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Squire Patton Boggs

From Alfawiki
Squire Patton Boggs
Company typeLaw firm
IndustryLegal services
Founded2014
Headquarters
Washington, D.C.
,
United States
Area served
Worldwide (40 offices in 20 countries)
Key people
Fred Nance (Global Managing Partner), Michele Connell (co-Global Managing Partner until 2023)
ProductsLegal services, lobbying
Number of employees
Approximately 955 lawyers (2017)
Websitewww.squirepattonboggs.com

Squire Patton Boggs stands as an international law firm with a presence spanning more than 40 offices across 20 nations. Established in 2014 through the union of the global firm Squire Sanders and the Washington, D.C.–based Patton Boggs, it ranks among the top law firms worldwide in terms of both personnel and income, holding the position of twelfth largest by revenue within the UK market. The firm’s operations extend to over a dozen countries.

Key locations for the firm include Washington, D.C., Leeds, London, and Cleveland, each hosting a legal team exceeding 100 attorneys. Its clientele is broad and varied, encompassing Fortune 100 and FTSE 100 companies, emerging enterprises, individual clients, and governmental bodies.

Squire Patton Boggs has encountered criticism due to its representation of a Saudi governmental entity implicated in the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. Although the firm continued this engagement for several years following the incident, mounting external pressure ultimately compelled it to sever ties with the client. This connection led to several Congressional members refusing to collaborate with the firm.

The organization boasts one of the most extensive lobbying operations globally. Historically overseen by Thomas Hale Boggs Jr., this division is presently directed by Edward Newberry and Robert Kapla.

Squire, Sanders & Dempsey

Originating in Cleveland, Ohio in 1890, Squire, Sanders & Dempsey was founded by Andrew Squire, James H. Dempsey, and Judge William B. Sanders. Initially focused on Ohio, it expanded during the 1990s to include offices in Washington, DC, various US cities, and Brussels. Under the leadership of chairman Thomas J. Quigley, it became one of the pioneering American firms to establish a presence in Eastern Europe following the Cold War. The firm played a significant role in privatizing state-owned companies across countries such as the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Ukraine, and Poland. Additionally, it incorporated Pacific Rim offices from Graham & James as well as Florida-based Steel Hector & Davis. Throughout Stanton’s tenure, merger discussions were held with firms like Denton Wilde Sapte, Seyfarth Shaw, and Bryan Cave.

Hammonds

Based in Leeds, UK, Hammonds operated internationally with offices situated throughout Europe and Asia including Beijing, Berlin, Brussels, Hong Kong, Madrid, Munich, and Paris. Tracing its roots to a Yorkshire legal practice founded in 1887, Hammonds expanded considerably after its 2000 merger with Birmingham’s Edge Ellison to create Hammond Suddards Edge—then ranked as the UK’s 11th-largest law firm. Despite rapid expansion resulting in debts of £30 million and subsequent downsizing by 2005, Hammonds reported revenues of £132 million in 2006 and underwent restructuring under Managing Partner Peter Crossley until 2009. It transitioned into a Limited Liability Partnership in 2008.

Merger negotiations between Hammonds and Squire Sanders commenced in August 2010; both firms’ partnerships ratified the deal by November that year. The merger was finalized on January 1, 2011, forming the Squire Sanders Swiss association. This alliance brought additional offices in Madrid, Berlin, Paris, and Munich while substantially increasing its UK footprint beyond the previous count of 30 lawyers. Following this integration, London emerged as the firm’s largest office.

By 2012, The American Lawyer ranked Squire Sanders as the world’s 24th largest law firm based on attorney count and placed it 41st according to annual revenue.

Patton Boggs

Established in 1962 by James R. Patton, Jr., Patton Boggs swiftly gained prominence for its role in influencing key multilateral trade agreements. Thomas Hale Boggs, Jr. joined the firm in 1966, bringing experience from his tenure in government economic policy positions.

During the 2012 election cycle, Patton Boggs ranked among the leading federal political donors, contributing $1.7 million—with 67% directed to Democratic candidates—while Akin Gump outpaced this with $2.56 million. Since 1990, the combined entity Squire Patton Boggs has donated $14.12 million to federal political campaigns and invested $2.72 million in lobbying activities.

In 2014, Vault.com acknowledged the firm for its outstanding pro bono efforts and regarded it as an elite white-shoe law firm. Nonetheless, Patton Boggs experienced a 12% drop in revenue in 2013, accompanied by workforce reductions and partner exits.

A notable event occurred in May 2014 when Patton Boggs agreed to a $15 million settlement with Chevron related to litigation involving Steven Donziger, an episode emblematic of the firm's difficulties at that time. Subsequently, the firm merged with Squire Sanders later that year, forming Squire Patton Boggs and expanding its attorney base by 330 lawyers.

Following the merger, Squire Patton Boggs established one of Washington D.C.’s most substantial lobbying operations, building on Patton Boggs’ decade-long status as the highest-grossing U.S. lobbying firm from 2003 through 2013.

Squire Patton Boggs

After the merger, Patton Boggs shuttered its Anchorage, Alaska branch, and several distinguished attorneys departed—including Benjamin Ginsberg and other notable Republican lawyers who transitioned to Jones Day, along with healthcare policy specialists who moved to Akin Gump.

The newly merged organization adopted Squire Sanders’ meritocratic partner compensation structure instead of Patton Boggs’ traditional "eat what you kill" approach. Partner earnings vary widely, from approximately US$300,000 for some non-equity partners up to US$3 million for top-tier partners. By the end of 2014, the firm reported a leverage ratio nearing eight lawyers per partner. The Washington D.C. offices of both legacy firms were consolidated into a shared building, and their previously separate financial operations were unified by year-end 2014.

In 2016, Squire Patton Boggs expanded through a merger with Carroll, Burdick & McDonough, a San Francisco-based disputes and compliance boutique adding 50 attorneys across California, China, Hong Kong, and Germany—including a new office located near Stuttgart, in Böblingen. That same July, the firm launched an office in Darwin, NT, Australia, broadening its footprint within the Asia-Pacific region.

Beginning January 1, 2017, Fred Nance assumed the role of Global Managing Partner of Squire Patton Boggs U.S. LLP, overseeing a team of 955 lawyers distributed across 36 offices in 16 countries spanning the U.S., Asia, Middle East, and Eastern Europe. Nance also joined the six-member executive committee as the firm's first African-American partner. His distinguished career highlights include negotiating the NFL’s return to Cleveland and securing major Defense Finance and Accounting Services contracts for the city.

In January 2022, Michele Connell was named co-Global Managing Partner alongside Nance until January 2023 when she took over full leadership following a transitional period.

In December 2017, Squire Patton Boggs acquired Dallas-based litigation boutique Yarbrough Law Group to strengthen its litigation practice and accelerate growth in cybersecurity and data privacy law sectors. The firm further expanded by inaugurating an Atlanta office in February 2018 and opening a Milan location in Italy in 2020.

Squire Patton Boggs has represented Saudi Arabia as a lobbying client and continues this engagement despite controversies linked to their client Prince Mohammed bin Salman following allegations connected to journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s murder in 2018. On the second anniversary of Khashoggi’s death in October 2020, Amnesty International projected images onto Squire Patton Boggs’ Washington D.C. office to draw attention to its lobbying activities on behalf of Saudi royals implicated in human rights violations.

Significant cases and client engagements

  • Since 2005, has served as legal counsel to comedian Dave Chappelle, including negotiating his $60 million deal with Netflix in 2016.
  • Has provided contract negotiation advice to basketball icon LeBron James since 2003.
  • Represents Takata Corporation in dealings with U.S. regulatory bodies concerning airbag safety matters.
  • Acts on behalf of the Palestinian Authority to secure funding from the U.S. government.
  • Defends DuPont in consolidated lawsuits involving PFOA contamination at its West Virginia facility.
  • Provides public relations support for the government of Turkey regarding issues related to the Syrian conflict.
  • Counseled Myanmar’s government during its 2014 telecommunications joint venture with KDDI and Sumitomo Corporation.
  • Represented The Sugar Association in a dispute against the Corn Refiners Association over marketing practices for high fructose corn syrup; a subsequent merger with Patton Boggs created a conflict due to prior advisory roles.
  • Patton Boggs was involved in litigation initiated by Chevron Corporation connected to an $18 billion Ecuadorian judgment over environmental harm caused by Texaco operations; the firm resolved the case amid ethical concerns before merging with Squire Sanders.
  • Represents the Central Bank of Venezuela in federal litigation aimed at preventing disclosure of unofficial exchange rates that affect currency valuation.
  • Defended Efraín Antonio Campo Flores, a Venezuelan national, in a prominent U.S. drug trafficking prosecution involving cocaine smuggling linked to political figures.
  • Provided legal representation for U.S. Ambassador Peter Romero in litigation related to the Stanford Financial Group Ponzi scheme.
  • In 2012, Patton Boggs’s leading lobbying clients included Georgian businessman (and future prime minister) Bidzina Ivanishvili, alongside major corporations such as ExxonMobil, Shell, Raytheon, and Goldman Sachs.
  • Entered into a $100,000 per month contract in 2016 with Saud al-Qahtani for legal and strategic counsel on U.S. foreign policy matters; terminated this agreement in 2021 following a White House report linking al-Qahtani to the Jamal Khashoggi assassination.
  • Made political contributions to Trump-aligned congressman Paul Gosar, withdrawing support only after public backlash following the January 6, 2021 Capitol incident.
  • Received the lowest score on a 2020 law firm climate change impact evaluation.
  • Obtained nearly $250,000 in legal fees from former President Trump’s Save America political action committee in 2022.
  • In March 2024, faced a lawsuit from Dutch company R.D. Project Development over unpaid rent for subleased Moscow office space after ceasing operations due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Office locations

By December 2019, Squire Patton Boggs maintained 45 offices spanning 20 countries across five continents. The firm caters to an extensive clientele that includes Fortune 100 and FTSE 100 companies, emerging enterprises, individuals, and governmental organizations.

Squire Patton Boggs

Squire Sanders

Patton Boggs

  • Nicholas Allard, Dean and President at Brooklyn Law School
  • Ron Brown, former United States Secretary of Commerce and chairman of the Democratic National Committee
  • Timothy Chorba, previous U.S. ambassador to Singapore
  • Lanny Davis, special counsel to President Bill Clinton
  • Benjamin Ginsberg, Republican strategist involved in the 2000 presidential election Florida recount
  • Don Johnson Jr., former member of the House and U.S. Trade Representative
  • Sean Parnell, ex-governor of Alaska
  • Joseph E. Schmitz, former Inspector General at the Defense Department

External links

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