Firm Profiles
IN-DEPTH RESEARCH REPORT
on Arnold & Porter LLP
- - Financial Information
- - Compensation
- - Billing Rates
- - Lateral Partner Moves
- - Pro bono
- - Key Contacts
Arnold & Porter
- Designation: Washington, D.C.
- Head Count: 748
- Gross Revenues: $731,000,000
- Revenue Per Lawyer: $975,000
- Profits Per Partner: $1,425,000
- Year Over Year Change: 7
While its practice areas include everything you’d expect at a major market law firm—from litigation and antitrust to corporate real estate and intellectual property—Arnold & Porter’s trump card has always been its status as an “insider” among the Washington, D.C., law firms. Its three founders (among them Abe Fortas, who would later become a U.S. Supreme Court justice and Thurman Arnold, the legal polymath—professor, antitrust crusdader, federal appeals court judge) had all been high–ranking officials during the New Deal era. That tradition continues with more than 80 of the firm’s partners having served in government positions within the Federal Trade Commission, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the U.S.Department of Justice, and even Congress. Arnold & Porter was D.C.’s second–largest firm by lawyer head count in 2011 (roughly 60 percent of the firm’s lawyers work out of Washington), and the firm’s strengths have long included its regulatory, policy, and appellate work.
Arnold & Porter has been a fairly regular presence on The American Lawyer’s A–List, which tracks the top 20 U.S. firms according to revenue per lawyer, diversity, pro bono work, and associate satisfaction. But while the firm ranked in the top ten on that list in 2008 and 2009, it dropped to seventeenth in 2010 and fell off entirely in 2011. One reason might be slumping morale among associates: Arnold & Porter ranked 109th of 126 firms on The American Lawyer’s 2011 Midlevel Associates Survey (it was 106th of 137 firms in 2010).
Like some of its fellow D.C. firms, Arnold & Porter has one of the most active pro bono practices among The Am Law 100, ranking fourteenth in 2011, with attorneys averaging just over 111 hours of pro bono work. Diversity has long been another of the firm’s strong suits. Indeed, Arnold & Porter was the first major D.C. firm to name an African American partner, and by 2011 nearly 20 percent of its U.S. attorneys identified themselves as a minority (including almost 10 percent of the firm’s partners).
—Updated as of 1/1/12
Firm Rankings
| Survey | Rank | Year Over Year Change | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Am Law 100 | 37 | 7 | Gross revenue |
| Am Law 200 | 37 | 7 | Gross revenue |
| NLJ 250 | 56 | 1 | Lawyer head count |
| The A-List | 22 | 3 | Overall excellence |
| Pro Bono Scorecard | 14 | 12 | Pro-bono commitment |
| Diversity Scorecard | 24 | 2 | Minority head count |
| Midlevel Associates Survey | 109 | 3 | Job satisfaction |
| Summer Associates Survey | 14 | 5 | Summer programs |
In the News
VOLS Firms Meet Pro Bono 2012 Pledge
Bill Lienhard : New York Law Journal : May 3, 2013
'Savior of Baseball' Gets Another Crack at Legal Issues
Tony Mauro : The National Law Journal : May 3, 2013
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who earned the title of "savior of baseball" in 1995 as the judge who ended a lengthy players' strike, will revisit the legal issues surrounding the sport next month.
Increase Commitment to Those in Need
Stewart D. Aaron : New York Law Journal : May 1, 2013
Although equality for all is closer now than it was at the time of NYCLA's founding 105 years ago, progress still needs to be made to make this dream a reality. Equality in the courts continues to be an issue confronting our nation, particularly for those in financial need.
Sotomayor, Who 'Saved Baseball,' Gets Another Crack at the Sport's Legal Issues
Tony Mauro : ALM Media : April 30, 2013
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who in 1995 earned the title of "savior of baseball" as the judge who ended a lengthy players' strike, will revisit the legal issues surrounding the sport next month in a reenactment of the 1972 decision that upheld Major League Baseball's antitrust exemption.
Importance of a Writing Under New York Law
Stewart D. Aaron : New York Law Journal : April 26, 2013
Arnold & Porter partner Stewart D. Aaron writes that while the necessity of a writing in many cases should be quite evident, New York courts are continually faced with lawsuits brought by parties who relied on oral modifications despite a contract's requirements. A recent First Department decision provides a clear example of how required writings cannot be avoided.
Suits to Watch
Tom Coster, Julie Triedman : The American Lawyer : April 25, 2013
Starr International Company v. The United States; Cablevision Systems v. Viacom International; Dahl v. Bain Capital Partners et al.
IRS Cannot Subpoena Law Firm's Documents Concerning Tax Client
Mary Pat Gallagher : New Jersey Law Journal : April 25, 2013
A New Jersey law firm won't have to turn over documents to the government for use in a tax case over $77 million in capital losses claimed by a client.
'Savior of Baseball' Makes Return
Tony Mauro : The National Law Journal : April 24, 2013
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who earned the title of "savior of baseball" in 1995 as the judge who ended a lengthy players' strike, will revisit the legal issues surrounding the sport next month.
Access to Justice Program Celebrates Milestone
: New York Law Journal : April 22, 2013
The state court system's Access to Justice Program hosted a reception on April 18 to celebrate its Volunteer Lawyer for the Day project serving 10,000 consumer debt defendants.
IN BRIEF
: The National Law Journal : April 22, 2013
The wife of a former justice of the peace was arrested April 18 on allegations of capital murder in the slayings of the Kaufman County, Texas, district attorney, his wife and one of his assistant prosecutors. Plus more in our weekly roundup of Web-only stories from NLJ.com and other ALM publications.
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