The Am Law 200 showed healthy increases in revenues and profits in 2012, but in the pro bono world, the downturn lives on. For the second consecutive year, The Am Law 200 posted drops in both total pro bono hours and average hours per lawyer. There were, however, two hints of a nascent rebound. After dropping 10.6 percent in 2011, The Am Law 200′s average percentage of lawyers performing at least 20 hours of pro bono work rose 0.4 percent in 2012, to 44 percent. Additionally, 88 firms increased their pro bono scores in 2012, while 72 showed declines. The features and charts presented here offer a snapshot of he Am Law 200′s pro bono commitment in 2012—who did the work and what sort of work got done, while also examining long-term changes in the nature of pro bono at large law firms.
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THE FEATURES
As postrevolutionary governments form across the Arab world, Am Law 200 lawyers offer pro bono guidance to emerging regimes.
A Honigman Miller partner takes a lead role in a nonprofit’s innovative drive to clear Detroit’s abandoned lots.
In striking down a key provision of the Voting Rights Act, the Supreme Court took away—at least for now—a key weapon that lawyers at Arnold & Porter; Dechert; Fried Frank, and Sullivan & Cromwell have relied on in challenging voter ID laws.
THE CHARTS
The nation’s 200 highest—grossing firms rated according to their pro bono score.
A downloadable PDF with highlights from this year’s survey that shows pro bono may be the one place where the recession lingers.
Thirty—four Am Law 200 firms declined to participate in our pro bono survey this year, including some of The Am Law 100′s largest firms by head count, as well as some of its most profitable..
