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'''Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP''' (“Cravath”) is a prominent American [[law firm]] based in [[New York City]], [[United States]] with an additional office in [[London]]. One of the oldest firms in the country, Cravath was founded in 1819 and ranks second among the world's most prestigious law firms.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vault.com/nr/lawrankings.jsp?law2008=2&ch_id=242&top100=1|title=Top 100 Law Firms - 2008|work=Vault|accessdate=2008-09-12}}</ref>
'''Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP''' (“Cravath”) is a prominent American [[law firm]] based in [[New York City]], [[United States]] with an additional office in [[London]]. One of the oldest firms in the country, Cravath was founded in 1819 and ranks second among the world's most prestigious law firms.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.vault.com/nr/lawrankings.jsp?law2008=2&ch_id=242&top100=1|title=Top 100 Law Firms - 2008|work=Vault|accessdate=2008-09-12}}</ref>
==History==
==History==
The firm arose from two predecessor firms, one in [[New York City]] and one in [[Auburn, New York]].  In 1854 these firms merged to form the firm of Blatchford, Seward & Griswold.  Name partner [[William H. Seward]] later served as both governor of and a senator from New York, then became [[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]] under [[President of the United States|Presidents]] [[Abraham Lincoln]] and [[Andrew Johnson]].  In 1867, he negotiated the purchase of [[Alaska]] from [[Russia]] in a transaction contemporaries derisively called "[[Alaska Purchase|Seward's Folly]]".  [[Paul Drennan Cravath]] joined the firm in 1899.  He instituted the "[[Cravath System]]", a training program for associates which rotates them among the firm's partners within a given practice area.  After a series of name changes, the Cravath, Swaine & Moore name was made permanent in 1944.   
The firm arose from two predecessor firms, one in [[New York City]] and one in [[Auburn, New York]].  In 1854 these firms merged to form the firm of [[Samuel Blatchford|Blatchford]], Seward & Griswold.  Name partner [[William H. Seward]] later served as both governor of and a senator from New York, then became [[United States Secretary of State|Secretary of State]] under [[President of the United States|Presidents]] [[Abraham Lincoln]] and [[Andrew Johnson]].  In 1867, he negotiated the purchase of [[Alaska]] from [[Russia]] in a transaction contemporaries derisively called "[[Alaska Purchase|Seward's Folly]]".  [[Paul Drennan Cravath]] joined the firm in 1899.  He instituted the "[[Cravath System]]", a training program for associates which rotates them among the firm's partners within a given practice area.  After a series of name changes, the Cravath, Swaine & Moore name was made permanent in 1944.   


Cravath has represented high profile businesses, ranging from  [[Samuel F.B. Morse]], the inventor of the [[telegraph]] to corporations such as [[IBM]], [[PriceWaterhouseCoopers]], and [[CBS]].  It also performed the legal work necessary to form [[NBC]].  More recent decades have seen Cravath represent [[Netscape Communications Corporation|Netscape]] in its antitrust suit against [[Microsoft]], resulting in a $750 million settlement; major merger and acquisition deals, such as the [[DuPont]]-[[Conoco]] merger, the [[Ford Motor Company|Ford]]-[[Jaguar (car)|Jaguar]] merger, the [[Bristol-Myers-Squibb]] merger, the [[Time-Warner]] merger, and the [[AOL]]-[[Time-Warner]] merger; and two famed libel suits: defending [[Time Inc.]] against Israeli General [[Ariel Sharon]], and also defending [[CBS]] against [[U.S. Army]] [[General]] [[William Westmoreland]].
Cravath has represented high profile businesses, ranging from  [[Samuel F.B. Morse]], the inventor of the [[telegraph]] to corporations such as [[IBM]], [[PriceWaterhouseCoopers]], and [[CBS]].  It also performed the legal work necessary to form [[NBC]].  More recent decades have seen Cravath represent [[Netscape Communications Corporation|Netscape]] in its antitrust suit against [[Microsoft]], resulting in a $750 million settlement; major merger and acquisition deals, such as the [[DuPont]]-[[Conoco]] merger, the [[Ford Motor Company|Ford]]-[[Jaguar (car)|Jaguar]] merger, the [[Bristol-Myers-Squibb]] merger, the [[Time-Warner]] merger, and the [[AOL]]-[[Time-Warner]] merger; and two famed libel suits: defending [[Time Inc.]] against Israeli General [[Ariel Sharon]], and also defending [[CBS]] against [[U.S. Army]] [[General]] [[William Westmoreland]].

Revision as of 12:05, September 29, 2008

Template:Infobox Company Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP (“Cravath”) is a prominent American law firm based in New York City, United States with an additional office in London. One of the oldest firms in the country, Cravath was founded in 1819 and ranks second among the world's most prestigious law firms.[1]

History

The firm arose from two predecessor firms, one in New York City and one in Auburn, New York. In 1854 these firms merged to form the firm of Blatchford, Seward & Griswold. Name partner William H. Seward later served as both governor of and a senator from New York, then became Secretary of State under Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson. In 1867, he negotiated the purchase of Alaska from Russia in a transaction contemporaries derisively called "Seward's Folly". Paul Drennan Cravath joined the firm in 1899. He instituted the "Cravath System", a training program for associates which rotates them among the firm's partners within a given practice area. After a series of name changes, the Cravath, Swaine & Moore name was made permanent in 1944.

Cravath has represented high profile businesses, ranging from Samuel F.B. Morse, the inventor of the telegraph to corporations such as IBM, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, and CBS. It also performed the legal work necessary to form NBC. More recent decades have seen Cravath represent Netscape in its antitrust suit against Microsoft, resulting in a $750 million settlement; major merger and acquisition deals, such as the DuPont-Conoco merger, the Ford-Jaguar merger, the Bristol-Myers-Squibb merger, the Time-Warner merger, and the AOL-Time-Warner merger; and two famed libel suits: defending Time Inc. against Israeli General Ariel Sharon, and also defending CBS against U.S. Army General William Westmoreland.

Unlike certain rivals such as Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, Cravath has remained relatively small. Its approximately 500 lawyers are located primarily in the New York Office, with just a few dozen in London. The firm had an office in Hong Kong from 1993 to 2003, a Paris office until the early 1980s, and a Washington D.C. office at one point (which later evolved into Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering—a predecessor firm of WilmerHale).

Rankings

The firm consistently ranks at or near the top of various industry surveys, such as the Vault.com Partner (#1, 2008) and Associate (#2, 2008) prestige surveys. It consistently ranks within the top 3 on numerous Vault.com specialty rankings, including Litigation, Corporate, Securities and Mergers & Acquisitions.

Cravath regularly appears within the top 3 on The American Lawyer's annual listing of highest profits per partner. In 2007, Cravath posted profits per partner of $3,015,000.[2] While Cravath had for many years generated the highest profits per partner of any large law firm worldwide, rival New York firm Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, the mergers and acquisitions powerhouse, has generated larger profits during the last five years, earning profits per partner of $3,975,000 in 2007. In addition, several other New York law firms, such as Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft; Simpson Thacher & Bartlett; and Sullivan & Cromwell have recently generated profits per partner approaching Cravath's.

Hiring

The firm is known for focusing its hiring on associates straight from law school; lateral hires are rare at the associate level and new partners are almost never taken on. In 2005, Cravath hired Andrew W. Needham, formerly a tax partner at Willkie Farr & Gallagher,[3] as the first lateral partner since Herbert L. Camp, also a tax partner, from the now-defunct Donovan Leisure Newton & Irvine in 1987 (Camp, however, had previously been a Cravath associate). In 2007, the firm brought in Richard Levin from Skadden Arps to boost its bankruptcy practice.[4]

Entry to the firm is highly selective, generally open to only the most academically successful students from the most elite law schools in the United States and Canada. As with many top law firms, employee turnover is exceedingly high, with many attorneys departing the firm following a relatively brief tenure. As a rule of thumb, half of an entering class departs by the end of their second year, and three quarters depart by the end of their fourth year.

Famous current and former employees

References

  1. ↑ Top 100 Law Firms - 2008, Vault
  2. ↑ www.law.com
  3. ↑ Cravath Hires Tax Partner, Its First Lateral in Decades
  4. ↑ Cravath starts a bankruptcy practice
  5. ↑ Pace, Eric Rosewell L. Gilpatric, Lawyer and Kennedy Aide, Dies at 89, New York Times  (1996-03-17)

Further reading

  • Swaine, Robert T. (2007).The Cravath Firm and Its Predecessors: 1819-1947. Clark, NJ: Lawbook Exchange.

External links

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