Firm Profiles
IN-DEPTH RESEARCH REPORT
on Mayer Brown LLP
- - Financial Information
- - Compensation
- - Billing Rates
- - Lateral Partner Moves
- - Pro bono
- - Key Contacts
Mayer Brown
- Designation: International
- Head Count: 1,457
- Gross Revenues: $1,091,500,000
- Revenue Per Lawyer: $750,000
- Profits Per Partner: $1,150,000
- Year Over Year Change: 2
Today’s Mayer Brown is the progeny of three firms, on three continents, that came together during the first decade of the 2000s. In 2002 Chicago–based Mayer, Brown & Platt merged with the English firm Rowe & Maw—a combination that merged, in turn, with Hong Kong-based Johnson Stokes & Master (JSM) in 2008. Together the firms, all with roots that go back to the nineteenth century, created an industry giant.
While Mayer Brown’s roughly 1,600 lawyers are based in 20 offices, about half are in the U.S. with Chicago, its biggest. The legacy–JSM outposts remain strong in Asia, with offices in Bangkok, Beijing, Guangzhou, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, and Shanghai. A Singapore office that opened in September 2011 is the most recent addition, and has a practice focused on energy and project finance, as well as international arbitration.
As one would expect from a firm of Mayer Brown’s size and reach, its practice covers virtually all legal disciplines, including banking, bankruptcy, international trade, employment law, environmental law, intellectual property, real estate, and tax. Mayer Brown’s litigation practice—which contributes about 30 percent of the firm’s revenue—earned a finalist spot in The American Lawyer’s 2012 Litigation Department of the Year contest, thanks to a string of successes including U.S. Supreme Court advocacy for AT&T Mobility LLC, copyright defense for Google’s YouTube, and work for Medtronic, Inc, Quicken Loans Inc., and Cargill Inc.
The firm has seen some rougher patches as well. The recession hit Mayer Brown relatively hard, forcing several rounds of attorney layoffs (substantially trimming the firm’s peak head count of 1,801 in 2008), and two consecutive years of revenue drops before a swing upward in 2011. In the midst of the broad economic downturn, the firm had internal struggles that spilled over into public view including a succession struggle and some prominent partner defections. Those dust–ups have left the headlines.
In other, nonfinancial metrics, Mayer Brown ranks in the middle of the pack, placing eighty–fourth of 126 firms on The American Lawyer’s 2011 Midlevel Associates Survey and ninety–sixth of 194 firms on the magazine’s Diversity Scorecard 2011. Its pro bono scores, however, were higher: The firm ranked fifty–second out of 200 firms in 2011, with attorneys racking up an average of 60 hours on pro bono matters. With 1,600 lawyers, Mayer Brown is not just doing good, but doing a lot of it.
—Updated as of 1/1/12
Firm Rankings
| Survey | Rank | Year Over Year Change | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Am Law 100 | 16 | 2 | Gross revenue |
| Am Law 200 | 16 | 2 | Gross revenue |
| NLJ 250 | 11 | 1 | Lawyer head count |
| The A-List | NR | N/A | Overall excellence |
| Pro Bono Scorecard | 52 | 25 | Pro-bono commitment |
| Diversity Scorecard | 103 | 7 | Minority head count |
| Midlevel Associates Survey | 84 | N/A | Job satisfaction |
| Summer Associates Survey | 35 | 4 | Summer programs |
In the News
MOVERS
: The National Law Journal : April 29, 2013
John Cherundolo joins Hiscock & Barclay's torts and products liability practice as of counsel. Plus more law firm movers in this week's column.
For IP Litigator, Move to DLA is Ninth Stop in Peripatetic Career
Victor Li : The Am Law Daily : April 24, 2013
After stints at eight other firms during his nearly 40-year legal career, intellectual property litigator Paul Gupta has landed at DLA Piper. The 63-year-old Gupta, who was most recently with Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe, chalks up the moves to the changing nature of his practice over time.
Miami's Sabadell Financial Center sells for $184 million
Eric Kalis : Daily Business Review : April 22, 2013
The Sabadell Financial Center in Miami's financial district has sold for $184 million to a Prudential-managed investment company.
Justices Limit Reach of Alien Tort Law
Marcia Coyle : The National Law Journal : April 19, 2013
The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday sharply limited the reach of a federal law used to hold corporations and others accountable for human rights abuses committed abroad. But human rights lawyers predicted additional litigation over how much of the federal courthouse door was left ajar.
Justices Limit Reach of Alien Tort Statute
Marcia Coyle : The National Law Journal : April 18, 2013
The U.S. Supreme Court yesterday sharply limited the reach of a federal law used to hold corporations and others accountable for human rights abuses committed abroad. But human rights lawyers predicted additional litigation over how much of the federal courthouse door was left ajar.
Justices Struggle With Indian Adoption Case
Marcia Coyle : The National Law Journal : April 18, 2013
Arguments in a complicated and wrenching American Indian child adoption case had at least one U.S. Supreme Court justice Tuesday wishing for a modern-day King Solomon.
Justices Struggle With a Rare Domestic Relations Case
Marcia Coyle : The National Law Journal : April 17, 2013
Arguments in a complicated and wrenching Indian child adoption case had at least one U.S. Supreme Court justice yesterday wishing for a modern-day King Solomon.
High Court Limits Reach of Tort Law
Marcia Coyle : The National Law Journal : April 17, 2013
The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday sharply limited the reach of a federal law used to hold corporations and others accountable for human rights abuses committed abroad. But human rights lawyers predicted additional litigation over how much of the federal courthouse door was left ajar.
Supreme Court Struggles With Indian Adoption Case
Marcia Coyle : The National Law Journal : April 16, 2013
- Adams and Reese
- Anderson Kill & Olick
- Arent Fox
- Arthur Cox
- Baker & McKenzie
- Buist Moore
- Chadbourne & Parke
- Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
- Clifford Chance
- Cooley
- Covington & Burling
- Cravath, Swaine & Moore
- Davis Polk & Wardwell
- Dewey & LeBoeuf
- Dickstein Shapiro
- DLA Piper
- Duane Morris
- Eversheds
- Fish & Richardson
- Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson
- Gunderson Dettmer Stough Villeneuve Franklin & Hachigian
- Heller Ehrman
- Howrey
- Irwin Mitchell
- Jenner & Block
- K&L Gates
- Kasowitz, Benson, Torres & Friedman
- Kirkland & Ellis
- Latham & Watkins
- Linklaters
- Mallesons Stephen Jaques
- Moore & Van Allen
- Morgan, Lewis & Bockius
- Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough
- Nexsen Pruet
- Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,
- Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe
- Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein
- Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker
- Perkins Coie
- Proskauer Rose
- Reed Smith
- Ropes & Gray
- Ruden McClosky
- Shearman & Sterling
- Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton
- Simpson Thacher & Bartlett
- Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom
- Slaughter and May
- Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal
- Sullivan & Cromwell
- Vinson & Elkins
- Weil, Gotshal & Manges
- Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr
- Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice
