Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison

Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP (known as Paul, Weiss) is an international law firm headquartered on Sixth Avenue in New York City. In addition to its headquarters in New York, the firm maintains offices in Washington, D.C., Wilmington, Delaware, Toronto, London, Tokyo, Beijing, and Hong Kong.

Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP

Headquarters	1285 Avenue of the Americas, New York City, New York, United States
No. of offices	8
No. of attorneys	1,020 [1]
Major practice areas	Antitrust, bankruptcy, corporate reorganization, communications, technology, employee benefits, executive compensation, entertainment, environmental, intellectual property, litigation, personal representation, private equity, real estate, tax
Key people	Brad S. Karp, chairman
Revenue	(gross revenue) $1,387,694,000 (2019)[2]
Date founded	Predecessor firm founded in 1875
Company type	Limited liability partnership
Website	paulweiss.com

Notable representations

• Paul, Weiss represents detainees held by the U.S. military at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. A number of the detainees went on a hunger strike to protest alleged inhumane conditions. In response, prison authorities force-fed detainees. Paul, Weiss attorneys filed an emergency application demanding information about the condition of the detainees. In a ruling in October 2005, Judge Gladys Kessler of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia ordered the government to provide the detainees' lawyers with 24 hours' notice before initiating a force-feeding, and to provide lawyers with the detainees’ medical records a week before force-feeding.[3]
• Paul, Weiss assisted Thurgood Marshall to reverse the doctrine of "separate but equal" in Brown v. Board of Education.[4]
• Paul, Weiss represented Edith Windsor in challenging the Defense of Marriage Act in United States v. Windsor in 2013.[4]
• Paul, Weiss issued the report in the Deflategate football inflation controversy in 2015.[5]
• Paul, Weiss advised the casino operating unit of Caesars Entertainment in its bankruptcy proceedings, taking over the role from O'Melveny & Myers in 2011. It later became known that Apollo Global Management, a private equity sponsor of Caesars, was also a Paul, Weiss client. Paul, Weiss was found to have a conflict of interest in the matter, although an investigation found no actual harm to Caesars or its creditors.[6]
• Paul, Weiss represented the China Medical Technologies (CMED) Audit Committee in investigating an anonymous letter alleging possible illegal and fraudulent activities by management, prior to CMED being discovered to have been the subject of a $355 million fraud.[7][8][9][10][11][12][13]

Rankings

The firm was ranked #2 for average partner compensation and #4 for profits per partner in the 2018 AmLaw 100 report.[14] Starting July 1, 2018, associate salaries range from $190,000 for first-year associates to $350,000 for senior associates (in addition to annual bonuses).[15][16]

Diversity

William Thaddeus Coleman Jr. was the first black lawyer hired at the firm. He was hired in 1949 and worked for Paul, Weiss for three years.[17] The firm's first black partner, Jeh Johnson, was selected in 1994.[18] On October 10, 2007, Paul, Weiss was included in a ranking of Manhattan law firms by the national law student group Building a Better Legal Profession. [19][20] The organization ranked firms by billable hours, demographic diversity, and pro bono participation. Paul, Weiss was ranked as being in the top fifth of the 74 firms researched, in number of Asian, female, and LGBT associates at the firm. The firm fell within the 61st to 80th percentile for number of Black associates, and in the 21st to 40th percentile for Hispanic associates. For diversity among partner attorneys, the firm was ranked in the 61st to 80th percentile for Black, Hispanic, Asian, and LGBT categories, despite only having 2 Black, 2 Hispanic, 5 Asian, and 3 LGBT partners at the firm. Paul, Weiss was also ranked number 52 out of the 74 firms evaluated, for opportunities for advancement for female attorneys, with the firm having a 68.8% decrease from the number of female associates to female partners.[21][22]
Paul, Weiss received criticism when an announcement for the firm's new partner class was shared by the firm's LinkedIn page in early December 2018. The announcement displayed the photos of the 12 attorneys in the partner class; 11 of whom were men, and all of whom were white. The announcement generated discussions on diversity within the legal community, and prompted an open letter from more than 170 General Counsel and Chief Legal Officers expressing their disappointment that firms like Paul, Weiss "continue to promote partner classes that in no way reflect the demographic composition of entering associate classes."[23][24][25]

Political contributions

According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Paul, Weiss donated more to federal candidates and committees during the 2018 election cycle than any other law firm, giving $2.77 million, 93% to Democrats.[26] By comparison, the legal profession as a whole made 72% of its donations to Democrats.[27] Since 1989, Paul, Weiss contributed $11.26 million to federal campaigns and committees.[28]

Controversy

In January and February of 2020, law students at Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, New York University Law School, and Michigan Law School protested the firm's recruitment events over its representation of Exxon Mobil Corporation.[29][30][31][32]

Name partners

• Randolph E. Paul
• Louis S. Weiss
• Simon H. Rifkind
• John F. Wharton
• Lloyd K. Garrison

See also

• List of largest law firms by profits per partner

References

1. "Paul Weiss". Law. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
2. "Paul Weiss". Law. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
3. Debra Burlingame; Thomas Joscelyn (March 15, 2010). "Gitmo's Indefensible Lawyers". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved March 15, 2010.
4. "Our Practice". www.paulweiss.com. Retrieved September 19, 2018.
5. Wells, Theodore V., Jr.; Karp, Brad S.; Reisner, Lorin L. (May 6, 2015). "Investigative report concerning footballs used during the AFC Championship game on January 18, 2015" (pdf). Retrieved May 8, 2015.
6. Randles, Jonathan (March 16, 2016). "Paul Weiss Missed Caesars Conflict, Examiner Says". Law360.
7. In Re China Medical Technologies, Inc., 522 B.R. 28 (2014), Leagle.com
8. Ryan, Lisa (April 30, 2015). "Paul Weiss Fights Med. Co. Liquidator’s Bid For Docs," Law360.
9. Scuria, Andrew (February 20, 2015). "Ch. 15 Liquidator Renews Push For Paul Weiss Docs," Law360.
10. "China Medical Technologies, Inc. Announces the Substantial Completion of an Independent Internal Investigation," AngloChinese Investments, July 30, 2009.
11. Coe, Abra (October 1, 2015). "Paul Weiss Must Pony Up Privileged Docs On Defunct Med Co.," Law360.
12. Michaels, Margarita (September 30, 2015) "Paul Weiss ordered to reveal privileged information from investigation on behalf of bankrupt Chinese medical company," Global Restructuring Review.
13. In Re: China Medical Technologies, Inc., Opinion and Order (S.D.N.Y. 2015).
14. Patrice, Joe. "Am Law 100 Released — A Lot Of Firms Made A Lot Of Money". Above the Law. Retrieved June 15, 2018.
15. Rubino, Kathryn. "Paul Weiss Makes Their Compensation Statement". Above the Law. Retrieved June 15, 2018.
16. "Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP|Company Profile|Vault.com". Vault. Retrieved September 19, 2018.
17. Todd C. Peppers, "William Thaddeus Coleman, Jr.: Breaking the Color Barrier at the US Supreme Court." Journal of Supreme Court History 33.3 (2008): 353-370. online
18. Noam Scheiber and John Eligon, Elite Law Firm's All-White Partner Class Stirs Debate on Diversity, "New York Times", January 27, 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/27/us/paul-weiss-partner-diversity-law-firm.html
19. Amir Efrati, You Say You Want a Big-Law Revolution, Take II, "Wall Street Journal", October 10, 2007, https://blogs.wsj.com/law/2007/10/10/you-say-you-want-a-big-law-revolution-take-ii/
20. Adam Liptak, In Students’ Eyes, Look-Alike Lawyers Don’t Make the Grade, New York Times, October 29, 2007, https://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/29/us/29bar.html?em&ex=1193889600&en=4b0cd84261ffe5b4&ei=5087%0A
21. Thomas Adcock and Zusha Elinson, Student Group Grades Firms On Diversity, Pro Bono Work, "New York Law Journal," October 19, 2007,
22. Amir Efrati, You Say You Want a Big-Law Revolution, Take II, "Wall Street Journal", October 10, 2007, https://blogs.wsj.com/law/2007/10/10/you-say-you-want-a-big-law-revolution-take-ii/
23. https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6495355575147335680/
24. Joe Patrice, Paul Weiss Press Release Captures Everything Broken About Biglaw In One Image, "Above the Law", December 11, 2018, https://abovethelaw.com/2018/12/paul-weiss-press-release-captures-everything-broken-about-biglaw-in-one-image/?rf=1
25. Noam Scheiber and John Eligon, Elite Law Firm's All-White Partner Class Stirs Debate on Diversity, "New York Times", January 27, 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/27/us/paul-weiss-partner-diversity-law-firm.html
26. "Lawyers & Lobbyists: Top Contributors to Federal Candidates, Parties, and Outside Groups". OpenSecrets.org. Center for Responsive Politics. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
27. "Lawyers & Lobbyists: Long-Term Contribution Trends". OpenSecrets.org. Center for Responsive Politics. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
28. "Organizations: Paul, Weiss et al". OpenSecrets.org. Center for Responsive Politics. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
29. Queen, Jack (February 12, 2020). "NYU Law Students Disrupt Paul Weiss Event Over Exxon Win," Law360.
30. Pontecorvo, Emily (February 10, 2020). "Calls for law firm to #DropExxon go national with law student boycott," Grist.
31. Irfan, Umair (January 16, 2020). "The surprising protest of Exxon’s law firm at Harvard Law," Vox.
32. Schachinger, Julia (February 19, 2020). "University Law Students protest Paul, Weiss recruiting event in support of #DropExxon campaign," The Michigan Daily.

External links

• Anemona Hartocollis, The New York Times, Highest Court in New York Confronts Gay Marriage, June 1, 2006
• Mark Fass, New York Law Journal, N.Y. High Court Ends Same-Sex Marriage Fight, July 7, 2006
• "Inside the Minds: Leading Litigators" with a chapter by Martin Flumenbaum, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, Co-Chair Litigation - "Keys to Success as a Litigator", ISBN 1587621592