Gross revenue at Weil, Gotshal & Manges rose slightly in 2008.
The New York-based firm brought in $1.23 billion, up 4.75% from 2007. But revenue per lawyer was down 2% to just over $1 million.
Weil was able to shift lawyers and resources to restructuring and related practices in the second half of the year, when corporate work was down. The firm’s restructuring group grabbed headlines over Harvey Miller’s prominent role in Lehman Brothers’ $639 billion bankruptcy.
Profits per equity partner were up 7.5% to $2.3 million, while the number of equity partners splitting the pie shrank for the second year in a row, from a high of 200 lawyers in 2006 to 184 in 2008.
Overall head count is up to 1,190 lawyers worldwide.
The firm handled several notable bankruptcy matters last year, including the filings for specialty retailer The Sharper Image, energy trading company SemGroup and discount clothing chain Steve & Barry’s.