Law Firms

These law firms make up the litigation 'fearsome foursome,' general counsel survey finds

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Question Marks

Which law firms do general counsel most fear in litigation?

A telephone survey by BTI consulting asked general counsel, corporate litigation chiefs and other litigation decision makers that question. The four law firms most often named were: Dentons, Jones Day, Kirkland & Ellis and Skadden. Above the Law and the Cleveland Plain Dealer have stories on the list.

Dentons is new to the list, while the other law firms are repeats, according to Above the Law, which cites information from Law360 (sub. req.).

More than 300 corporate lawyers participated in the survey, according to this summary of methodology.

The survey also listed “awesome opponents” that also had frequent mentions. They were Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld; Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft; Cravath, Swaine & Moore; Davis Polk & Wardwell; Fish & Richardson; Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher; K&L Gates; Latham & Watkins; Morgan Lewis; Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman; and White & Case.

The Plain Dealer spoke with Steve Sozio, head of litigation for Jones Day’s Cleveland office. He said the findings are “a validation from people on the outside who are either hiring us or opposing us,” but “there’s no internal celebration, no chest-bumping or cocktail parties to celebrate this achievement.”

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