Dewey & LeBoeuf

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Overview

Dewey & LeBoeuf was formed in October 2007 from the merger of legacy New York outfits Dewey Ballantine and LeBoeuf Lamb Greene & MacRae, creating a top 20 US giant with more than 1,400 lawyers across 13 countries.

For Dewey, the tie-up marked the end of a lengthy search for a merger partner, with the Manhattan firm having previously held protracted talks with West Coast giant Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe - talks that failed just seven months before the deal with energy specialist LeBoeuf went live.

The combined firm's first set of financial results since the merger were unveiled in February 2008, with total revenues pushing the firm through the billion-dollar barrier (just about) to a new mark of $1.008bn (£510m). Partner profits, meanwhile, stood at $1.57m (£798,000).

History

Dewey & LeBoeuf came into being in October 2007, uniting the Manhattan duo of Dewey Ballantine and LeBoeuf Lamb Greene & MacRae in one of the most significant mergers seen in the US legal market and creating New York's third-largest law firm by lawyer headcount. Talks between the two firms had begun in earnest several months earlier, led respectively by Dewey chairman Mort Pierce and LeBoeuf counterpart Steven Davis (pictured above).

Although the move was initially regarded as a surprise by many, supporters of a tie-up pointed to a handy crossover between Dewey's respected M&A practice and LeBoeuf's traditional strengths in energy and insurance. A lack of duplication in Europe meant the proposed union also won plenty of buy-in from partners on this side of the Atlantic.

The tie-up itself came after lengthy talks between Dewey and another US suitor - expansive West Coast giant Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe - had collapsed at the start of 2007, amid partner losses on both sides and concerns over how the combined firm would be managed. Although Dewey then pledged to go it alone, it was not long before the firm - which traces its roots back to 1909 - was on the merger trail once again.

LeBoeuf is slightly more youthful, having been founded in 1929. Before the merger, Davis - who took the reins at LeBoeuf in 1999 - had earlier presided over something of a downsizing during his tenure, axing a number of regional offices in the US and slashing the firm's headcount.

Culture

Key departments

Insurance and energy remain key strengths inherited from the legacy LeBoeuf. M&A was always vital for Dewey Ballantine, thanks in part to its close links with the Manhattan investment banking community. The combined firm is also predictably strong in structured finance, with LeBoeuf using that energy expertise as a base for a range of projects work.

National/international coverage

The firm's 27-office network covers a host of major financial centres outside its US heartland, where the firm has some 13 offices. In Europe, the network comprises offices in Brussels, Frankfurt, Milan, Rome, Paris, Warsaw, Moscow and Almaty, as well as London. In the Middle East, the firm has outposts in Dubai and Riyadh, with offices in Beijing and Hong Kong completing its Asian network.

Unusually, the firm has a branch in Johannesburg, which it launched in 2000, becoming one of the few major international firms to operate in South Africa, alongside rival US firm White & Case.

Key clients

Leading partners

Career prospects

Dewey promoted a total of 18 new partners in December 2007, its first round of promotions since the merger. Of those, four were in the City - not a bad proportion by the standards of US firms, considering New York, the most favoured office in the promotions, received just one more new partner than London.

The previous year, Dewey had promoted 14 new partners, compared to just five in 2006 at the legacy LeBoeuf.

Salaries

Trainees in London begin on £40,000 in their first year, rising to £45,000 for the second year. On qualification, pay rises to £75,000 - and that's before the performance-related bonus is worked out.

Recruitment

Dewey (in its earlier forms) has taken on trainees in London since 1996. For information on the firm's London graduate recruitment scheme, you can click here, email traineelondon@dl.com or give them a call directly on 020 7459 5000.

Work-life balance

Diversity

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