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NYLJ

Net Losses Outweigh Gains at Firms,

While Government Ofice Head Counts Increase

BY CHRISTINE SIMMONS

decreasing by about 16 percent to 112 ship, some partners and associates left Lorie Almon and John Napoli, co-man-
BY CHRISTINE SIMMONS
attorneys, and Allen & Overy, shrinking the irm, while the irm also experienced aging partners of Seyfarth Shaw’s New
13 percent to 138 attorneys, according to natural attrition, the spokesman said.
York ofice, said activity in transactional
THE NUMBER of attorneys employed full survey results.
After years of head count gains in New and real estate work, including inance,

time by the largest private law ofices in Several of those irms, however, dis- York, the survey results show Quinn acquisitions and development, has led to a
New York continues to decline, a trend puted those igures and maintained that Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan dropping need to bulk up those departments. “Real
that began with the 2008 inancial crisis, the drop in head count was lower, or by about 12 percent to 246 attorneys. estate has really heated up,” Napoli said.
according to data gathered for the New due to the irm’s method of organizing But Quinn Emanuel said in a statement Seyfarth has roots in Chicago.
York Law Journal’s annual NYLJ 100 sur- its attorneys.
that it recently stopped counting full-time Lisa Sotto, who leads the New York
vey. Hiring is up, however, among regional Carmine Iannaccone, managing direc- contract attorneys, whose numbers can ofice of Hunton, which was founded in
and out-of-state irms.
tor of Epstein Becker, said the irm’s head luctuate signiicantly depending on case Virginia, said the irm hired many associ-
This year’s NYLJ 100 ranks law irms by count last year was about 99, including demands. The irms submitted revised ates last year, driven by activity in real
their total number of full-time equivalent a few who split their time between New full-time equivalent figures to the Law estate, capital finance and structured

lawyers in all of a irm’s New York state Jersey and New York. Iannaccone said any Journal that relected a 27-attorney rise, inance work.
ofices in 2013.
slight head count decline in 2013 was due but an overall full time head count of 224 At Buffalo-based Goldberg Segalla, most
Among these 100 law ofices, 53 saw a to a real estate group leaving the irm, as for last year.
of the growth was in the irm’s Manhat-
net loss of New York attorneys from 2012 Epstein Becker focuses more on health tan ofice, which opened in 2012. Richard
to 2013; two saw no change and 43 had care and life sciences, labor and employ- Preferred list
Cohen, the irm’s managing partner, said,
a net gain. (Year-to-year changes in two ment and commercial litigation.
“We have been growing more in Manhat-
irms’ head count could not be calculated Iannaccone said the irm is seeing top- While many irms saw declines, several tan than we had anticipated,” largely due
due to mergers.)
quality talent defect from larger firms, out-of-state irms took the lead in build- to client demands in business litigation,

Collectively, the largest offices especially in labor and employment ing up their New York ofices. The irms product liability, insurance regulatory and
employed about 21,031 attorneys in 2013, practices, due to push back from billing include O’Melveny & Myers, which shot professional liability work.
about 229 fewer than 2012. Ten irms in the rate hikes, which provides his irm with up by about 16 percent to 114 attorneys; Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garri-
rankings saw their New York head count the opportunity to “continue to add good Hunton & Williams, growing by 12 percent son is now No. 1 in the NYLJ 100 rankings.
drop more than 10 percent last year, while people.”
to 96 lawyers; Seyfarth & Shaw, rising by Its New York ofice head count rose by 6.2
only three had gains of more than 10 per- King & Spalding spokesman Les Zuke about 12 percent to 116 attorneys; Gold- percent to 716 attorneys from 2012 to 2013,
cent, according to numbers collected by said the irm’s full time equivalent head berg Segalla, surging by 10 percent to 133 overtaking the longtime lead of Skadden,
the National Law Journal, a Law Journal count last year was 104, leading to only a attorneys; and Reed Smith by 9 percent Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom.
afiliate. The Law Journal relies on Nation- seven-person decline in New York. He also to 159 attorneys.
Paul Weiss is one of the few New York-

al’s igures for its own survey of law irms.
pointed out that the irm does not count O’Melveny, founded in Los Angeles, based irms showing a head count increase
The losses were at all levels, including full-time equivalent attorneys in each rebounded in Manhattan after a head above 6 percent in its New York ofice.
equity partnership and associates.
ofice but rather organizes its attorneys count drop in 2011. Among its prominent Much of the gain was in the associate
Most of the growth among irms head- according to practice groups. This year, hires last year were John Rapisardi and ranks, according to survey results.
quartered in New York has taken place in the irm brought on several prominent George Davis, former Cadwalader, Wick- Brad Karp, the irm’s chairman, said in
other ofices to accommodate the rising partners, including a white-collar defense ersham & Taft partners, joining with three an email that head count has increased to
number of cross-border capital markets group from Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver associates and counsel; and Stuart Sar- accommodate client demand, especially
and M&A deals that are handled in other & Jacobson.
noff, joining from investment irm Avenue in litigation, regulatory defense and trans-
countries, said Dan DiPietro, chairman of A Linklaters spokeswoman said the Capital.
actional areas.

Citi Private Bank’s law irm group.
22-attorney net loss was partly due to “We’ve been blessed lately to have According to survey igures, Skadden,
Also, annual incoming associate classes attorneys relocating to other ofices. “Our grown some very strong institutional now ranked No. 2, has gradually reduced
since 2008 at large irms have been con- New York head count slightly decreased relationships, including inancial service its New York ranks, including a nearly 7
siderably smaller, bringing down the total by about 10 people between 2012 and 2013 companies, which tend to have a lot more percent decrease to 629 last year. Among
number of lawyers employed, he said.
as we shifted our practice mix to relect of their work in New York,” said Bradley the Skadden departures was a group of
Among the irms showing lower head changing demand in the marketplace and Butwin, O’Melveny’s chair.
about 15 lawyers, including partners Sheila
counts in 2013 were Epstein Becker & as a result of several of our lawyers mov- Edward Estrada, who leads the New Birnbaum and Mark Cheffo, joining Quinn
Green, dropping 18 percent to 88 attor- ing to our newly opened D.C. ofice and York ofice of Pittsburgh-founded Reed Emanuel last year. A Skadden spokeswom-

neys; King & Spalding, lowering about our Sao Paulo ofice in Brazil,” the spokes- Smith, echoed Butwin’s comments about an declined to comment.
17 percent to 92 attorneys; Linklaters,
woman said.
his own irm. “As a lot of our clients are lim- Among other changes, three irms in
An Allen & Overy spokesman conirmed iting the number of outside irms they’re the rankings are the result of mergers last
the survey igures for New York. After the working with, we’re inding ourselves part year: global Swiss verein irms Dentons
CHRISTINE SIMMONS is a reporter with the New firm conducted a U.S. practice review, of a smaller number of irms” on the clients and Norton Rose Fulbright.
York Law Journal.
including a change in U.S. ofice leader-
lists, Estrada said.
The third merged firm, » Page 6