Latham & Watkins LLP

Latham & Watkins LLP is a global law firm with offices in the United States, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Founded in 1934, Latham & Watkins has grown to become one of the largest law firms in the world, consistently ranked among the top firms in the U.S. and internationally. The firm’s practice areas include: corporate, intellectual property, litigation, and regulatory. Latham & Watkins has a team of over 2,500 lawyers who provide services in more than 50 countries across the globe. The firm has been recognized for its commitment to diversity, as well as its pro bono work.

The firm was founded in January 1934 in Los Angeles, California, by Dana Latham and Paul Watkins. Latham's practice focused on state and federal tax law, and he eventually served as Commissioner of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service under President Dwight Eisenhower. Watkins's practice focused primarily on labor. At first, the firm grew slowly, with only 19 attorneys employed as of 1960. Beginning in the 1970s, the firm began growing rapidly, opening new offices in Orange County, Washington D.C., San Diego, Chicago, and New York. In the 1990s, the firm opened its first international office in London. Since then, it has continued to expand internationally with 18 international offices spanning Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Middle East.

The company is known for lobbying and litigating against actions to mitigate climate change. According to the Law Students for Climate Accountability, “Latham & Watkins is the only firm to be in the Top 5 Worst Firms for both transactions and litigation exacerbating climate change.”

Amid the global recession in 2009, the firm laid off 190 lawyers and 250 paralegal and support staff, representing twelve percent of the firm's total associates and ten percent of the support staff. At a time when many firms were conducting layoffs, the term "Lathamed" became legal slang for being laid off.

As of February 2021, Latham's largest office is in New York City, with more than 450 lawyers. The firm claims it is the only fully integrated multinational law firm with no single headquarters. In 2007, Latham became the first American law firm to attain more than $2 billion in yearly revenue, and in 2018 it was the first law firm to report more than US$3 billion in gross revenue. It was briefly the highest-grossing law firm in the world, but has since lost the number one spot to Kirkland & Ellis.

Latham opened its first office in Moscow in 1992, and thereafter represented a number of Russian state-owned companies. These clients include the state-owned bank VTB and the natural gas producer Novatek. Latham ended its Russia operations in March 2022, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The mission of Latham & Watkins LLP is to provide outstanding legal services to its clients and to help them achieve their goals and objectives. They strive to provide innovative, ethical and cost-effective legal advice and representation to our clients, and to act as a responsible corporate citizen. They seek to foster a culture of excellence, professionalism, respect and collaboration across our global network of offices. Their commitment to excellence and client service is their highest priority.

Their vision is to be the premier global law firm, delivering the most innovative and sophisticated legal solutions to our clients while helping them achieve their strategic objectives. They strive to be the best in the profession, to be the trusted advisor to their clients, and to provide their lawyers and staff with a rewarding, collaborative and supportive work environment.

Latham & Watkins LLP provides legal services across a broad range of practice areas, including corporate, finance, litigation, intellectual property, mergers and acquisitions, antitrust, and tax. Some of the products and services they offer include:

• Corporate Transactions: Representing clients in complex business transactions, including mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures, as well as corporate governance, securities, banking, and capital markets.

• Litigation and Dispute Resolution: Representing clients in both civil and criminal litigation, including appellate, class action, and white collar defense.

• Regulatory and Compliance: Assisting clients with government investigations, regulatory compliance, and corporate compliance programs.

• Intellectual Property: Representing clients in patent and trademark prosecution, licensing, and litigation.

• Tax: Assisting clients with tax planning and compliance, as well as transaction structuring.

• Private Equity and Venture Capital: Representing clients in private equity and venture capital investments, including fund formation and fund-raising.