Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer have managed to do in recent years what some law firms have yet to achieve over decades: disrupting the status quo in a legal market outside their home turf, attracting the top of the local talent, and bringing on key business in that market.
Leaders of both law firms in interviews pointed to the importance of gaining laterals with credibility or reputation in each market. A look at each firm’s strategy—Paul Weiss’ in the U.K. and Freshfields’ in the U.S.—indeed shows similarities and their road to growing market share, as well as the continuing challenges ahead for the two market disruptors.
