Of the 10 highest-grossing Washington, D.C., lobbying outfits in 2012, six were law firms. And the highest-grossing of all is the law firm Patton Boggs, which has generated nearly a half-billion dollars in lobbying revenue since 1998. The firm set the template for the seamless blend of lobbying and legal services that's now commonplace in the nation's capital: Of the Am Law 200 firms with Washington, D.C., offices, the majority have lobbying capabilities (or at least say they do).
In 1966, when Thomas Boggs Jr. joined James Patton Jr.'s firm four years after its founding, most D.C. law firms didn't lobby, except on tax issues. Lobbyists, who then numbered in the dozens, were almost exclusively former government officials working out of small shops.
