Nixon Peabody Management Shuffle

Nixon Peabody has suffered a series of partner defections over the last year. Last month, we reported that a number of partners at Nixon were preparing for a mass exodus from the firm.

According to our Nixon Peabody sources, the disgruntled partners wanted one thing: managing partner Richard Langan’s head on a plate. From our original story: “Our sources have also offered up a lot of speculation about why these partners want out, and the message is that they feel like Langan is ‘ruining’ the culture of the firm.”

Apparently, these partners are getting their wish. Richard Langan is out as managing partner. Taking his place is Andrew Glincher, who has been the managing partner of Nixon’s Boston office.

So did the mutinous partners win? According to a Nixon spokesperson, Langan’s ouster is all part of Nixon’s regularly scheduled programming…

Nixon Peabody is downplaying the significance of Langan’s removal. From Am Law Daily:

Allison McClain, a spokeswoman for Nixon Peabody, called the leadership change “part of a regular process that occurs every three years.” As for the departures, she said in an e-mail, “The legal market is fluid; we’ve seen lawyers come and go in the past and we’re likely to continue to see movement in both directions. Movement among firms is becoming the nature of the profession.”

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Perhaps. I don’t know enough about Nixon’s management structure to know if Nixon changes managing partners every three years like clockwork (commenters, fill me in). But regardless, the cultural shift that the disgruntled partners wanted seems to be underway:

“The success of Nixon Peabody has always rested on the quality of our people, our collegial culture and our absolute commitment to extraordinary client service,” Glincher said in a statement. “I am confident in our ability to meet and exceed the legal challenges facing our clients now and in the future.”…

The change in management signals a broader power shift inside the firm from New York to Boston, the home of predecessor firm Peabody & Brown before the 1999 merger with Rochester’s Nixon, Hargrave, Devans & Doyle.

We’ll see if this move stops the defections of Nixon Peabody partners.

Nixon Peabody Power Base Shifts to Boston with Election of New MP [Am Law Daily]

Earlier: Is Nixon Peabody Facing a Mutiny? Significant Partner Defections Could Happen

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