An alleged ‘boys’ club’ culture at top firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan has been denied by the firm following the firing of a former associate who raised issues around the culture and alleged discrimination and racial minorities, among other matters.
The top partners at the firm denied the claims made by the former female associate in a discrimination lawsuit.
Quinn Emanuel has created a culture that paints the firm as the one business most fears as an opponent in lawsuits. The firm boasts of the accolade on its website following a survey undertaken by BTI Consulting for Litigation Outlook 2020.
(The other ‘fearsome four’ in the BTI survey include Jones Day, Kirkland & Ellis and Latham & Watkins make up the remainder of its ‘fearsome foursome’.)
The firm focused on litigation with its 23 offices undertaking a number of so-called ‘mega trials’, such as its representation of Ukraine before the London Supreme Court over a $3 billion Russian Eurobond deal that lead to conflict between the two countries.
It is also undertaking a major multi-billion class action case for 46 million consumers against Mastercard over anticompetitive interchange fees, the largest-ever case brought in an English court.
It has also used the #Metoo movement to generate litigation work, as we have reported.
The culture of the firm is one of high performance and high expectations that have helped lay the groundwork for the current claim by the former associate over alleged discrimination.
