Fiona Moran, 36, Davis Polk & Wardwell

Office: New York.

Practice area: Litigation.

Law school and year of graduation: University of Virginia School of Law, 2010.

How long have you been at the firm? Since the fall of 2010.

How long were you an associate at the firm? Nine years.

Were you an associate at another firm before joining your present firm? No.

What year did you make partner at your current firm? 2019.

What’s the biggest surprise you experienced in becoming partner? I was surprised by how much it meant to me to have an ownership stake in the firm. From the time that I joined Davis Polk, I have always had an interest not just in the practice of law, but also in the firm as a business. When I became partner I felt a sense of excitement and pride, beyond what I could have expected, about having a real stake in the future success of the firm.

What do you think was the deciding point for the firm in making you partner? It would be difficult to pin down one specific factor that led to my promotion. However, I do know that there are several attributes that have always defined a Davis Polk partner, including excellent legal skills, first-rate client service, passion about the firm, and a commitment to its success. I would like to think that the other partners saw those traits in me.

Describe how you feel now about your career now that you’ve made partner. Very excited. I am proud of the work that I did as an associate and appreciate the firm’s acknowledgment of those efforts. At the same time, I am now among the most junior partners in the firm. I look forward to learning from and working with my new partners to build my practice in white-collar defense and government investigations and to contribute to the overall success of Davis Polk.

What’s the key to successful business development in your opinion? Our clients expect top-notch legal representation, so a critical component of business development is putting forward the firm’s absolute best work product and providing the firm’s absolute best advice. But I think you most successfully serve a client when you take the time to understand their business motivations beyond the narrow confines of one legal matter. By appreciating the business context, you can provide more tailored advice, which helps to gain your clients’ trust and makes them more likely to call you the next time.

What’s been the biggest change, day-to-day, in your routine since becoming partner: It has been exciting to dive straight into my new responsibilities at the firm. For example, there are new management meetings, recruiting responsibilities, projects for my practice group and training. As a result, my calendar quickly went from full to overflowing. I have had to develop a new routine to manage my time even more granularly and efficiently.

Who had the greatest influence in your career that helped propel you to partner? As a mother of two children (going on three!), I have come to fully appreciate the notion that it takes a village to raise a child. I think the same goes for propelling someone into the partnership at Davis Polk. I am incredibly fortunate to have a diverse and successful team supporting my career, including both current and former Davis Polk partners.

What’s the best piece of advice you could give an associate who wants to make partner? Focus on building your team. It is certainly important to have mentors who can help guide you through strategic decision points in your career and think about the big picture. But it is equally important to develop relationships with mid-level and junior associates who you can rely on to help put forward the best work product possible. There is no substitute for hard work, and a solid team will put you in a position to make that hard work pay off.