Paying close attention to its personnel and head count expenses, Perkins Coie weathered a rough start to last year, including making staff layoffs in February and announcing associate deferrals later that year. Despite head count reductions, Perkins Coie hit an all-time high for revenue, up to $1.21 billion, and saw its profits per equity partner jump 7.6%, even with an equity tier expansion.

Chair Bill Malley, in an interview, said the firm’s performance was a direct result of its investments in intellectual property patent and litigation work, as well as some contributions from data privacy, white-collar defense and transactional work.