Partner ranks at Orange County law firms grew more in the past year while the number of overall attorneys and firm employees were flat.
This week’s Business Journal list features 86 law firms with headquarters or significant operations in Orange County, ranking them by the number of local attorneys as of January. It includes other data, such as firmwide attorney totals and the overall number of local employees, accounting for paralegals and administrative staff, though those figures don’t affect the rankings.
This year’s list is the longest yet, thanks to increased research capacity and growth in the number of firms to make the cut of a minimum 10 lawyers.
OC attorneys numbered 2,628, were about flat. The number of partners, though, grew by more than 3% from 1,185 last year to 1,226.
Top firms barely changed positions.
• Irvine-based Knobbe Martens Olson & Bear LLP, which again tops the list, has 173 locally based lawyers, up by four, or 2.4%. It added two partners over the year and has more than 470 total employees in Orange County, including paralegals, staff and other workers, up 15, or 3.3%.
• Costa Mesa-based Rutan & Tucker LLP is No. 2 with 139 lawyers here, up by three. The firm added seven partners and has 262 OC employees overall, up by two.
The top 10 firm with the biggest attorney growth was the Costa Mesa office of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP. It added five lawyers, a 7.5% increase, and two partners, up 6.5%. It added 13 employees total, a 12.4% increase.
“Building on the significant growth of our corporate practice group in 2015, the firm’s strategic plan calls for continued corporate expansion both in Orange County and firmwide,” Managing Partner Sean O’Connor said.
“Following a tremendous 2015 that included a 10% increase in both revenue and attorney headcount, we fully expect similar growth this year in line with our consistently positive year-over-year performance and expansion.”
Two firms in the top 10 inched up one spot. Costa Mesa-based Snell & Wilmer rose from No. 8 to No. 7, and Newmeyer & Dillion LLP, based in Newport Beach, climbed from No. 9 to No. 8.
• The Irvine office of Buchalter Nemer shot up from No. 36 to tie with four firms for No. 23, adding eight attorneys, a 30.8% increase. The office also added two partners and 14 employees overall.
“Buchalter Nemer’s Orange County office growth has been a direct result of increasing demands for our cost-efficient legal services from both existing and new clients,” said OC Managing Partner Martin Florman. “We have expanded beyond our core services into a full-service office, serving clients on a nationwide basis.”
Practice areas in the Irvine office fueling the growth include corporate, intellectual property, litigation, religious organizations, real estate and healthcare.
• Costa Mesa-based Greenberg Gross LLP debuted at No. 62, tied with three other firms, all with 16 OC attorneys. It added seven attorneys for a 77.8% increase. The firm added two partners over the past year and has 30 total employees, up from 17 last year.
“Our explosive growth is directly attributable to the dire need for top trial lawyers in high-stakes matters,” name partner Wayne R. Gross said. “Most business litigation firms fear going to trial. We live for it. Our philosophy ironically often leads to outstanding settlements for our clients because our opponents would rather quietly settle than lose in open court. The firm’s culture enables it not only to attract blue-chip clients but also the best and brightest lawyers to work on their high-stakes cases.”
• Newcomer Lobel Weiland Golden Friedman LLP debuted at No. 83, tying with two other firms. The Costa Mesa-based firm grew from six to 11 attorneys, up 83.3%. It also doubled its partner count from three to six and grew its overall employees from 12 to 19.
• The law office that shrank the most was Irell & Manella LLP, which ranked No. 42. The number of attorneys in its Newport Beach office dropped from 47 to 25, down 46.8%. It lost three partners and 32 employees overall.
“We are smaller because people left for a variety of reasons, including starting or joining boutique firms, but we had an exceptionally strong year on our smaller platform,” said Newport Beach Managing Partner Michael G. Ermer. “Our revenues-per-lawyer and profits-per-partner remain among the highest in the nation.”
• Three firms dropped off the list due to falling below the requisite 10-attorney minimum in OC. Irvine-based Kading Briggs LLP; Santa Ana-based Pyka Lenhardt Schnaider Zell Inc.; and the Irvine office of Tredway Lumsdaine & Doyle LLP all dropped from 10 to eight attorneys during the year. Kading Briggs was the only one to lose a partner.
“Two of our lawyers, including one partner, left for in-house opportunities,” said Partner Theresa A. Kading. “Both were terrific assets to the firm, and we fully supported their decision to change career paths. We are looking to add two lawyers in early 2016 and are in the midst of discussions with some exceptional lawyers.”
This year’s list had nine newcomers, including No. 34, Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart PC in Costa Mesa, whose office grew from 25 to 29 attorneys, up 16%.
