Partnership
We are committed to the continued growth of the firm, and we provide meaningful opportunities for associates to become partners. In the past 10 years, we have promoted 66 lawyers to partner, as the firm has grown from 658 to 776 lawyers. When making new partners we look for exceptional intellect, judgment, common sense, dedication, the ability to lead and work well within a team, and the potential for continued growth as lawyers and colleagues.
Our collaborative approach is strongly reinforced by our lockstep compensation system. Partner compensation is based on seniority, not on client responsibility or billable hours.
All but a handful of our partners started out as associates at Davis Polk and have spent their entire careers at the firm, except for leaves of absence to perform public service.
Counsel
Over 25 years ago we instituted our counsel program, designed to make available an alternative long-term career path at the firm for seasoned lawyers who are highly experienced in their particular field. We currently have 46 counsel.
Part-time and Flextime Opportunities
We recognize that some lawyers may choose, at some point, to strike a different balance in their lives. At Davis Polk, experienced lawyers may arrange, subject to the needs of the firm, to work on a part- or flextime basis or telecommute. By design this program is not highly structured. It is intended to be flexible to meet the individual needs of the lawyer and of the department in which he or she works. As of April 2011, 7 counsel and 22 associates work on a part- or flextime basis.
Opportunities Beyond Davis Polk
Lawyers who chose to pursue opportunities beyond Davis Polk, do so with an unrivaled foundation of training, experience and contacts. Many go on to successful and rewarding careers as lawyers or in other professions.
Of former Davis Polk associates, about 41% continue to practice law at other firms, about 40% are at corporations or investment banks and about 11% work with public interest groups or for the government. The remainder enter a variety of fields, including teaching and politics.
We maintain strong ties to our alumni. Many are now our clients.
Davis Polk's pull is strong. Each year several alumni return to the firm after periods of time at other jobs.
Many of our alumni have held important positions in government. One alumna currently serves in the U.S. Senate and another in the U.S. House of Representatives, 11 others serve as federal judges and 38 serve in U.S. Attorneys' offices around the country. Others serve as senior officials in various departments of the federal government, including State, Justice, Defense and Treasury.
Other current and recent positions held by Davis Polk alumni in government, financial institutions and at major companies include:
- Assistant to the President of the United States and Staff Secretary
- Several SEC Commissioners
- Director of the SEC Division of Enforcement
- Director White House Domestic Policy Council
- Associate Counsel to the President of the United States
- General Counsel, White House Office of Management and Budget
- Under Secretary of the Treasury for Economic Affairs
- Chief Executive of Thomson Reuters
- President and CEO of TIAA-CREF
- CEO, Clinton Global Initiative
- Chairman, Global Banking Citigroup of Citi
- Vice Chairman of Citi
- Vice Chairman of Morgan Stanley
- Executive Vice President of the New York Mets
- General Counsels of Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Boeing, Cigna, Citigroup, Estee Lauder, Fannie Mae, Greenhill, JPMorgan Chase, Madison Square Garden, Morgan Stanley and Ziff Brothers Investments
- Managing Directors at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citi, The Carlyle Group, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Greenhill, JPMorgan Chase, Credit Suisse, Merrill Lynch and other leading financial services entities