Legal News

Munger Tolles Tops AmLaw?s A-List, Once Again

By Ashby Jones

Since 2003, the American Lawyer magazine has published what it calls the “A-List,” in an attempt to, in its own words, “measure and quantify the qualities that define an elite law firm, making an effort to look beyond profits.” The A-List looks at four factors — revenue per lawyer, commitment to pro bono, diversity among lawyers, and associate training and satisfaction — swirls them all up in a formula, and spits out a numeric score.

We like the A-List, or at least the spirit behind the A-List, because it rewards firms for more than just ringing up the billables in a way that we think would be helpful to law students, aspiring laterals, recruiters, and the like. Looking for a firm that’s big on diversity and is less likely to lay you off, check the A-List. How about a firm that will give you both training and pro-bono experience? Again, check the A-List.

This said, let’s bring you this year’s A-List, announced just in advance of AmLaw’s August issue. Los Angeles-based Munger Tolles & Olson stole the show, landing at the top slot for the second straight year. Rounding out the top ten: Hughes Hubbard; Latham; Davis Polk; Weil Gotshal; Arnold & Porter; Debevoise; Cleary; Morrison & Foerster and Gibson Dunn. Joining the list for the first time: Irell & Manella and Kirkland & Ellis. According to AmLaw reporter Susan Beck, the list saw more upheaval this year than in past years.

Click here for reporter Susan Beck’s piece on the A-List; here for the A-List itself.

So what puts Munger Tolles at the top of the heap? Writes Beck:

Munger isn’t highly leveraged with associates, which tends to make for more satisfied young lawyers. The firm also maintains a strong cultural commitment to pro bono. “We want to give back to the community, and we think it makes for better lawyers,” says Mark Helm, one of Munger’s co–managing partners. He notes that about a year ago, management noticed a dip in pro bono activity and made a push to bring it back up. The California firm also cares about diversity. (Minorities make up 22 percent of its lawyers and 15 percent of its partners.) “We have made a strategic decision to look more systematically at diversity,” says Helm. As an example, Munger runs a “diversity-based” summer program for first-year law students that has led to associate jobs for two lawyers. The firm last year also hired a diversity consultant to suggest ways that it could improve in this area, and devoted a day of its annual retreat to diversity discussions.

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on June 30, 2009 (boomark / email).