Shearman & Sterling has failed to keep pace with the Wall Street elite in the last few years. DAVID ROBINSON looks at the reasons behind its malaise and its efforts to get back on track.
To lose one corporate chief may be regarded as a misfortune, to lose two looks like carelessness. The departure of London corporate star Peter King to Weil Gotshal in July, hot on the heels of global M&A co-head Rolf Koerfer’s exit to Allen & Overy earlier in the year, raised further questions about Shearman & Sterling’s once-mighty corporate practice. Is it losing its way? Is it actually in decline?
Sherman & Sterling’s profit per partner is $1.8 million. This ranks it at number 26 in the AmLaw 100, far behind white-shoe peers like Sullivan & Cromwell ($3.1 million) and Davis Polk ($2.4 million). Even more striking, it lags behind a host of non-New York firms that it wouldn’t have considered competition a decade ago, such as Paul Hastings and Gibson Dunn (both $1.9 million).
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