April 2009 Issue of The American Lawyer Provides Top Ten List.
Who says lawyers are recession proof? Not at all, according to a top ten list of large law firms that have laid off nonpartner attorneys in recent times, as surveyed in an article printed in the April 2009 issue of The American Lawyer.
Here is the top ten plus honorable mention list according to the April 2009 article, specifying number of nonpartner attorneys cut and percentage cut from nonpartner population:
- Orrick (CA headquartered) — 140 cut; 19.86%;
- White & Case (N.Y. hdqtr) — 270 cut; 15.43%;
- Pillsbury (CA hdqtr) — 55 cut; 14.29%;
- Cooley (CA hdqtr) — 52 cut; 12.97%;
- Bryan Cave (Midwest hdqtr) — 58 cut; 11.22%;
- Latham (CA hdqtr) — 190 cut; 10.84%;
- McDermott (Midwest hdqtr) — 60 cut; 10.64%;
- Faegre & Benson (Fla hdqtr) — 29 cut; 10.62%;
- Proskauer (N.Y. hdqtr) — 58 cut; 10.58%; and
- Wilson Sonsini (CA hdqtr) — 45 cut; 10.09%.
Honorable mention went to Holland & Knight (Fla. headquartered), which cut 70 lawyers—a high score, but with the cuts also inclusive of partner layoffs.
Interestingly enough, the top ten layoffs were dominated by California- and Midwest-headquartered firms. The only explanation coming from the article was that New York firms have a different culture and management style, with layoffs “not in their DNA.” At least two large New York firms—Weil, Gotshal and Sullivan & Cromwell—dodged layoffs because of their involvement in restructuring work.
For more information, see Vivia Chen’s article, “And The Winner Is …” in the April 2009 The American Lawyer at page 24.