Mid-market dealwork and litigation practices proved to be stabilizing forces for Pennsylvania’s AmLaw 200 firms, who were able to grow their revenues while facing ongoing transactional headwinds and inflated expenses.

However, increased costs became a drag on net income in 2023 as firms invested in technology and infrastructure. Further signaling the impact of increased in costs was a general drop in profit margins, with only three firms increasing their margins and an additional three able to maintain margins from 2022.

Morgan Lewis & Bockius

Morgan Lewis turned in a strong performance in 2023, seeing 5.6% growth in gross revenue year over year and earning $2.89 billion. Net income also increased by 4.8%, surpassing $1.5 billion, and porifts per partner increased by 2.9% to around $1.96 million. The firm’s headcount remained steady, with its equity tier growing by 1.9% while its non-equity tier dropped down to 18 attorneys, a 37.9% decrease.

Reed Smith

Reed Smith’s financial performance held steady year over year in 2023, with the firm only seeing 0.8% growth in gross revenue to reach about $1.43 billion. Net income dropped by 3% as the firm faced increasing costs and invested in technology, while profits per partner dropped 2.8% to just under $1.6 million. The firm also saw a slight contraction in headcount, seeing a 1.5% loss in total lawyers and a 0.3% decrease in equity partnership. In terms fo revenue per lawyer, however, Reed Smith had its best year to date, seeing a 2.4% increase to $943,000.

Dechert

Dominated by transactional practices, Dechert withstood a soft financial market to maintain flat revenue in 2023. The firm’s gross revenue increased by 0.4%, while increased costs translated into a 6.4% decrease in net income to $503 million. The firm’s headcount contracted by 1.6% to 957 attorneys, helping to increase its revenue per lawyer by 2% to $1.35 million, while a 5.3% decrease in its equity partner tier helped rein in a drop in profits per partner, which fell 1.2% to $3.58 million.

K&L Gates

Global behemoth K&L Gates saw mixed financial results in 2023, increasing gross revenue and revenue per lawyer while also seeing drops in profits per partner and net income. Gross revenue grew by 7.2% to hit $1.28 billion as revenue per lawyer grew by 6%, reaching $727,000. Net income, meanwhile, dropped 3.7% to $245 million as profits per partner fell 1.7% to $1.4 million. The firm’s headcount remained steady year over year, with overall headcount growing by 1.2%, or about 20 lawyers, with the firm’s non-equity tier growing by 5%.

Troutman Pepper Hamilton & Sanders

Despite a large lateral departure at the start of 2023, Troutman Pepper managed to keep its financial performance steady throughout 2023, losing less than 1% of its gross revenue year over year and seeing increases in the remainder of its financial metrics.