Frank Ryan has had 18 months to prepare for this. DLA Piper’s partnership elected him chairman in May 2019, and he officially took over the global firm at the beginning of this year. But preparation can only go so far in the middle of a pandemic, societal upheaval and administration change.

Ryan spoke with The American Lawyer about navigating it all, how his firm is finding opportunities in what he described as the busiest lateral market he’s ever seen, and what it means to have a former partner become the country’s first ”second gentleman.” This interview has been lightly edited.