Firm Profiles
IN-DEPTH RESEARCH REPORT
on Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz
- - Financial Information
- - Compensation
- - Billing Rates
- - Lateral Partner Moves
- - Pro bono
- - Key Contacts
Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz
- Designation: New York
- Head Count: 249
- Gross Revenues: $614,000,000
- Revenue Per Lawyer: $2,465,000
- Profits Per Partner: $4,975,000
- Year Over Year Change: 8
The Marines may be the few and the proud, but the partners at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz are the few and the profitable. Don’t be misled by the firm’s size: Manhattan–based Wachtell is a mergers and acquisitions powerhouse that consistently tops The Am Law 100 in key metrics like profits per partner and revenue per lawyer. In our 2011 Am Law 100 list, we calculated that Wachtell needed just 6.9 lawyers to create $10 million in partner compensation. The next–closest firm needed more than 12.
How does Wachtell do it? Famously tight–lipped, the firm isn’t about to reveal the secret sauce. But it is known to be extremely selective in the matters it takes on; Wachtell’s Web site goes so far as to note that “we generally do not handle routine matters.” Indeed, the firm specializes in meaty transactions—it represented Schering–Plough in its $41 billion acquisition by Merck & Co., Inc., and Bank of America Corporation in its $19 billion acquisition of Merrill Lynch and Co., Inc.—and counts takeovers (Wachtell invented the “poison pill” defense) and corporate governance among its bread–and–butter work. The firm was also a finalist in our 2012 Litigation Department of the Year contest for its general litigation work.
Not surprisingly, the hours its lawyers bill can seem preternatural, too, and the partnership track is typically an extended run of about eight years (some years, only a couple of upper–level associates get tapped). But the firm’s small size, prestige, and ability to give even its greenest lawyers substantial work on substantial cases has enabled it to home in on lawyers up for the challenge. Indeed, Wachtell tends to fare well on The American Lawyer’s annual Midlevel Associates Survey: It was thirteenth in 2010 (though that dropped to thirty–seventh in 2011). The legendary associate bonuses—north of 100 percent of base pay prerecession; less, but still well above average, after the downturn—probably don’t hurt. Even for the many lawyers who won’t make partner at Wachtell, the profitable firm is a profitable experience.
—Updated as of 1/1/12
Firm Rankings
| Survey | Rank | Year Over Year Change | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Am Law 100 | 48 | 8 | Gross revenue |
| Am Law 200 | 48 | 8 | Gross revenue |
| NLJ 250 | 166 | 2 | Lawyer head count |
| The A-List | NR | N/A | Overall excellence |
| Pro Bono Scorecard | 200 | no change | Pro-bono commitment |
| Diversity Scorecard | 113 | 26 | Minority head count |
| Midlevel Associates Survey | 37 | 24 | Job satisfaction |
| Summer Associates Survey | 85 | 12 | Summer programs |
In the News
Quinn Emanuel Takes Its Litigation Prowess Down Under
Brian Baxter : The Am Law Daily : May 9, 2013
Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan continues to grow, with its latest move to expand taking it to Australia. The world's largest litigation firm announced Thursday that it will open a Sydney office next month with the addition of Herbert Smith Freehills partners Michael Mills and Michelle Fox. Joining Mills and Fox in the Aussie outpost will be longtime Quinn Emanuel partner James Webster, who is relocating from Los Angeles.
Recognition of Offshore Insolvency Proceedings: 'Fairfield Sentry'
Harold S. Novikoff and Emil A. Kleinhaus : New York Law Journal : May 7, 2013
Harold S. Novikoff and Emil A. Kleinhaus, partners at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, write that Chapter 15 of the Bankruptcy Code, enacted in 2005, permits a representative designated in a foreign insolvency proceeding to avail itself of the U.S. bankruptcy courts if the foreign proceeding is 'recognized' as a 'foreign main' or 'foreign nonmain' proceeding.
Fenwick & West
Sheri Qualters : The National Law Journal : May 6, 2013
Kirkland, Wachtell Lead on $6.9 Billion BMC Software Sale
Tom Huddleston Jr. : The Am Law Daily : May 6, 2013
A year after waging a proxy battle with an activist investor over exploring a possible sale, BMC Software has agreed to be bought by an investment consortium led by buyout firms Bain Capital and Golden Gate Capital in a cash deal worth $6.9 billion. Kirkland & Ellis, Sidley Austin, and Willkie are advising the investors while Wachtell is representing BMC.
Morgenthau Lends Support To Ala. Inmate
Tania Karas : New York Law Journal : May 3, 2013
Death-row inmate Bill Kuenzel's case struck a chord, Former Manhattan D.A. Robert Morgenthau said, because it reminded him of the Central Park jogger case, in which the convictions of five young men were vacated in 2002 while he was district attorney.
Munger, Wachtell Lead on Berkshire's $2 Billion IMC Buy
Tom Huddleston Jr. : The Am Law Daily : May 1, 2013
Warren Buffett is on the hunt again, with his Berkshire Hathaway investment vehicle snapping up the 20 percent stake in Israel's IMC International Metalworking Companies it did not already own.
Value Per Lawyer: Wachtell On Top Again
: The American Lawyer : May 1, 2013
Big Wins
Jan Wolfe : The American Lawyer : May 1, 2013
Deals & Suits
: Corporate Counsel : May 1, 2013
The 2013 Am Law 100
: The American Lawyer : April 29, 2013
In fiscal 2012, The Am Law 100—which has a new leader in gross revenue this year—posted modest gains on all the key metrics.
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