Clifford Chance’s U.S. Offices on the Upswing
Partners at U.K.-based law firm Clifford Chance tell the American Lawyer its U.S. offices are thriving after a 2000 merger with Rogers & Wells that led to a spate of lawyer defections.
The firm has some impressive evidence of a rebound, the story says: The firm has hired 14 lateral partners since 2006 and its revenues are increasing. Its U.S. earnings for the year ending in April 2007 were $320 million, compared to $265 million in 2005.
The firm has focused attention on the U.S. offices, loosening its lockstep pay system and appointing a “people partner” to increase retention rates. Its ladies’ room sports health-club type amenities such as hair spray, lotion, perfume and English soap.
“The people who stayed are really committed to the firm,” Leiv Blad Jr., managing partner of Clifford Chance’s Washington, D.C., office, told the publication. “We are here because we made the choice to stay.”
