King & Spalding
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| King & Spalding | |
 |
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| Headquarters |  Atlanta |
|---|---|
| No. of Offices | 12 |
| No. of Attorneys | N/A |
| Major Practice Areas | General practice |
| Revenue | N/A |
| Date Founded | 1885 (Atlanta) |
| Company Type | LLP |
| Website | www.kslaw.com |
King & Spalding LLP is an American law firm, founded in Atlanta, Georgia in 1885 by Alexander C. King and Jack Spalding. It has a London-based international arm, King & Spalding International LLP, which opened in 2003.
It is Atlanta's oldest law firm. As of March 2006, the Atlanta office moved from 191 Peachtree Tower to become the major tenant of a new office tower at 1180 Peachtree in Midtown. The firm also has offices in Washington, DC (opened 1979), New York (opened 1992), Houston (opened 1995), and Charlotte (opened 2007). On January 2, 2003, the firm's international arm opened in the City of London. In 2007, the firm opened an office in Dubai,currently home to ten lawyers and also in Frankfurt, Germany.
On June 16, 2003, Corporate Board Member magazine named the company Atlanta's best corporate law firm for the second consecutive year.
King & Spalding's senior partners include former United States Attorney General Griffin Bell. Georgia's former US Senator Sam Nunn (now retired), former Indiana US Senator Dan Coats, former Florida US Senator Connie Mack, and former Georgia governor George Busbee (now deceased) also joined the firm after their retirement from public office.
Notable representations include: The Coca-Cola Company, Chevron Corporation, General Motors Corporation, and Honeywell International, Inc.
[edit] The Hishon Case
Hishon v. King & Spalding, 467 U. S. 69 (1984). Elizabeth Anderson Hishon, was employed from 1972 to 1979, as an associate with King & Spalding. She was forced to leave under the so-called "up or out" rule, after she was twice considered and rejected for a partnership in the firm. She filed a charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, claiming that King & Spalding had discriminated against her on the basis of her sex in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Her complaint included allegations that King & Spalding used the possibility of ultimate partnership as a recruiting device to induce her and other young lawyers to become associates at the firm; that they represented that advancement to partnership after five or six years was "a matter of course" for associates who received satisfactory evaluations, and that associates would be considered for partnership "on a fair and equal basis"; that she relied on these representations when she accepted employment with K&S; that the law firm's promise to consider her on a "fair and equal basis" created a binding employment contract; and that the law firm discriminated against her on the basis of her sex when it failed to invite her to become a partner. The District Court dismissed the complaint on the ground that Title VII was inapplicable to the selection of partners by a partnership, and the Court of Appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court held that Hishon's complaint states a claim cognizable under Title VII, and she therefore is entitled to her day in court to prove her allegations. King & Spalding settled with Hishon.
The Hishon case is often cited in legal journals. Its legacy continues to impact hiring practices concerning minority candidates. After the decision, Harriette Dorsen, then a partner in a New York City firm was quoted as saying: "I'm not sure what practical progress will be made. Partnerships can be awarded in ways so that prejudice is disguised."
[edit] Discovery Center
While following the recent trend of law firms to expand by geography and size, it has also created a mass production unit. King & Spalding's national discovery center is staffed by contract and staff attorneys. Originally created to deal with the large amounts of documents produced for mass torts and class actions, such as the Brown & Williamson tobacco litigation of the 90's and early 00's, the discovery center evolved into a very lucrative profit center. The focus expanded from torts to include business litigation, IP and government investigations. While dramatically increasing associate starting salaries have made headlines recently, the discovery center is made up primarily of project or contract attorneys who make approximately $55,000 per year compared to $145,000 for a first year associate.[1] Contract attorneys are a major cost savings to the firm since they do not receive basic benefits such as health insurance.[2] Major clients for the discovery center have included GSK, Chevron, Coke, and Purdue Pharma. The discovery center is located at 1230 West Peachtree street.
