Despite the economic tribulation of the pandemic, Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton continued a three decade-long streak of upward trajectory in gross revenue and profits in 2020 while growing head count in all lawyer classes. Firm leaders say that’s due to a diverse mix of practice areas that “each had a chance to shine” at different parts of the year.

“We have a wide variety of practices so we can serve our clients in a variety of ways,” the Los Angeles-based firm’s executive committee chairman, Guy Halgren, said. “If anything, the last year validated that strategy because at different times during the year we needed everything we had.”