In the Name That Firm quiz, we provided a selection of comments from in-house attorneys about law firms featured in the Top Tier of the 2025 Outside Counsel Rankings. Readers were asked to match the firm to the feedback. More than 300 readers took part. Here are their top guesses along with the correct answers.
- Participants were most on the mark in matching the first seven comments listed below, where the top guess was also the correct answer for Cooley, Quinn Emanuel, Akin Gump, Arnold & Porter, Jones Day, Cravath, and Wachtell.
- No one at all guessed that the remarks “Good for SME guidance; Regulatory work, litigation” actually referred to Debevoise & Plimpton.
- The last four sets of comments — which were in-house attorneys’ descriptions of Skadden; Paul, Weiss; Gibson Dunn; and Kirkland & Ellis; respectively — were much more frequently attributed to peer firms.
| Law firm | “What are the firm’s particular strengths (or weaknesses)? Would you recommend hiring the firm to peers?” | % with correct answer | Top guess |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cooley | Good combination of skill and breadth, an excellent choice for emerging companies; Venture capital financing, small M&A | 46% | Cooley 46% |
| Quinn Emanuel | Always win; litigation powerhouse but ego to match | 47% | Quinn Emanuel 47% |
| Akin Gump | Good lobbying department; Solid corporate governance practice | 30% | Akin Gump 30% |
| Arnold & Porter | Very sophisticated healthcare regulatory and corporate work | 18% | Arnold & Porter; Ropes & Gray 18% |
| Jones Day | Global reach and customized care; Transactional matters, litigation | 16% | Jones Day 16% |
| Cravath | All around excellence; Technically excellent but extremely expensive | 14% | Cravath 14% |
| Wachtell | Corporate governance; They are our go-to law firm | 11% | Wachtell; Debevoise; Skadden 11% |
| S&C | Excellent corporate and M&A work; Was happy with litigation group but no longer use in light of their affiliation with President Trump | 16% | Paul, Weiss 28% |
| Simpson | Deep knowledge of private equity fundraising and M&A and deep bench even at the associate level; Expensive but superb | 14% | Kirkland 25% |
| WilmerHale | Really strong counselors and great connections with the government; Rock stars | 9% | Williams & Connolly 19% |
| Sidley | Supreme expertise in healthcare regulatory, transactional, and litigation matters; High stakes work requiring all hands on deck | 7% | Arnold & Porter; Jones Day 12% |
| Williams & Connolly | Best litigators I have ever worked with; Best of the best IP litigation team | 5% | WilmerHale 16% |
| Jenner | Strong in AI and litigation; Great litigators, can handle highly complex matters | 5% | Cooley 19% |
| Latham | Litigation, compliance, healthcare; Terrific litigators and enforcement partners | 4% | Mayer Brown 13% |
| Mayer Brown | CFIUS; Strong litigators | 2% | WilmerHale 13% |
| Ropes & Gray | Compliance; Top-tier support across the board | 4% | Debevoise 13% |
| Davis Polk | Best of the best. But super billing heavy; Good for larger matters | 4% | Cravath; Kirkland 20% |
| Debevoise | Good for SME guidance; Regulatory work, litigation | 0% | Arnold & Porter 18% |
| Skadden | Highest quality top to bottom; the go-to firm for big ticket M&A and existential litigation for us | 9% | Kirkland 32% |
| Paul, Weiss | Outstanding, top-notch white collar defense team | 4% | Williams & Connolly 31% |
| Gibson Dunn | My go-to firm for M&A and key transactions; would trust them with any deal where it makes financial sense; Most matters are not worth the price point, but when you have a matter that is, they won’t let you down. | 3% | Wachtell 33% |
| Kirkland | Excellent litigators on big case matters; I value their investment funds practice group and their strong knowledge base and expertise. But I am moving work away from them due to their capitulation to the Trump administration. | 9% | Paul, Weiss 48% |