Cleary Gottlieb
New York, NYWashington, DCSan Francisco, CA +1
FIRM PROFILE
Proskauer Rose
- Boca Raton, FL
- Boston, MA
- Charlotte, NC
- +4
Striking the balance between “a standard of excellence and a great training ground,” cheery global outfit Proskauer is the pick of the Roses.
About the Firm
- 8
- National Offices
- 4
- Overseas Offices
- 340
- Associates
- 258
- Partners
As everybody knows, the grass is greener where you water it, and it’s that exact ethos which brings each generation of associates to Proskauer Rose. “It’s the ideal balance between a commitment to a standard of excellence and a great training ground,” a green-thumbed source determined. Indeed, “there’s a good relationship of letting you get as much experience as you can without it overwhelming you,” juniors agreed. Good relationships also extend to interactions peer-to-peer: “It was as much the people as the work,” one source described of their decision to join Proskauer: “It’s a very culture forward, good work-life balance firm.”
“It was as much the people as the work.”
Of course, the work is certainly not to be downplayed; its standing in Chambers USA with over 50 department rankings speaks for itself. Here, the firm is awarded best-in-class accolades for its work in employee benefits & executive compensation, healthcare, labor & employment, private credit, private equity (secondaries), and sports law nationwide.
With its headquarters in New York, it’ll come as no surprise that the majority of juniors join the Big Apple office, followed by the Boston, Los Angeles, and Chicago hubs. The firm’s Washington DC, Boca Raton, and New Orleans offices also take on a handful of associates. Proskauer’s network of offices also extends to Charlotte, with four international bases further afield in Hong Kong, London, Paris, and São Paulo.
Summer Program
- 61
- Summer Places
“I loved being a summer associate – it was the best job I will ever have,” beamed one source. Associates praised Proskauer’s summer program, highlighting that they were given a good mix of substantive work and networking activities: “They do a good job striking the balance of not overworking you and giving you the summer associate experience.”
Summers are able to shadow associates at the firm to get a sense of what working there truly looks like, as well as get involved in lots of research-based work. “Ask as many questions as possible,” an associate advised, while another added, “The whole point is to figure out what you want to do… just keep an open mind!”
At the end of the summer, the firm asks candidates to rank the practice areas in order of where they’d like to be placed. “Most people get their first choice; if not, they will get their second,” an insider noted.
Strategy & Future
“We intend to grow, not to grow for the sake of growth, but to grow in areas where our clients continue to seek our advice and counsel,” chairman Timothy Mungovan tells us. As such, the firm recently expanded its footprint, adding a new office to its ranks for the first time in almost two decades in Charlotte, NC.
Mungovan also emphasizes the importance of recruiting elite talent in order to ensure the firm’s progression: “The continued success of Proskauer is dependent upon ensuring that we're recruiting elite talent who want to practice law at an elite level, and who are open to both learning how to be extraordinary lawyers, but also to adapting to changing conditions and technologies.”
As such, “We’ve tried to really be at the cutting edge of innovation for large law firms as part of our intention to integrate technology into the entire firm,” he tells us, continuing, “We also know that technology will continue to enhance productivity, and so client hour targets will likely continue to evolve as clients will want and expect us to be able to integrate technologies that will enhance productivity to be able to deliver work product that is not just superior, but also done in a more efficient way.”
Read more from our conversation with Timothy Mungovan under the ‘Get Hired’ tab.
The Work
To get started, associates are assigned work via a centralized staffing system; they also have the opportunity to reach out to partners directly to source work and build relationships as well. Our sources were all fans of this fluid approach, noting: “I find it’s helpful as once you find the people you work well with, you can work with them more, but if you get nervous about hours, you can always fall back on the staffing system.”
The firm’s commercial litigation department handles a broad range of disputes, from antitrust work, including HSR filings, to false advertising, product liability and mass torts, real estate, securities, and white-collar matters.
“…you have to have a willingness to engage.”
With such a range, juniors praised the opportunities available to them: “We do real substantive work; you’re drafting motions and preparing depositions – it’s a lot of hands-on work early.” Partaking in legal research, discovery review, and having a go at first drafts are also key examples of work junior litigators find themselves doing. Offering some words of wisdom, one associate advised: “The best you can bring is light and levity. Nobody expects you to have substantive knowledge on a matter, but you have to have a willingness to engage.”
Litigation clients: Major League Soccer, Wells Fargo, AbbVie. Representing Madonna and Live Nation in relation to three high-profile class actions, multiple arbitrations, and small claims court cases alleging false advertising, negligent misrepresentation, and unfair and deceptive trade practices.
Proskauer’s corporate department is made up of a multitude of practices including private investment funds, private credit & leveraged finance, and private equity and M&A – to name just a few.
In the private investment funds group in particular, associates explained, “Proskauer has a long history doing venture capital, private equity and credit, and it has also recently ranked highly for its secondaries practice.” The team advises on the full lifecycle of private investment funds, representing investment managers, institutional investors, and all types of asset managers on the structuring, negotiating, and buying and selling of funds on the secondary market.
“We get a lot of exposure to the higher end documents, even as a second year, which is great,” one associate highlighted of their levels of responsibility; “We’re definitely rewarded and noticed for our efforts.”
The firm’s leveraged finance and private credit groups recently joined forces to form the private credit & leveraged finance group. Here, associates noted no two days look the same. “Every day is a new thing, which keeps it lively and fresh so I’m not daunted by the task,” said one insider.
The leveraged finance side primarily focuses on middle market private credit deals, which associates mentioned are much more relationship driven types of finance, as opposed to large offerings. Juniors also noted working on a variety of matters, including credit agreement amendments, middle market CLOs, private credit lending, and representing lenders on private equity transactions. In short, there is plenty of work to go around, and the variety means juniors are never stuck on the same page for long.
Corporate clients: Houlihan Lokey, Fortress Credit Corp., Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. Represented QSC in its acquisition by Acuity Brands for a sum of $1.2 billion.
Career Development
Associates praised both the informal and formal development at the firm. In their first year, newbies are assigned an associate mentor to help them acclimatize to firm life and to answer any questions they may have. In their second year, juniors are assigned a partner mentor, who sources agreed truly take the time to sit down with them to explain concepts and bridge the knowledge gaps associates have.
Upon joining the firm, associates also embark on a six-month formal training program with up to two training sessions a day. Alongside the formal training, juniors also highlighted on-the-job training through hands-on experience: “We are brought onto matters immediately, with the caveat that they try and ease you in as best as possible, and that’s mainly through shadowing opportunities.”
In terms of longevity at the firm, the consensus among sources was that if they were to leave the firm, it would be to leave BigLaw entirely, rather than to lateral to another BigLaw firm. As for the path to partnership, associates noted that through conversations with partners and senior mentors, “it’s been made clear.”
Hours & Compensation
- No requirement
- Billable hours requirement
The firm recently implemented a 2,000 hour productivity target for associates in order to earn a bonus, which includes at least 1,800 development hours (a mix of client billable and a maximum of 100 pro bono and 100 shadowing hours) and 200 engagement hours (which can be additional pro bono and shadowing hours, and a mix of marketing, training, recruiting, and community involvement activities). Associates were keen to reassure that the change hadn’t caused any panic: “It’s easy to reach, I have no worries about not having enough hours.”
First-year associates have a reduced target of 1,800 hours as the firm understands it can often take a while to ramp up. In addition, to support meeting targets, newbies can undertake as much engagement and development work as they like – all of which will be counted towards their hours threshold.
Breaking this down to the day-to-day level, on average, sources reported billing around nine hours a day, though this is caveated with the fact that when matters heat up, they can quickly enter the realm of billing over 200 hours a month. Thankfully though, weekend work can be avoided. “It depends on how you want to set your boundaries,” noted one interviewee, adding, “Partners are respectful of my time.”
“…people are aware it’s a job, not a lifestyle.”
Surprisingly, interviewees’ concerns of having to put in more hours hadn’t materialized: “I thought BigLaw would mean more working around the clock; instead, you have more of a life here, and people are aware it’s a job, not a lifestyle.”
For their toils, associates receive market rate compensation, with the firm also matching the latest special summer bonuses.
Culture
No matter the practice area, sources agreed that Proskauer’s collaborative and approachable culture is a defining factor of the firm. As one quipped, “The culture is the secret sauce!” Take it from this lateral who attested: “It’s night and day how, though everyone is busy and supporting clients, there’s still a general collective of everyone moving in the same direction. It’s a really supportive environment.” Of course, the firm still operates within the BigLaw realm, but noted that their colleagues really made all the difference: “We’re BigLaw, so we play with the big dogs and that means long hours. There are expectations that you’re always available, but the difference is that you’re doing it with people you enjoy working with.”
Across all offices, associates are required to be in person four days a week. To encourage associates to be in, the firm offers free lunch on Wednesdays, snack and drink carts every few weeks, and other impromptu events. The Boston office in particular is undergoing a renovation, which local associates are looking forward to: “It’ll be a nice environment which lends itself to wanting to be in person more.”
Pro Bono
- 33,830
- Total Us Pro Bono Hours
- 51
- Average Pro Bono Hours Per Attorney
“We have a great pro bono partner who have great relationships with so many organizations; they always have in-person or remote opportunities,” one associate headlined. Associates are encouraged to undertake at least 50 hours of pro bono; beyond this, there is no limit to how much they can undertake, as long as it doesn’t interfere with their ability to complete their other work.
Associates noted the availability of immigration, gun safety, and veterans’ matters in particular. They’re able to pick up work through the pro bono partner who regularly reaches out with updates on available opportunities, and can also reach out to ask for work that may be of interest.
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Top Figures
- New York
- Largest US Office
- 1,584
- Revenue (£m)
- $225,000
- 1st Year Salary
- 14
- Partners Made
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