Firm Profiles
IN-DEPTH RESEARCH REPORT
on Jones Day
- - Financial Information
- - Compensation
- - Billing Rates
- - Lateral Partner Moves
- - Pro bono
- - Key Contacts
Jones Day
- Designation: National
- Head Count: 2,363
- Gross Revenues: $1,716,000,000
- Revenue Per Lawyer: $725,000
- Profits Per Partner: $915,000
- Year Over Year Change: 1
By many measures, Jones Day is the archetypical megafirm: thousands of lawyers (2,502 at last count); hundreds of partners (828); dozens of offices across the globe (35 to be exact), and, of course, the requisite billion–dollar revenues (at just over $1.6 billion, the firm placed seventh by gross revenue on the 2011 Am Law 100 list). More than half of the Fortune 500 companies bring work to Jones Day, particularly for the firm’s strengths in antitrust, products liability, employment law, mergers and acquisitions, and litigation (Jones Day was The American Lawyer’s Litigation Department of the Year in 2002, a finalist in 2004, and has earned multiple honorable mentions since).
But in other respects, Jones Day marches to its own beat—and not just because started in Cleveland. The firm is famous for giving its managing partner an unprecedented level of responsibility—and power—in everything from setting each attorney’s pay to picking his or her successor. There are no bonuses and no lockstep compensation at Jones Day—and as the firm’s Web site takes pains to spell out, no pay formulas, period. Billing more hours than the next lawyer doesn’t guarantee a bigger payday (though we’re guessing it doesn’t hurt). As the site rather bluntly puts it: “We are not a shirt factory. ” Jones Day stands out in another way, too: It didn’t lay off lawyers or staff during the recession. The firm’s site explains: “We are a long–term institution; we do not manage to short–term metrics. ” If it did, the story might be very different, given that Jones Day’s rankings on some of the short–term metrics The American Lawyer tracks take it out of The Am Law 100 and put it in The Am Law 200 (116th in revenue per lawyer in 2011; 111th in profits per partner).
Jones Day has also made some bold moves, too. It was one of the first law firms to grow through merger, combining with another firm in 1939 and repeating the process numerous times since. It was one of the first firms based outside Washington, D.C., to open a D.C. office. Those decisions, of course, turned out to be winners. You don’t get to 2,500 lawyers placing bad bets.
—Updated as of 1/1/12
Firm Rankings
| Survey | Rank | Year Over Year Change | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Am Law 100 | 6 | 1 | Gross revenue |
| Am Law 200 | 6 | 1 | Gross revenue |
| NLJ 250 | 3 | no change | Lawyer head count |
| The A-List | NR | N/A | Overall excellence |
| Pro Bono Scorecard | 72 | 3 | Pro-bono commitment |
| Diversity Scorecard | 98 | 5 | Minority head count |
| Midlevel Associates Survey | 63 | 16 | Job satisfaction |
| Summer Associates Survey | 70 | 4 | Summer programs |
In the News
In Tobacco Litigation, State Wins Major Fee Award
Scott Graham : The Recorder : May 21, 2013
D.C. MOVES
: The National Law Journal : May 20, 2013
Summer Associates - charts
: Texas Lawyer : May 20, 2013
Latham Fights Disqualification In Freight Rail Class Action
Zoe Tillman : The National Law Journal : May 20, 2013
Latham & Watkins is fighting an attempt to disqualify the firm as lead trial counsel for Union Pacific Railroad, a defendant in multidistrict litigation over freight rail fuel surcharges.
The Churn: Lateral Moves in The Am Law 200
Diane Jeantet : The Am Law Daily : May 17, 2013
Andrews Kurth heads to London; Bingham McCutchen grabs seven lawyers in Tokyo; and a Munger, Tolles & Olson partner plans a move to the Southern Poverty Law Center. The Churn is constant. Please send all announcements to thechurn@alm.com.
On the Move
: The Recorder : May 17, 2013
A weekly report of lawyer moves and law firm changes. Keep abreast of where movers and shakers are going and what they're doing.
Asia Deal Digest: May 16, 2013
Tom Brennan : The Asian Lawyer : May 16, 2013
* Davis Polk on a $4 billion bond offering for China's CNOOC* Allen & Overy advising Sinopec Engineering on its $2.7 billion IPO* Four Wall Street firms take on AsiaInfo-Linkage's $890 million take-private deal
Jones Day, Simpson Reprise Roles on Shopping Center Swap
Brian Baxter : The Am Law Daily : May 15, 2013
Real estate investment trust DDR Corp. has turned to Jones Day for counsel on its $1.46 billion purchase of a portfolio of 30 prime shopping centers from its existing joint venture with The Blackstone Group and the private equity firm's longtime lawyers at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett.
The Churn: Lateral Moves in The Am Law 200
Diane Jeantet : The Am Law Daily : May 14, 2013
Dickstein Shapiro loses a partner to Jones Day in Washington, D.C.; Bryan Cave poaches five attorneys from Sutherland Asbill & Brennan; and a former Dewey & LeBoeuf partner, most recently with Linklaters, joins KPMG. The Churn is constant. Please send all announcements to thechurn@alm.com.
Litigation Department Of The Year Winner: Pullman & Comley's Practice Takes Aim At Free Speech Rule
ROBIN DeMERELL : The Connecticut Law Tribune : May 13, 2013
For its efforts handling employment lawsuits, Pullman & Comley won the Law Tribune Litigation Department of the Year award in the Labor & Employment category. With 10 lawyers assigned to the practice group, the firm of 83 attorneys in Bridgeport, Hartford and three other offices handles all types of employment matters in state and federal courts.
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