Firm Profiles
IN-DEPTH RESEARCH REPORT
on Baker & McKenzie LLP
- - Financial Information
- - Compensation
- - Billing Rates
- - Lateral Partner Moves
- - Pro bono
- - Key Contacts
Baker & McKenzie
- Designation: Verein
- Head Count: 4,004
- Gross Revenues: $2,313,000,000
- Revenue Per Lawyer: $580,000
- Profits Per Partner: $1,090,000
- Year Over Year Change: 1
In the early 1920s, Russell Baker boxed at county fairs to pay his tuition at the University of Chicago. Now, nearly a century later, the firm he cofounded in 1949 (with John Mc Kenzie) also packs a punch. Almost 4,000 lawyers strong, Baker & McKenzie ranked first in gross revenue on both the 2011 and 2010 Am Law 100 lists—each time crossing the $2 billion mark. It has more equity partners than most firms have lawyers, and with 70 offices in 42 countries has a presence that doesn’t just dot the globe but can be found in nearly every key business market on the planet. Indeed, nearly two–thirds of Baker & McKenzie’s legal fees derive from clients it serves in five countries or more.
Unlike firms that launched overseas offices tentatively, beginning with major business centers like London and Paris, Baker took bold steps from the start. Its first international office, opened in 1956, was in Venezuela, and in 1989 it was one of the first firms to set up shop in Moscow. Given the scope of the firm’s footprint, it is little wonder that it has become a go–to name for cross–border transactions, global structuring and corporate issues, and international intellectual property.
Baker’s litigation practice is also well– known for its reach. In January 2012 it was awarded an honorable mention in The American Lawyer’s Litigation Department of the Year issue, with standout results including the rollback of a €118 million price–fixing fine imposed on Mitsubishi Electric Corporation by the European Union, and nine–figure recoveries for Petrobras AG and OAO Lukoil.
The firm has also been innovative in how it has leveraged its offshore presence to win new work. In 2006 Baker struck a novel arrangement with Unilever to manage the consumer company’s enormous trademark portfolio—some 160,000 marks—out of Baker’s Manila–based facility.
To be sure, there are areas for improvement. Historically, its revenue per lawyer results have not been as august as its gross revenue numbers. And its Swiss verein structure and autonomous offices mean that parts of the firm are less integrated. Nor have junior lawyers given the firm an unqualified thumbs–up: Baker earned a middling seventy–first place ranking on The American Lawyer’s 2011 Midlevel Associates Survey, down from sixtieth in 2010. Improving those numbers may take bold steps—but that’s never been something Baker & McKenzie has shied away from.
—Updated as of 1/1/12
Firm Rankings
| Survey | Rank | Year Over Year Change | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Am Law 100 | 2 | 1 | Gross revenue |
| Am Law 200 | 2 | 1 | Gross revenue |
| NLJ 250 | 1 | no change | Lawyer head count |
| The A-List | NR | N/A | Overall excellence |
| Pro Bono Scorecard | 97 | 16 | Pro-bono commitment |
| Diversity Scorecard | 44 | 20 | Minority head count |
| Midlevel Associates Survey | 70 | 9 | Job satisfaction |
| Summer Associates Survey | 84 | 3 | Summer programs |
In the News
Atypical Career Path Works for Yelp's GC
Joshua Sisco : The Recorder : May 17, 2013
After an early stint as a paralegal at Morrison & Foerster, Laurence Wilson knew he wanted to forgo the Big Law route in favor of something more entrepreneurial. Now Yelp's general counsel, he says there are both advantages and drawbacks to going in-house right away. "You gain experience at twice the rate as a first-year associate at a big firm, but in a much less formal environment."
Bingham Recruits Tokyo Funds Team
Tom Brennan : The Asian Lawyer : May 15, 2013
Bingham McCutchen's Tokyo office has recruited a seven-lawyer investment funds team from White & Case. The group is led by partner Christopher Wells, who focuses on overseas funds' Japan investments, and partner Tomoko Fuminaga, who has a similar practice targeting investment funds and financial institutions.
Bingham Recruits Tokyo Funds Team
Tom Brennan : The Asian Lawyer : May 13, 2013
The Boston-based firm is bringing aboard a seven-lawyer group from White & Case.
Bank and Ex-Dewey Partner Settle With No Cost to Either
Sara Randazzo : The Am Law Daily : May 13, 2013
A heated dispute between Citibank and a former Dewey & LeBoeuf partner over what the bank claimed was his unpaid capital contribution loan was quietly resolved on May 8 when Southern District Judge Louis Stanton approved a settlement under which the feuding parties agreed to drop their dueling lawsuits.
MOVERS
: The National Law Journal : May 13, 2013
Adrienne Pitts joins Baker & McKenzie as partner in the Chicago office. Plus more law firm movers in this week's column.
Japanese Firms on Expansion Drive
Tom Brennan : The Asian Lawyer : May 13, 2013
A significant amount of yen is flowing into Southeast Asia as Japanese companies seek growth outside the country. The lawyers aren't far behind.
VERDICTS & SETTLEMENTS
: The National Law Journal : May 13, 2013
Baker & McKenzie Hires Sydney Life Sciences Partner
Tom Brennan : The Asian Lawyer : May 10, 2013
Baker & McKenzie has recruited DLA Piper's Amanda Turnill as a new co-head for its Australian life sciences practice. Turnill specializes in advising pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies on drug development and commercialization. She also advises clients on product liability litigation.
Calendar of Events
: New York Law Journal : May 10, 2013
The Churn: Lateral Moves in The Am Law 200
Diane Jeantet : The Am Law Daily : May 10, 2013
Alston & Bird adds four partners to its capital markets department on the East Coast; the vice-chair of Greenberg Traurig's pharmaceutical, medical device, and health care litigation practice has left for Jones Day; and Locke Lord expands its Hong Kong office with five new attorneys. The Churn is constant. Please send all announcements to thechurn@alm.com.
- Allen & Overy
- Andrews Kurth
- Ashurst
- Bingham McCutchen
- Bracewell & Giuliani
- Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft
- Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
- Covington & Burling
- Crowell & Moring
- Davis Polk & Wardwell
- Denton Wilde Sapte
- Dewey & LeBoeuf
- Downey Brand
- Duane Morris
- Freehills
- Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
- Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson
- Goulston & Storrs
- Herbert Smith
- Hogan Lovells
- Holland & Knight
- Husch Blackwell
- Jeffer, Mangels, Butler & Marmaro
- Jones Day
- K&L Gates
- Katten Muchin Rosenman
- Keker & Van Nest
- Kilpatrick Townsend
- King & Spalding
- Kirkland & Ellis
- Kutak Rock
- Lathrop & Gage
- Lewis and Roca
- Linklaters
- Locke Lord
- Loeb & Loeb
- Manatt, Phelps & Phillips
- Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy
- Minter Ellison
- Morgan, Lewis & Bockius
- Morrison & Foerster
- Munger, Tolles & Olson
- O'Melveny & Myers
- Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe
- Patton Boggs
- Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison
- Porter & Hedges
- Proskauer Rose
- Reed Smith
- Ropes & Gray
- Shearman & Sterling
- Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton
- Simpson Thacher & Bartlett
- Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom
- Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal
- Squire, Sanders & Dempsey
- Stephenson Harwood
- Steptoe & Johnson LLP
- Sullivan & Cromwell
- Sullivan & Worcester
- Thompson Hine
- Vladeck, Waldman, Elias & Engelhard
- Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz
- White & Case
- Willkie Farr & Gallagher
- Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
