By the Numbers: Five New Big Law Leaders Taking Charge in 2022 - Bloomberg Law
Some major law firms are set to welcome new leaders in 2022, including a pair of women lawyers making history at their firms.
Incoming managing partners and chairs will likely face continued office return and talent retention challenges in the new year, while also trying to keep pace with an ongoing boom in demand from clients. As nearly two dozen law firms are set to begin official office reopenings in early 2022, the omicron variant poses additional hurdles for firms and their lawyers.
“We’re trying to emerge from Covid, and we’re slowly getting to the point where people are going to recognize that Covid isn’t going away,” said Joseph Altonji, a co-founder of legal consultancy LawVision. “The question is not what happens after Covid. We’re moving into a world where Covid will always be with us—how do you function in that?”
Here are five firms that will welcome new leaders in the new year.
Yvette Ostolaza, Sidley Austin
Sidley Austin has elected a woman to serve as its managing committee chair for the first time in 155 years. Yvette Ostolaza will take over for longtime chair Larry Barden in April 2022.
Ostolaza is managing partner of Sidley’s Dallas office and a co-leader of its global litigation practice. She has represented Aspen American Insurance, Neiman Marcus Group, and Airbus Helicopters, according to a review of court dockets. Before joining the firm in 2013, she spent more than 21 years with Weil Gotshal & Manges as a complex commercial litigation partner.
Chicago-founded Sidley Austin is one of 10 largest firms in the U.S. by revenue. The firm last year reported nearly $2.5 billion in gross revenue across more than 1,800 lawyers.
“To be a first woman or first in anything is an honor and humbling and exciting because it provides a role model for many people—women, men, and others—that you don’t have to fit a certain mold to succeed,” Ostolaza said.
Frank Lopez, Paul Hastings
Frank Lopez is set to become the new chairman at Paul Hastings in October, less than three years after joining the firm. Lopez and Sherrese Smith will share the managing partner role until Seth Zachary, the firm’s chair of more than two decades, steps down next fall.
Lopez, based in New York, is co-head of the firm’s securities and capital markets practice. He was previously a partner at Proskauer Rose.
Paul Hastings—founded in Los Angeles in 1951—reported more than $1.3 billion in gross revenue across nearly 1,000 lawyers last year, according to AmLaw data. The firm has represented United Parcel Service Inc., Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, Google LLC, and General Electric Co, among other clients, according to a review of federal court dockets.
Zachary plans to stay with the firm as a tax partner until 2024, he said shortly after Lopez’s promotion was announced.
Keith Fullenweider, Vinson & Elkins
Keith Fullenweider takes over as the next chair at Vinson & Elkins on Jan. 1. He succeeds Mark Kelly, who has held the leadership role for nearly a decade.
Fullenweider, a Houston lawyer who joined the firm in 1988, is co-head of Vinson & Elkins’ corporate department. His clients have included major private equity firms like Blackstone and KKR, according to his firm profile.
Vinson has also represented Southwest Airlines Co. and Lenovo United States Inc., among a roster of other corporate clients. The firm last year reported more than $780 million in gross revenue across 660 lawyers.
Vinson is looking to bolster business outside of Texas, including in New York and San Fransisco.
Fullenweider will share leadership responsibilities with vice chairs Jim Fox, Michael Holmes, and Hilary Preston. Holmes stayed with the firm after being courted by Quinn Emanuel to help it open a new Dallas office.
Andrew Detherage, Barnes & Thornburg
Andrew Detherage succeeds Barnes & Thornburg’s two-term managing partner Robert Grand, beginning in November 2022. He is currently the firm’s strategic planning committee chair, a management committee member, and a insurance recovery and counseling practice co-chair.
Detherage first joined the Indianapolis-based firm in 1989. As managing partner, he said he hopes to continue growing the firm’s major practice groups and geographic footprint while building its lawyer-focused culture.
“Our culture has really been the glue,” Detherage told Bloomberg Law in November. “It’s made everything work for us, and it gives our lawyers a better work life experience.”
The firm brought in more than $500 million gross revenue over 600 lawyers last year. Barnes & Thornburg announced in December it would triple the size of its New York office with a new, 33,500 square foot space.
Gwendolyn Prothro Renigar, Steptoe & Johnson
Steptoe & Johnson in November named Gwendolyn Prothro Renigar the firm’s executive committee chair, marking the first time that the role has gone to a woman. The 48-year-old, who currently serves as the firm’s vice chair and general counsel, will also be Steptoe’s youngest chair when she officially takes over on Jan. 1.
“I may be the first woman chair, but I really follow multiple generations of women leaders at the firm,” Renigar said in an interview. “Steptoe had a women vice chair long before I was a lawyer and long before other firms had a critical mass of women partners.”
The firm reported nearly $400 million in gross revenue last year, along with a headcount of roughly 350 lawyers. Steptoe’s clients include Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. and DaimlerChrysler Corp.
Renigar first joined Washington-based Steptoe in 1997. Outgoing chair Philip West, who has been in the role for eight years, will remain with the firm as a tax partner after stepping down.
To contact the reporter on this story: Ruiqi Chen in Washington, D.C. at [email protected]
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Chris Opfer at [email protected]
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