| Kirkland & Ellis LLP | |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Chicago, Illinois |
| No. of offices | 10 total, 4 international |
| No. of attorneys | 1,419 (2010) |
| Major practice areas | General practice |
| Revenue | $1.63 billion (2010) |
| Date founded | 1909 |
| Company type | Limited liability partnership |
| Website | |
| www.kirkland.com | |
Kirkland & Ellis LLP is an international law firm with headquarters in Chicago, known for its profitability[1] and its litigation, bankruptcy, intellectual property and private equity departments.[2] Kirkland & Ellis is currently ranked as the ninth most prestigious law firm in the United States by Vault.[3] As of 2008, it was the seventh largest law firm in the U.S. and the 11th largest in the world by revenue. Kirkland has offices in Chicago, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, Munich, New York, Palo Alto, San Francisco, Shanghai and Washington, D.C.
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The firm was founded in 1909[4] by attorneys Stewart G. Shepherd and Robert R. McCormick, who would later become the publisher of the Chicago Tribune. The firm's modern namesakes, Weymouth Kirkland and Howard Ellis, joined the firm in 1915. In 1938, former United States Department of Justice lawyer Hammond Chaffetz joined the firm. The firm now consists of approximately 1,400 attorneys in ten domestic and foreign offices, with particular strength in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Palo Alto and Washington, D.C.
| “ | Aggressive and fiercely intelligent, this firm consistently justifies its reputation as the best litigation outfit in Illinois, if not in the country. Taking on high-stake and prominent cases for the most illustrious clients, it brings a depth and breadth of lawyering to be marveled at. | ” |
The firm had gross revenue of approximately $1.63 billion in 2010, an 14% increase from 2009.[5] Kirkland is also one of the most profitable law firms in the country, with estimated profits per partner of $3.08 million in 2010, a 23% increase from 2009. Kirkland is the only of the top ten most profitable firms that is not based in New York City.[5]
The firm has represented a number of high-profile clients, including United Airlines in that company's Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings. Other major clients of the firm have included General Motors, Brown & Williamson, Motorola, Conseco, Honeywell, S. C. Johnson & Son, Apple, Intel, Raytheon, Schering-Plough, Samsung Electronics, Siemens AG, Charter Communications and Westinghouse Electric Company. The firm is presently representing BP in the litigation arising out of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
| 2010 VAULT RANKINGS[6] | ||||||
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| General Commercial Litigation | Bankruptcy/Creditor's Rights | Intellectual Property | Private Equity | Mergers & Acquisitions | ||
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| Best in Practice (as voted on by all attorneys surveyed): |
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| Chicago | New York City | Washington | Southern California | |||
| Regional Rankings (as voted on by peers at regional firms): |
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| Overall Prestige | Pay | Formal Training | ||||
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AMERICAN LAWYER AWARDS
2008 ALB SE ASIA LAW AWARDS[10]
Kirkland sets associates' base salaries according to a lockstep compensation scale, like most other large law firms. Associates' bonuses are determined according to two factors: (1) the number of hours billed for the fiscal year; (2) a merit-based grade given at the conclusion of the annual review period. This method of calculating bonuses provides more individualized year-end compensation in comparison with attorneys at many other large law firms, where bonuses are calculated solely on the number of hours billed. The base pay scale is reflected in the following table:
| Seniority | Base Salary |
|---|---|
| 1st year | $160,000 |
| 2nd year | $170,000 |
| 3rd year | $185,000 |
| 4th year | $210,000 |
| 5th year | $230,000 |
| 6th year | $250,000 |
The bulk of the first-year associate class is recent graduates of the nation's top law schools who were hired as summer associates for the summer between their second and third years of law school. In 2010, Kirkland's office in Chicago made an offer of permanent employment to each of its 32 summer associates.[11] Summer associates (mostly second-year law students) are paid the same base rate as first-year associates, or roughly $3,100/week before taxes. Incoming associates are given a $10,000 stipend.
It was reported in January 2009 that Kirkland laid off a number of non-equity partners (who would be classified as senior associates at most other large firms).[12] 80 non-attorney employees were reportedly terminated in April 2009.[13] In May 2009, Above The Law, a popular legal blog, reported on the cutting of certain associate benefits.[14] In September 2009, The Wall Street Journal reported that Kirkland laid off more than 20 associates in New York and an unknown number in its other offices.[15] It was subsequently reported by the Chicago Tribune and Above The Law that at least twelve associates were laid off in the Chicago office.[16]
Kirkland, through its employees, was a top-20 contributor to Barack Obama in 2008, giving at least $493,735.[17] The firm's attorneys leaned heavily (77%) Democratic in their political contributions during the 2008 election cycle, which were substantial ($579,976 as of 10/29/07).[18]
The firm has its own Political Action Committee (PAC), which gave 97% of its contributions to Democrats during the 2008 election cycle, as of 12/7/07.[19] The firm's members have given more money to Illinois Senator Dick Durbin (by some measures the most liberal Democrat in the Senate)[20] since 1989 than donors from any other company or organization.[21]
Kirkland has a "Diversity Fellowship Program" at some of the nation's leading law schools. Under this program, Kirkland "Fellows" are selected from the group of second-year law students already-hired to work at the firm as summer associates in the upcoming summer. A Kirkland "Fellow" receives a $15,000 stipend during his third year of law school.[22] Since the program's inception, Kirkland has awarded 68 fellowship grants totaling $1,020,000.[23]
The Firmwide Diversity Committee recently announced a new addition to its diversity programming, Diversity Networking Forums. The main purpose of the Diversity Networking Forums is to provide an informal, visible network for attorneys to exchange ideas, provide support, and develop relationships. Four Diversity Networking Forums were formed: (1) the Asian Diversity Networking Forum, (2) the Black Diversity Networking Forum, (3) the Hispanic/Latino Diversity Networking Forum, and (4) the LGBT Diversity Networking Forum.
The Firmwide Diversity Committee also has a Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Subcommittee "to ensure that all issues of concern to GLBT lawyers are addressed and that the Firm actively supports GLBT-related activities."[24] Kirkland supports financially a large number of LGBT advocacy groups. In 2006, the Kirkland & Ellis Foundation contributed more than $1,593,000 to the sponsorship of various programs and organizations that directly or indirectly benefit diversity-related initiatives. This represented a 46 percent increase over comparable financial support in 2005.[25]
In 2008 and 2009 Kirkland received perfect 100 percent scores on the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Corporate Equality Index and Best Places to Work survey. The Corporate Equality Index is a tool used by the HRC to rate companies on how well they treat their LGBT employees, consumers and clients.[26]
The firm has endowed professorships in its name at four of the nation's leading law schools:
Among its most well-known current and former lawyers, including three of the last ten U.S. Solicitors General, are: