Law Firms
Drop in Partner Numbers Drives Higher Partner Profits at Buchanan Ingersoll
Posted Feb 21, 2008, 08:03 am CST
By Debra Cassens Weiss
Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney had fewer partners in 2007 but higher profits per equity partner.
The two numbers are related, chief executive officer Thomas VanKirk told the Legal Intelligencer. "Leverage like that will always have some impact on profits per equity partner," he said.
The firm had 193 equity and nonequity partners last year, 15 fewer than the previous year, the legal newspaper reports. At the same time, its profits per equity partner jumped 9.1 percent to $570,000. The firm’s gross revenues increased by almost 4 percent, reaching $282.1 million in 2007.
VanKirk said Buchanan Ingersoll’s overall number of full-time lawyers stands at 509, an increase of about 1 percent, and the firm will be announcing some new additions in the coming days. Some bankruptcy lawyers who left the firm may also be returning, he said.