Paul Weiss

That’s not all there is to get excited about in London either. As part of its recruitment drive, Paul Weiss has been undergoing a major re-fit of Twitter’s (now X’s) former London headquarters and the video unveiling speaks for itself. Highlights include a firm very fancy looking firm ‘restaurant’ (note the avoidance of the word ‘canteen’) that features daily sushi and a pizza oven, stone carved wall-to-ceiling inscriptions of memorable quotes from top Paul Weiss lawyers and a juke box that vac schemers are asked to choose a track to be added to. Trainees will be situated on the edge of Soho and just a stone’s throw from upmarket Mayfair — home to a large number of the firm’s private equity clients.

As you might’ve already guessed, Paul Weiss’ numbers are looking good. The firm reported an 31% increase in revenues last year, taking it to $2.63 billion dollar mark (£1.98 billion) with profit per equity partner (PEP) up almost 15% to $7.5 million (£5.6 million). To put this into perspective, that’s more than double the PEP at any Magic Circle firm and, until recently, every partner at the firm was an equity partner! Each of the firm’s core practice areas saw double-digit growth and, aside from its marquee signings and impressive London growth, global chair Brad Karp has also credited the firm’s heavy investment into AI as a reason for present (and future) growth — those in the capital have recently enjoyed the roll-out of Harvey AI.

Ever the showman, Paul Weiss started life on Broadway, as Frank & Weiss, in 1875. Investment banks, insurance firms, tobacco companies and real estate developers were some of PW’s earliest clientele but it wasn’t long before the firm had grown into one of the leading players on the US legal scene, becoming heavily involved in landmark US Supreme Court cases, such as Brown v Board of Education, and advising on the early-makings of America’s Public Broadcasting System (PBS). Nowadays, the firm counts multinationals such as Marvel Studios, Sony and Nintendo, as well as celebrities like Sigourney Weaver, Spike Lee and John McEnroe, amongst its clientele list. The firm is no stranger to US politics either. A known fundraiser for Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign last year, Paul Weiss is also among several major US firms that struck a deal with Donald Trump to avoid the fallout from his flurry of executive orders.

Aside from these political machinations, Paul Weiss is probably best known for its market-leading public M&A, private equity, litigation, white-collar, regulatory defence, and restructuring practices, The London office has a heavy private equity flavour and PW services some of the world’s leading PE funds through its transactional strengths in capital markets, antitrust, tax, finance and M&A. The firm handles some highly complex cross-border transactions which frequently means offering cross-pond advice to those back at base in the US.

Big-time deals need big-time lawyers and Paul Weiss is no stranger to either of these things. Aside from the 200 lawyers in its London office, PW has over 1,000 lawyers spanning its nine other hubs in Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., Wilmington, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Toronto and — the newest member of the pack — Brussels. The firm has also recently established a Latin American practice from its New York office and is rumoured to be contemplating a launch in Singapore.

Paul Weiss has a history of D&I. It was the first major New York City firm to hire a black associate, as well as the first to make a woman a partner. Lawyers at PW have been involved in landmark cases such as Roe v Wade and the Windsor case and the firm has historically represented Nelson Mandela through its pro bono work on behalf of the South Africa Free Election Fund.