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 picked up in August, as 76 partner and counsel moves were reported, up from 60 in July. The number was also higher than the 60 moves reported in August 2025.
There were two group moves in August. Those were:
- Two White Collar/Investigations partners that joined DLA Piper from Freshfields.
- A two-partner Litigation and Government Contracts group that joined McGuireWoods from Womble Bond Dickinson.
So far in 2026, there have been six more group moves than during the same time period in 2025.
Other firms reporting multiple lateral moves included:
- Arnold & Porter
- Barnes & Thornburg
- Cleary Gottlieb
- Foley & Lardner
- Greenberg Traurig
- K&L Gates
- Kirkland & Ellis
- Latham & Watkins
- Orrick
- Pillsbury Winthrop
- Sidley Austin
- Simpson Thacher
- Steptoe
- Sullivan & Cromwell
Twelve attorneys moved from the federal government to law firms in August, down from 13 in July. Eight lawyers joined firms from in-house positions.
Twenty-six of the laterals (34.2 percent) were women. Of those, 20 (76.9 percent) joined their new firms as partners. That compares to 28 of the 50 men (56 percent) who were selected partners at their new firms.
Litigation was the most active practice area represented in August, with 12 moves. Other active practice areas included:
- Intellectual Property 9
- Antitrust 7
- International Trade/National Security 6
- White Collar/Investigations 6
- Health Care 4
- Government Contracts 4
- Banking 3
- Investment Management 3
- Energy 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
