O'Melveny & Myers

O'Melveny & Myers
Headquarters	New York (NY)
Number of Offices	15 Internationally"Internationally" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 15.
Number of attorneys	750
Practice Areas	Litigation and Transactions
Key People	Bradley J. Butwin, Firm Chairman (?)
Annual Revenue	$$689.5 million (2015)"$" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 689.5. million

O’Melveny & Myers LLP is a prominent international law firm founded in Los Angeles, California in 1885. The firm employs over 700 lawyers and has offices in California, Washington, D.C., New York City, Beijing, Brussels, Hong Kong, London, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, and Tokyo.

O'Melveny is one of the most prestigious and selective firms in the world, and it is widely considered to be one of the best law firms to work for.^[1] Notable practice areas include securities litigation, white-collar defense, corporate, antitrust, appellate litigation, international trade, private equity, and entertainment law.^[2] With regards to compensation, O'Melveny is among the highest paying law firms in the United States.^[3]

History[edit | edit source]

The firm was founded in 1885 as "Graves & O'Melveny" by Henry O'Melveny and Jackson Graves.^[4] The firm gained traction through its work on land litigation surrounding the ownership of California's Spanish haciendas and its handling of the legalities of hydroelectric power, which helped to transform the arid basin of Los Angeles into a car-centric metropolis.^[5] The firm became "O'Melveny & Myers" when Chief Justice of California Louis Wescott Myers joined the firm after retiring from the Supreme Court.

In 1977, O'Melveny hired William T. Coleman, Jr., who had helped the country move toward desegregation 23 years prior as a lead strategist for the plaintiffs in the landmark Brown v. Board of Education.^[6]

The former Chair of the firm, Arthur B. Culvahouse, Jr., who serves at the firm's Washington, D.C. office, is the former White House Counsel during the Reagan Administration. Former U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher (1925-2011), who served as the firm's Chairman from 1981-1991, was a Senior Partner at the firm's Century City, CA office. Warren Christopher supervised the largest period of growth in the firm's history, expanding to seven different countries.^[7] Litigation partner Bradley J. Butwin is the current Chair of the firm.

Reputation[edit | edit source]

The firm ranked #1 on Vault's 2017 list of "Best Firms to Work For," #1 in "Job Satisfaction," #1 in "Best Hours Requirements," #1 in "Best Summer Associate Program," # in "Best Firm Culture," #2 in "Substantive Work Experience," and #5 in "Best Compensation."^[8] According to Vault, first year associates at the firm are paid a salary of $180,000 with bonuses available yearly. Summer associates are paid the same salary, although it is prorated over 10 weeks (amounting to $3500 per week).^[9] O'Melveny is currently ranked as the 9th most selective firm in the world.^[10]

O'Melveny ranked in the Top 10 for the fifth consecutive year on the 2016 “A-List,” a prestigious measure of the nation’s most “well-rounded” firms.^[11] The firm has been a winner, finalist, or honorable mention recipient in every year of the biennial Litigation Department of the Year contest since its 2002 inception, one of only two firms to achieve that distinction. O'Melveny is a member of the V30, a ranking of the 30 most prestigious law firms in the world.^[12]

Notable partners and alumni[edit | edit source]

• Former partner Louis Caldera served as United States Secretary of the Army.
• Warren Christopher (1925-2011), former U.S. Secretary of State under President Bill Clinton, was a Senior Partner at the firm's Century City, CA office until his death in 2011.
• William T. Coleman (1920-2017), was Secretary of Transportation under President Gerald Ford, and also helped Thurgood Marshall win Brown vs. Board of Education. Coleman was a senior partner and the Senior Counselor in the Washington, DC office.
• Tom E. Donilon served as National Security Advisor under President Obama, and serves in the Washington, DC office. He is known for being featured in the famous photograph, "The Situation Room."
• Arthur B. Culvahouse, Jr., former White House Counsel to President Ronald Reagan. He is the former Chair of the firm and works out of the Washington, DC office.
• Walter E. Dellinger III was United States Solicitor General for the 1996-97 Term of the Supreme Court. Currently a partner at the Washington, DC office.
• Danielle Gray served as a senior advisor to President Obama and is a partner in the New York office. While serving in the Obama Administration, Newsweek referred to her as "the most powerful White House staffer you've never heard of."
• Former partner Sandra Segal Ikuta is a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
• Former associate Mike Gatto is California State Assemblyman and Chairman of the Appropriations Committee.
• Former associate Goodwin Liu is an Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court.
• Former partner Kim McLane Wardlaw is a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
• Former associate John B. Owens is a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
• Former associate Stephen Reinhardt is a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
• Former partner Michael Zimmerman is a former Chief Justice of the Utah Supreme Court.
• Sri Srinivasan, now a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, was the former chair of the appellate practice.^[13]
• Former partner Alejandro Mayorkas is the Deputy Secretary of Department of Homeland Security and the former Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
• Pamela Harris, now a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
• Richard Riordan, 39th Mayor of Los Angeles (1993-2001).

Notable Cases and Clients[edit | edit source]

O’Melveny & Myers partner Walter E. Dellinger III defended the constitutionality of the Washington, DC's handgun ban before the Supreme Court in District of Columbia v. Heller.^[14] In March 2008, Dellinger argued that the city's ban on the possession of handguns and its trigger lock requirement is not implicated by the Second Amendment.^[15] However, the Supreme Court, in a 5-4 ruling, held that the Second Amendment protects an individual's "right to possess a firearm unconnected with service in a militia, and to use that arm for traditionally lawful purposes, such as self-defense within the home."^[16]

In February 2008, the firm argued before the Supreme Court in Exxon Shipping Co. v. Baker, on behalf of Exxon regarding the Exxon Valdez oil spill. The Supreme Court, in a 5-3 decision (Justice Alito had recused himself), reduced the $2.5 billion punitive damages award against Exxon to $507.5 million, holding that in maritime cases there should be a 1:1 ratio between punitive and compensatory (actual) damages.^[17]

O'Melveny represented former Enron Corporation chief executive Jeffrey K. Skilling during his four-month fraud and conspiracy trial. The firm represented Martha Stewart during her six-month insider trading trial. It represented Donald Trump and Trump University in a suit alleging that the University defrauded its students.^[18] O'Melveny represented professional boxer Manny Pacquiao in his $10 million defamation suit against Floyd Mayweather.

O'Melveny represents numerous corporate clients in issues related to transactions, compliance, litigation, and internal investigations. Some notable clients include Apple, Samsung, Google, Tesla Motors, Facebook, Uber, The Walt Disney Company, Netflix, HBO, Warner Brothers, Goldman Sachs International, and Bank of America.

In culture[edit | edit source]

O'Melveny & Myers was referenced in an episode of The Sopranos as one of the firms that DOJ officials seek to work for.^[19] A DOJ prosecutor is heard saying, "He ruined his six-figure future at O'Melveny and Myers when he blew the Tony Soprano trial."

References[edit | edit source]

External links[edit | edit source]

• Official website
• O'Melveny & Myers companies grouped at OpenCorporates