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DLA Piper

From Alfawiki
DLA Piper
Company typePrivate (Swiss Verein)
IndustryLegal services
PredecessorGray Cary Ware & Freidenrich LLP, Piper Rudnick LLP, DLA LLP
Founded2005; 21 years ago (2005)
Headquarters
London
,
United Kingdom; United States
Area served
Worldwide (more than 40 countries)
Key people
Simon Levine (Managing Partner and Global Co-CEO until 2024), Frank Ryan (Americas Chair and Global Co-CEO since 2021)
ProductsLegal services
Number of employees
Over 4,000 lawyers (as of 2012)
Websitewww.dlapiper.com

DLA Piper is a global law firm with a presence in more than 40 countries spanning the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.

The firm was created in 2005 through the combination of San Diego’s Gray Cary Ware & Freidenrich LLP, Baltimore’s Piper Rudnick LLP, and the UK’s DLA LLP. Operating under a Swiss Verein framework, DLA Piper functions as several partnerships connected by a unified international network.

Founding

The roots of DLA Piper trace back to four separate firms: Dibb Lupton Broomhead, Alsop Stevens, Piper & Marbury, and Rudnick & Wolfe. Dibb Lupton Broomhead emerged in 1988 from the merger of Dibb Lupton with Broomhead & Neals. In 1996, it joined forces with Liverpool-based Alsop Wilkinson to form Dibb Lupton Alsop (DLA). Meanwhile, in the United States, Piper & Marbury merged with Chicago’s Rudnick & Wolfe in 1999, resulting in Piper Marbury Rudnick & Wolfe.

Establishment and expansion (2005–2010)

DLA Piper came into existence in 2005 following the merger of DLA, Piper Rudnick, and Gray Cary Ware & Freidenrich, becoming one of the largest law firms worldwide and the biggest in the United Kingdom. The firm adopted the streamlined name DLA Piper in 2006. That same year marked the launch of New Perimeter, an international pro bono program aimed at delivering legal services to underserved communities.

Throughout this timeframe, DLA Piper grew its footprint by entering markets such as Mexico City and São Paulo while bolstering its offices throughout Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Middle East. In Australasia, growth was achieved via mergers and an exclusive partnership with Australian firm Phillips Fox established in 2006. The firm also expanded its Middle Eastern operations by opening offices in Doha (2006), Abu Dhabi (2008), and Kuwait (2008) through a joint venture with Al Wagayan, Al Awadhi & Al Saif.

In the United States, DLA Piper enhanced its energy sector capabilities by launching a dedicated practice in Houston, Texas in 2008.

Developments since 2010

In 2010, DLA Piper entered into a collaborative agreement with Brazilian law firm Campos Mello Advogados operating in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. The Australian branch of DLA Phillips Fox fully merged into DLA Piper Australia in 2011; its New Zealand counterpart followed suit in 2015. By February 2012, DLA Piper had become the world’s largest law firm by attorney headcount—surpassing 4,000 lawyers—and extended its reach to Paris through a partnership with Frieh Bouhenic.

Between 2013 and 2014, the firm broadened its global presence by opening offices or forming alliances in Seoul, Indonesia, Namibia, Algeria, and Mexico City. In 2014, Simon Levine was appointed managing partner as well as Global co-Chair and co-CEO; his leadership term was renewed through 2024 alongside Frank Ryan’s elevation to Americas Chair and Global co-CEO in 2021.

DLA Piper inaugurated an office in San Juan, Puerto Rico in 2016. The network expanded further when Portuguese firm ABBC and Danish firm LETT joined in 2017. The firm's entry into Dublin occurred in 2019. In 2023, DLA Piper ventured into digital innovation by introducing TOKO, a blockchain-based tokenisation platform developed by its Aldersgate Digital Ledger Solutions (DLS) team.

By 2021, DLA Piper ranked as the third-largest U.S.-based law firm by revenue. In June 2025, former UK Prime Minister David Cameron became affiliated with the firm as a consultant.

Offices

DLA Piper maintains a network of 80 offices situated in over 40 countries spanning the Americas, Asia Pacific, Australasia, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.

Political contributions

Employees of DLA Piper were the twelfth-largest contributors to President Barack Obama's 2012 re-election effort, donating a total of $2.19 million to federal candidates during that election cycle, with 73% of funds directed toward Democratic candidates. By comparison, employees of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld contributed $2.56 million (with 66% supporting Democrats), while ExxonMobil staff donated $2.66 million (88% backing Republicans). Since 1990, DLA Piper has provided $16.97 million in contributions to federal political campaigns and has expended over $1 million on lobbying activities since 2002.

Controversy

In 2010, DLA Piper acted as legal counsel for Paul Ceglia in his claim that he owned 84% of Facebook based on a contract allegedly commissioning Mark Zuckerberg to build the platform. Facebook disputed this assertion, claiming the contract had been fraudulently modified. Although a DLA Piper attorney initially expressed strong confidence in the document’s legitimacy, it was ultimately determined to be fraudulent. Subsequently, in 2014, Facebook and Zuckerberg filed a lawsuit against DLA Piper and others for purported knowledge of the fraud; this case was later dismissed.

In June 2020, Squire Patton Boggs initiated legal action against DLA Piper on behalf of former client Ferrellgas Partners LP in Kansas, accusing them of breaching fiduciary duties following an inadvertent email disclosure that exposed conflicts of interest.

Notable attorneys, advisors and staff

Notable former employees

  • Dick Armey, former U.S. Representative for Texas's 26th district (1985–2003) and House Majority Leader (1995–2003)
  • Rudi M. Brewster, former judge at the United States District Court for the Southern District of California
  • Peter Bynoe, lawyer and businessman; co-owner of the Denver Nuggets
  • Tom Daschle, former U.S. Senator and Senate Majority Leader; served as policy adviser at DLA Piper from 2009 to 2014
  • Steven J. Davis, earth system scientist affiliated with University of California, Irvine
  • Douglas Emhoff, former Second Gentleman of the United States and spouse of Vice President Kamala Harris
  • Jared Genser, international attorney specializing in human rights law
  • Miriam González Durántez, partner at DLA Piper between 2006 and 2011; spouse of former UK Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg
  • A. B. Krongard, ex-CIA executive director and former chairman/CEO of Alex. Brown & Sons
  • Jonathan Lisle, British disc jockey
  • Mel Martinez, partner and lobbyist at DLA Piper after retiring as U.S. Senator from Florida (2009–2010); Florida chair for J.P. Morgan Chase & Co; co-chairman of the Bipartisan Policy Center
  • Harry Cummings McPherson Jr., author, lawyer, policymaker; served as counsel and chief speechwriter to President Lyndon B. Johnson (1965–1969)
  • Paul Victor Niemeyer, judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and former district judge in Maryland
  • Thomas C. Wheeler, judge on the U.S. Court of Federal Claims
  • Helen Winkelmann, first female partner at the firm in 1988 and youngest at that time; current Chief Justice of New Zealand’s Supreme Court

See also

External links

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