Skip to main content

BigLaw Money Report: Which Firms Are Making Bank?

By Jonathan R. Tung, Esq. on May 04, 2016 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

Even though there has been a palpable change in the mood as to the continued viability of the large law firm model, BigLaw still is a crowd-drawer. Consumers and practitioners alike are always interested the latest on BigLaw scandals, career prospects, and money reports.

Well, this time it's money. This year, the biggest winner in the gross revenue category is Latham & Watkins, hardly surprising. What's the number to top next year? $2.65 billion.

King of the Hill

Latham & Watkins extends its winning reputation as the premiere BigLaw firm of the US at $2.65 billion in revenue for the last year, according to American Lawyer.

Biggest Winners

The firm that earned the highest gains in gross revenue wasn't Latham at all, but another large firm not often mentioned: Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz. What's noteworthy of this New York firm (aside from their sick logo) is that, by comparison, they can hardly be called "large" at all. At 265 attorneys, they're positively diminutive by comparison to some BigLaw firms. But, hey, that's okay. Fewer mouths to feed means a greater feast.

Biggest Losers

Hughs, Hubbard & Reed really took it on the chin with an 8.6 percent drop in their revenues. Mercifully, being in the drop pile is not a lonely place. Other firms reported double digit drops in both net income and profits -- Arnold & Porter being the more noteworthy of them.

Other firms whose numbers fell include Quinn Emmanuel and K&L Gates (yes, the scandal firm).

The Top 10

Here is the top 10 BigLaw Am100 firms with the highest revenue for the 2015 year, according to the ABA Journal.

  1. Latham & Watkins, with $2.65B in revenue and 2,177 lawyers
  2. DLA Piper, with $2.543B in revenue and 3,756 lawyers
  3. Baker & McKenzie, with $2.43B in revenue and 4,363 lawyers
  4. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, with $2.41B in revenue and 1,677 lawyers
  5. Kirkland & Ellis, with $2.305B in revenue and 1,619 lawyers
  6. Jones Day, with $1.941B in revenue and 2,562 lawyers
  7. Sidley Austin, with $1.867B in revenue and 1,779 lawyers
  8. Morgan Lewis, with $1.844B in revenue and 1,880 lawyers
  9. Hogan Lovells, with $1.821B in revenue and 2,516 lawyers
  10. Norton Rose Fulbright, with $1.737B in revenue and 3,372 lawyers

Related Resources:

Copied to clipboard