Detroit. Photo: DenisTangneyJr/iStockphoto.com

Miller, Canfield, Paddock and Stone has reduced its head count by at least nine lawyers, according to a Friday statement on Above the Law, another instance of an Am Law 200 firm that has laid off attorneys even after receiving millions of dollars in an SBA loan.

The Detroit-based firm laid off one principal and six non-principals, including three associates, the statement said. The firm furloughed two additional full-time attorneys, including one associate.

Miller Canfield CEO Michael McGee told Law.com last month that the firm was planning on pay cuts and "some furloughs and layoffs consistent with what we're seeing throughout the legal marketplace."

McGee, in the early June interview, declined to comment at the time on the scope and timing of the cuts. He indicated that lawyers who have seen a slow down in their work will be furloughed.

Starting June 15, he added, Miller Canfield planned to enact salary cuts for its equity and income partners, associates and professional staff. Income partners had their salaries cut by 10% while associates and staff saw their salaries get hit by 7.5%, all on an annualized basis, McGee said. No cuts were enacted on anyone making less than $50,000,, nor did anyone's salary drop below that threshold, he said.

The firm did not respond to a request for comment Friday about the number of layoffs. In his statement on Above the Law, McGee said the layoffs last month were due to the economic slowdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic. "In the wake of the economic slowdown caused by COVID-19, particularly in the auto sector, the firm was forced to implement firmwide cost-cutting measures consistent with industry experience, including temporary furloughs and a few separations," he said.

In the last week, Hughes Hubbard & Reed also confirmed it laid off some associates and staff.

Both Hughes Hubbard and Miller Canfield received between $5 million-$10 million in Paycheck Protection Program loans from the Small Business Administration to maintain payroll. In Miller Canfield's case, it was approved April 11 for a loan from Comerica Bank to retain 313 jobs.

Miller Canfield's head count in 2019 was 194, which included 115 partners—59 equity and 56 nonequity—as well as 39 associates and 40 other lawyers, according to the 2020 NLJ 500.

The firm's financial performance has declined in the last 10 years. Its gross revenue topped out in 2010 at $146.5 million and has held steady or decreased in the years since then, reaching a low of $98.2 million in 2018, according to ALM data. The firm's financial performance increased last year, bumping back up to $106.7 million, ranking No. 196 on this year's Am Law 200.

David Thomas contributed to this report.

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