The Am Law 100 2012

The American Lawyer

May 1, 2012

Illustration by Gerard Huerta

Related Items

25 Years of The Am Law 100

All the key financial metrics for The Am Law 100 rose by single digits last year: gross revenue, revenue per lawyer, and profits per partner. Eighty-three firms posted revenue gains—25 more than in the previous year. And the terrifying days of mass layoffs seemed to be over: Firms reversed course and added to their head count. Even equity partners, who sometimes seem like an endangered species, grew their ranks on average after two years of flat or negative growth. But as a rule, income inequality continued to plague the rankings. Both The Am Law 50 and The Am Law 51–100 reported 6 percent increases in gross, to totals of $50.9 billion and $20.1 billion, respectively. But the Fabulous 50 kept more of that money for their partners. This group posted average profits per partner of $1.6 million last year—a 4.8 percent jump—versus The Am Law 51–100's 1.4 percent PPP rise, to $1.1 million.

Previous Am Law 100 coverage :: 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007

THE CHARTS

INFOGRAPHIC: Click here for an interactive chart of four key metrics of law firm economics.

Gross Revenue: Vereins Top the List
This year Baker & McKenzie tops our chart and DLA Piper, another verein, comes in second, knocking Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom out of that position.
Gross Revenue By Location Subscription Required

Revenue Per Lawyer: A Slow Recovery Subscription Required

Growth in revenue per lawyer—the most reliable indicator of a firm's overall financial health—slowed to 1.9 percent in 2011.
Revenue Per Lawyer By Location Subscription Required

Profits Per Partner: Competition at the Top Subscription Required

Two firms have profits per partner that exceed $4 million in 2011: perennial leader Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz and Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan.
Profits Per Partner By Location Subscription Required

Compensation - All Partners: Partner Pay Edges Up Subscription Required

Nearly three-quarters of Am Law 100 firms posted increases in Compensation–All Partners in 2011.
Compensation - All Partners By Location Subscription Required

Value Per Lawyer: Wachtell Leads the Way Subscription Required

Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz has topped our Value Per Lawyer rankings since the metric's inception eight years ago.
Value Per Lawyer By Location Subscription Required

Methodology How we report law firm financials.

THE FEATURES

The Haves and the Haves Less The Am Law 100 improved its financial position in 2011, and the big winners were the firms at the top of the list.

Debuts And Departures Four firms climb onto The Am Law 100 list, and four others fall off.

Race to the Top How high can Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan fly?

Combo Craze For some law firms, becoming bigger, with its promise of added practice offerings, more locales, and a higher Am Law 100 ranking, remains a goal.

Edged Out Is this the end of an era for Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom?

Dewey & LeBoeuf: A Note The American Lawyer has revised the 2010 and 2011 financial results for Dewey & LeBoeuf in our annual Am Law 100 ranking.

Probing and Profiting Two firms that showed strong gains in 2011—Arnold & Porter and Baker & Hostetler—benefited from active practices involving special investigations.

Taking a Time-Out Three years ago, Fish & Richardson pulled in its horns, eliminating several practice groups and closing its three-year old Austin office. Have the moves paid off?

Subscribe to The American Lawyer