This is the latest update on lateral partner and counsel moves in the Washington, D.C. area. The data included in these reports is primarily derived from Firm Prospects LLC but organized by the Legal Recruiting team at The McCormick Group. For more details and analysis, including a list of laterals for the month, please contact Steve Nelson.
Lateral partner hiring remained steady in September, as 76 partner and counsel moves were reported, the same as in August. The number was lower than the 92 moves reported in September 2025.
There were no group moves in September. Firms reporting multiple lateral hires included:
- Cooley
- Crowell & Moring
- Gilbert
- Holland & Knight
- Latham & Watkins
- Mayer Brown
- Morrison & Foerster
- Simpson Thacher
- Snell & Wilmer
- WilmerHale
- Winston Taylor
Twenty-five attorneys moved from the federal government to law firms in September, up from 12 in August. Ten lawyers joined firms from in-house positions.
Thirty-two of the laterals (42.1 percent) were women. Of those, 17 (53.1 percent) joined their new firms as partners. That compares to 29 of the 44 men (65.9 percent) who were selected partners at their new firms.
Litigation was the most active practice area represented in September, with 12 moves. Other active practice areas included:
- Antitrust 7
- International Trade/National Security 6
- White Collar/Investigations 6
- Intellectual Property 6
- Energy 5
- Banking 5
- Environment 4
- Tax 3
- Consumer Protection 3
Nothing is more challenging for law firms as bringing in top talent at the partner level. Recent surveys indicate that a large number of managing partners question the overall efficacy of such efforts.
The McCormick Group has developed a consulting program to provide clients with the framework to change the game with regard to their lateral partner hiring strategy. The McCormick Group provides a suite of services designed to help firms establish or fine-tune their lateral partner recruiting program so that long-term success can be achieved. Some of those include:
- Lateral Recruiting Audits
- Market Perception Surveys
- Lateral Strategy Development
- Practice Area and Industry Analysis
- Merger Analysis and Investigation
- Process Management
