History of Law firm in Timeline

A law firm is a business entity established by one or more lawyers to practice law. Their main function is to provide legal advice to clients regarding their rights and responsibilities. They also represent clients in various legal matters, including civil and criminal cases, business transactions, and other situations where legal assistance is needed.

2001: Mobile Law Offices Experiment

In late 2001, John C. Dearie's personal injury plaintiffs' firm in New York began experimenting with bus-sized mobile law offices.

2003: Number of Law Firms in Various Countries

In 2003, a paper noted the U.S. had 901 law firms with more than 50 lawyers, while Canada had 58, Great Britain had 44, France had 14, and Germany had 9.

2004: Baker McKenzie Pioneers the Swiss Verein Structure

In 2004, Baker McKenzie pioneered the Swiss Verein structure, a unique arrangement for large multinational law firms. This structure involves multiple national or regional partnerships forming an association, sharing branding, administrative functions, and operating costs, but maintaining separate revenue pools and partner compensation structures.

2004: Paul Hastings Names Skyscraper

In 2004, Paul Hastings became the first law firm to put its name on a skyscraper.

2006: Salaries of New Graduates

In 2006, median salaries of new graduates ranged from US$50,000 per year in small firms to US$160,000 per year in very large firms, with a median salary of US$62,000.

October 2007: Ranking of Top Law Firms

In October 2007, the law student group Building a Better Legal Profession released its first annual ranking of top law firms by average billable hours, pro bono participation, and demographic diversity, sending the information to top law schools to encourage students to consider demographic data when choosing employment.

2007: Dominance of U.S. and U.K. Law Firms

A 2007 research paper indicated that U.S.- and U.K.-based law firms dominate the international market for legal services, with firms from other countries competing for the remaining business.

2007: Legal Services Act Reforms in the U.K.

In 2007, the U.K. implemented reforms under the Legal Services Act, allowing law firms to take on a limited number of non-lawyer partners and enabling lawyers to form various business relationships with non-lawyers and non-lawyer-owned businesses. This enabled entities such as grocery stores and banks to hire lawyers for providing basic legal services to customers in-store and online.

2007: U.S. Recession

The U.S. recession began in 2007, leading to law firms downsizing personnel and some permanently closing their doors.

2008: Clifford Chance tops law firms

In 2008, the British firm Clifford Chance was the largest law firm globally, with revenues exceeding US$2 billion.

February 12, 2009: Law Firm Job Cuts

On February 12, 2009, Bloomberg reported that 700 jobs were cut at law firms nationwide as a result of the U.S. recession from 2007 to 2009.

2010: Dissolution of Halliwells

In 2010, Halliwells of the UK was dissolved due to the recession. Layoffs were so common that publications produced "Layoff List".

2012: Law Firm Mergers

In the first half of 2012, eight law firms merged. Data collected by Altman Weil indicated that there were more law firm mergers in the first half of 2012 than in the first half of 2013.

2013: Associate Salary Levels

In 2013, the median salaries for three associate levels were $152,500, $185,000 and $216,000 among large firms (more than 700 lawyers), and $122,000, $143,500 and $160,000 among all firms.

2013: Dip in Law Firm Mergers

In the first half of 2013, only four law firms merged, a decrease compared to eight in the same period in 2012, according to data from Altman Weil. This decline was interpreted as a sign of decreasing morale within the legal economy and reduced demand.

2014: Lateral Attorney Hiring

In 2014, a survey by LexisNexis indicated that over 95% of law firms consulted intended to hire lateral attorneys within the next two years.

2016: Cravath, Swaine & Moore Raises Salaries

In the summer of 2016, the New York law firm Cravath, Swaine & Moore raised its first-year associate salary to $180,000, prompting other high-end New York-based and large national law firms to follow suit.

2018: Milbank Raises Salaries

In the summer of 2018, the New York law firm Milbank raised its first-year associate salary to $190,000, with other major firms following shortly thereafter.

2020: Arizona Authorizes Alternative Business Structures

In 2020, Arizona became the first state to authorize "alternative business structures" (ABS) with nonlawyer owners. KPMG, one of the Big Four accounting firms, was the first to receive authorization as an ABS to deliver legal services in Arizona, but under the condition that it cannot provide legal services to clients for whom KPMG or its member firms were already providing audits or attestations.

2020: Kirkland & Ellis tops law firms

In 2020, Kirkland & Ellis emerged as the top law firm with US$4.15 billion in revenue, while Hogan Lovells was tenth with US$2.25 billion.

2020: U.K. Firms Expand into the U.S.

In 2020, several of the largest U.K. law firms began investing in expansion into multiple regions of the United States, such as Silicon Valley.

2021: Peak in Globalization of Law Firms

In 2021, the globalization of law firms reached an all-time peak, with increased transatlantic merger activity.

2022: Milbank Increases First-Year Compensation

In 2022, Milbank increased first-year compensation to $215,000, and most comparable firms followed suit.

2024: U.K. Firms Losing Ground to U.S. Firms

As of early 2024, the largest U.K. firms were losing ground in London to rapid growth by the largest U.S. firms and were forced to raise salaries in response.