Revenue growth among law firms based or founded in Chicago occurred on a stratified basis in 2019, with those toward the top of the Am Law 200 seeing larger growth than those toward the bottom.

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Of the 14 Am Law 200 firms that either call Chicago home or have deep roots here, six—Kirkland & Ellis, Sidley Austin, Mayer Brown, McDermott Will & Emery, Seyfarth Shaw and Katten Muchin Rosenman—posted gains that exceeded the average 5% growth the Am Law 200 saw last year. All six of those firms are in the top 70 of the Am Law 200.

"On most of the key metrics, Chicago, on a one-, three- and five-year look, is performing roughly in line with the Am Law 100, if not better than the Am Law 100," says Kent Zimmermann, a Zeughauser Group consultant based in Chicago.

The other three Chicago firms in the Am Law 100—Baker McKenzie, Jenner & Block and Winston & Strawn—grew their top lines by 0.7%, 1.5% and 2.1%, respectively. Baker McKenzie's lackluster growth led to it being overtaken by DLA Piper for third place on the Am Law 100. Winston's growth was enough for it to break into the $1 billion club, while Jenner reversed a four-year revenue slide.

As a group, the nine Am Law 100 firms averaged 5.65% revenue growth in 2019.

By contrast, three Chicago firms in the Second Hundred saw their receipts shrink last year. Hinshaw & Culbertson had the biggest drop among the cohort, as it saw its revenue fall by 7.2% in 2019, continuing a slide the firm has been on since reaching its peak in 2015.

Schiff Hardin had the second-biggest drop in 2019, at 3.3%, also continuing a slide for the fourth year in a row. Despite the drop, Schiff Hardin managing partner Marci Eisenstein told The American Lawyer in mid-March that the firm "feels very good about last year," pointing to the flat growth the firm saw in its revenue per lawyer and profits per equity partner numbers as positive news. Vedder Price, meanwhile, saw its overall revenue drop by 0.8% in 2019.

The five Second Hundred firms averaged a revenue decline of 1.16%.

A common thread linking many high-performing firms has been their investments into private equity, which is an important part of the Chicago economy, Zimmermann says. The fact that firms like Kirkland and Sidley have been able to build up and branch out from Chicago speaks to the overall strength of the market, he says.

"Kirkland is known for its strengths in many areas, but many would observe that private equity has been essential to its ascent," Zimmermann says. "You've seen many other firms in Chicago and around the country learn from that."

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The Windy City is an attractive destination for most law firms, but not as attractive as New York and Northern California, Zimmermann says. Chicago has lower rates than those markets, which can be off-putting for firms based in New York and London, he adds.

But that's not always the case, Zimmermann notes. In 2019, Eversheds Sutherland, which has roots in both London and Atlanta, and Blank Rome of Philadelphia opened their own offices in Chicago. So far this year, New York-based Willkie Farr & Gallagher and Texas-based Hilliard Martinez Gonzales have made plans to open outposts in Chicago with prominent partners from Jenner and Kirkland, respectively.

A number of Chicago-based Am Law 200 firms, including Baker McKenzie, McDermott, Schiff Hardin and Winston reported various staffing and pay cuts in an effort to weather the COVID-19 pandemic's economic storm. Noting the economic pain that has hit businesses across the country, Chicago-based legal consultant Kay Hoppe predicts many firms would be perfectly happy to see their revenue stay flat this year.

"I don't think there's any firm in the city that wouldn't be happy going back to last year's numbers," Hoppe says. "That would be a huge victory."