Nationwide Layoff Watch: Biglaw Firm Will Shutter Atlanta Office

The Big Peach left a sour taste in the mouth of which Am Law 200 firm?

If you, like me, have been obsessing over profits-per-partner figures since the 1990s (sad, I know), the name of Robins Kaplan Miller & Ciresi should ring a bell. In the Am Law 100 rankings for 2000, based on 1999 revenue and profit figures, the Minneapolis-based firm boasted profits per partner of over $3 million — beating Cravath and all the other New York shops that year, except for Wachtell Lipton. RKMC earned a nine-figure fee for its work on a giant tobacco-industry settlement.

Since then, the firm has chugged along nicely. It remains in the NLJ 350, the nation’s 350 largest law firms based on size, and in the Am Law 200, the nation’s 200 top firms ranked by revenue.

Earlier this week, we received reports of Robins Kaplan planning to close its Atlanta office, which currently has around a dozen lawyers. One source told us that employees were notified well in advance of the actual closing so they would have time to look for new positions. We reached out to Robins Kaplan, which confirmed the news in this statement:

Yes, we will be closing our Atlanta office, and our decision is based on the firm’s focus on opportunities in other areas. As a firm, Robins Kaplan has performed exceptionally well, especially over the past several years. As our clients’ needs have changed, so do we to better serve them. The opening of our three new offices — in Silicon Valley, and North & South Dakota — in the past two months supports our firm’s strength and shift in focus. We are working on a transition plan to assist our attorneys and staff, which may include relocation to different offices.

The Silicon Valley office, located in Mountain View, opened just this week. As different legal markets rise and fall, firms must respond to the changes, and Robins Kaplan is smart to see and act upon that.

Change is inevitable — and there has been a lot of change at Robins Kaplan this year. On February 1, name partner Michael Ciresi left RKMC to form his own firm, Ciresi Conlin LLP. With the departure of “C,” the firm of “RKMC” became simply “RK,” officially changing its name to “Robins Kaplan LLP.” (Sorry about that, Mr. Miller — but as a 1964 law school graduate, you’re probably close to retirement anyway.)

We cover office closings and layoffs quite closely here at ATL. If you have news to share, please email us or text us (646-820-8477). Thanks.

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UPDATE (4/17/2015, 2:15 p.m.): This morning, managing partner Steven Schumeister sent around a firm-wide email about the Atlanta closing. Schumeister explained that the Above the Law story was now how the firm intended to break the news, praised his Atlanta colleagues for their contributions to the firm, and said the office will close at the end of 2015 or in early 2016. We’ve posted the full email on the next page.

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