World’s Richest Law Firm Announces Enormous Partner Class

With almost 150 new partners, how many of them will enter the firm’s equity ranks?

There’s no denying that Kirkland & Ellis is one the nation’s greatest law firms. Not only does the firm offer a compelling combination of prestige, profitability, and pay (not when it comes to special fall bonuses, mind you), but now it’s once again shattering the market on partners.

Bigger is apparently better at Kirkland, because earlier this week, the firm announced its largest-ever partner class. This year, the firm welcomed a partner class of 145, up from 2019’s record class of 141, 2018’s class of 122, and 2017’s class of 97.

But how many of these new partners will enter the firm’s equity ranks? Last year, the firm had 450 equity partners and 636 nonequity partners. The American Lawyer has some information on the firm’s tiered-partnership structure:

Kirkland is well known for its large class of nonequity partners, which helps boost its profitability. The firm is also known for an “up or out” approach to partnership, meaning large-scale promotions to its partnership don’t make its equity class top-heavy. The firm had 450 equity partners last year, according to ALM data, among its total lawyer head count of 2,598.

The American Lawyer in 2012 found that roughly 20% of Kirkland’s income partners join the equity tier after meeting a four-year eligibility threshold. Additionally, about 43% of attorneys promoted between 2010 and 2013 were still at the firm in 2017, according to an American Lawyer report on the subject that year.

As far as diversity is concerned, Kirkland opted not to show photos of its new partnership class (unlike last year), but from what we can tell, once again, the firm’s new partners are looking mighty male and mighty white. On the bright side, about 60 of the firm’s new partners are women (up from 46 last year), but minorities still seem to be underrepresented. You’d think that with a group of lawyers this large, a little more attention would have been paid.

It continues to be important for firms to know that these subjects won’t go unnoticed. Diversity and inclusion matter — to a firm’s current lawyers, to potential recruits, and perhaps most importantly, to clients.

Kirkland Again Tops New Partner Promotion Record [American Lawyer]

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Staci ZaretskyStaci Zaretsky is a senior editor at Above the Law, where she’s worked since 2011. She’d love to hear from you, so please feel free to email her with any tips, questions, comments, or critiques. You can follow her on Twitter or connect with her on LinkedIn.

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