Boies Schiller sees big drop in revenue after partner departures
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Boies Schiller Flexner will likely drop out of the American Lawyer’s list of the nation’s top 100 grossing law firms after losing a third of its equity partners last year.
Law.com has a report on the firm’s 2020 financial numbers. Boies Schiller saw a 38% drop in gross revenue, a 54% drop in net income and a 32.1% drop in profits per equity partner. Revenue per lawyer increased, however, by 4.6%.
Total gross revenue was $250 million, down from $405 million in 2019. That number will likely keep Boies Schiller out of the Am Law 100 list, given that the firm in last place last year had $380.3 million in gross revenue.
The Law.com story points out that Boies Schilller received $10 million in the Paycheck Protection Program, which did not count toward income.
In a statement provided to Law.com, Boies Schiller attributed the revenue decline to a drop in trial work during the COVID-19 pandemic and a drop in contingency fee revenue.
“For the same reasons that 2020 presented certain challenges, our outlook for 2021 is strong,” the statement said. “We have a great pipeline of cases, including both contingency and noncontingency work, with numerous trials and other high-profile matters for a wide range of long-term clients. Our revenue per lawyer remains strong, and we continue to invest in our people, including selective new lateral talent.”
One financial plus for the firm is a $2.75 billion settlement in an antitrust class action against Blue Cross Blue Shield. The settlement is likely to produce fees of nine figures for the law firm, according to Law.com.
The total number of lawyers at Boies Schiller has declined from 300 to 177, while the number of equity partners has dropped from 52 to 35, according to Law.com.
Some lawyers left Boies Schiller following publicity about its representation of producer Harvey Weinstein, who was convicted of sex crimes, and blood-testing company Theranos, which settled accusations of fraud filed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The firm has said many of the departures followed a restructuring. A co-managing partner, Nicholas Gravante Jr., left Boies Schiller to join Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft in December.
