Read the LawFuel review of the AmLaw 100 – login
$12 Million Paydays, a $10 Billion Firm, and Biglaw’s Best Run in Years Read More »
