Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz
Encyclopedia
Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz is a prominent law firm
located in New York City. Herbert Wachtell
, Martin Lipton
, Leonard Rosen, and George Katz founded the firm in 1965. All four were graduates of New York University School of Law
. It has for some time been the most profitable large law firm in the world on a per-partner basis according to the American Lawyer's annual AmLaw 100 Survey. The firm also ranks at the top of other various surveys, including the Vault.com Associates Survey and was ranked as the #1 Most Prestigious Law Firm to Work For by the AveryIndex.
Wachtell is generally considered the most difficult law firm to be hired at: summer classes at Wachtell usually have approximately twenty students and are composed of the strongest applicants from top law school
s. Its associates are generally paid significantly more than associates at other firms in the country; bonuses are often equal to 100% of associates' salaries. The firm is smaller, and has a lower associate-to-partner ratio, than its peer firms, such as Cravath, Swaine & Moore
.
The firm is known for its skill in mergers and acquisitions
. One of the founding partners, Martin Lipton
invented the so-called "poison pill
defense" during the 1980s to foil hostile takeovers
. Working both sides of the mergers and acquisitions
game, Wachtell Lipton has represented blue-chip clients like AT&T
, Kraft
, and JP Morgan Chase.
The firm is also known for its skill in business litigation. It has handled many of the precedent-setting Delaware corporate governance cases. One of their most recent clients was Larry Silverstein
, owner of the two 110-story towers of the World Trade Center
. Videos of another one of the founding partners, Herb Wachtell, arguing cases in the courtroom are shown in law school classes as examples of effective trial advocacy.
Law firm
A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to represent clients in civil or criminal cases, business transactions, and other...
located in New York City. Herbert Wachtell
Herbert Wachtell
Herbert Maurice Wachtell or Herb Wachtell is a prominent lawyer and the co-founder of the law firm of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz. He graduated from New York University , New York University School of Law , and Harvard Law School . From 1955–1957 he was Assistant U.S...
, Martin Lipton
Martin Lipton
Martin Lipton is an American lawyer. He is a founding partner of the law firm of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz specializing in advising major corporations on mergers and acquisitions and matters affecting corporate policy and strategy. He has written and lectured extensively on these subjects...
, Leonard Rosen, and George Katz founded the firm in 1965. All four were graduates of New York University School of Law
New York University School of Law
The New York University School of Law is the law school of New York University. Established in 1835, the school offers the J.D., LL.M., and J.S.D. degrees in law, and is located in Greenwich Village, in the New York City borough of Manhattan....
. It has for some time been the most profitable large law firm in the world on a per-partner basis according to the American Lawyer's annual AmLaw 100 Survey. The firm also ranks at the top of other various surveys, including the Vault.com Associates Survey and was ranked as the #1 Most Prestigious Law Firm to Work For by the AveryIndex.
Wachtell is generally considered the most difficult law firm to be hired at: summer classes at Wachtell usually have approximately twenty students and are composed of the strongest applicants from top law school
Law school
A law school is an institution specializing in legal education.- Law degrees :- Canada :...
s. Its associates are generally paid significantly more than associates at other firms in the country; bonuses are often equal to 100% of associates' salaries. The firm is smaller, and has a lower associate-to-partner ratio, than its peer firms, such as Cravath, Swaine & Moore
Cravath, Swaine & Moore
Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP is a prominent American law firm based in New York City, with an additional office in London. The second oldest firm in the country, Cravath was founded in 1819 and consistently ranks first among the world's most prestigious law firms according to a survey of partners,...
.
The firm is known for its skill in mergers and acquisitions
Mergers and acquisitions
Mergers and acquisitions refers to the aspect of corporate strategy, corporate finance and management dealing with the buying, selling, dividing and combining of different companies and similar entities that can help an enterprise grow rapidly in its sector or location of origin, or a new field or...
. One of the founding partners, Martin Lipton
Martin Lipton
Martin Lipton is an American lawyer. He is a founding partner of the law firm of Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz specializing in advising major corporations on mergers and acquisitions and matters affecting corporate policy and strategy. He has written and lectured extensively on these subjects...
invented the so-called "poison pill
Poison pill
A shareholder rights plan, colloquially known as a "poison pill", or simply "the pill" is a type of defensive tactic used by a corporation's board of directors against a takeover...
defense" during the 1980s to foil hostile takeovers
Takeover
In business, a takeover is the purchase of one company by another . In the UK, the term refers to the acquisition of a public company whose shares are listed on a stock exchange, in contrast to the acquisition of a private company.- Friendly takeovers :Before a bidder makes an offer for another...
. Working both sides of the mergers and acquisitions
Mergers and acquisitions
Mergers and acquisitions refers to the aspect of corporate strategy, corporate finance and management dealing with the buying, selling, dividing and combining of different companies and similar entities that can help an enterprise grow rapidly in its sector or location of origin, or a new field or...
game, Wachtell Lipton has represented blue-chip clients like AT&T
AT&T
AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications corporation headquartered in Whitacre Tower, Dallas, Texas, United States. It is the largest provider of mobile telephony and fixed telephony in the United States, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services...
, Kraft
Kraft Foods
Kraft Foods Inc. is an American confectionery, food and beverage conglomerate. It markets many brands in more than 170 countries. 12 of its brands annually earn more than $1 billion worldwide: Cadbury, Jacobs, Kraft, LU, Maxwell House, Milka, Nabisco, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Trident, Tang...
, and JP Morgan Chase.
The firm is also known for its skill in business litigation. It has handled many of the precedent-setting Delaware corporate governance cases. One of their most recent clients was Larry Silverstein
Larry Silverstein
Larry A. Silverstein is an American businessman, and real estate investor and developer in New York City.Silverstein was born in Brooklyn, and became involved in real estate, together with his father, establishing Silverstein Properties...
, owner of the two 110-story towers of the World Trade Center
World Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
. Videos of another one of the founding partners, Herb Wachtell, arguing cases in the courtroom are shown in law school classes as examples of effective trial advocacy.
Famous alumni
- John C. Coates IV, partner — Harvard Law SchoolHarvard Law SchoolHarvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
professor - Pie Nerry Lee, businessman and corporate lawyer — Yale Law SchoolYale Law SchoolYale Law School, or YLS, is the law school of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Established in 1824, it offers the J.D., LL.M., J.S.D. and M.S.L. degrees in law. It also hosts visiting scholars, visiting researchers and a number of legal research centers...
- Miguel EstradaMiguel EstradaMiguel Angel Estrada Castañeda is an attorney who became embroiled in controversy following his 2001 nomination by President George W. Bush to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit...
- attorney and former judicial nominee - Chaim Fortgang, partner & former Head of the bankruptcy department - "involved in almost every headline bankruptcy of the [1990s] and beyond
- Glenn GreenwaldGlenn GreenwaldGlenn Greenwald is an American lawyer, columnist, blogger, and author. Greenwald worked as a constitutional and civil rights litigator before becoming a contributor to Salon.com, where he focuses on political and legal topics...
, associate - political columnist and blogger - Elizabeth HoltzmanElizabeth HoltzmanElizabeth Holtzman is an American lawyer and former Democratic politician, pioneer woman officeholder, four term U.S. Representative , two term District Attorney of Kings County , and New York City Comptroller .Her role on the House Judiciary Committee during the Watergate scandal drew national...
, associate — former U.S. Representative and Brooklyn District Attorney - Janet Langford Kelly — General Counsel, ConocoPhillipsConocoPhillipsConocoPhillips Company is an American multinational energy corporation with its headquarters located in the Energy Corridor district of Houston, Texas in the United States...
- David LatDavid LatDavid B. Lat is an American blogger and a former federal prosecutor. He is the founder and managing editor of Above the Law, a blog about law firms and the legal profession....
, associate — blogger, Underneath Their Robes and Above the LawAbove the Law (blog)AboveTheLaw.com is a law gossip blog which circulates rumors primarily about large commercial law firms . Above the Law publishes the rumored salaries and bonuses at many of these large firms... - Robert M. MorgenthauRobert M. MorgenthauRobert Morris Morgenthau is an American lawyer. From 1975 until his retirement in 2009, he was the District Attorney for New York County, the borough of Manhattan.-Early life:...
, of counsel - former New York County District AttorneyNew York County District AttorneyThe New York County District Attorney is the elected district attorney for New York County , New York. The office is responsible for the prosecution of violations of New York state laws.... - Bernard Nussbaum, partner — former White House CounselWhite House CounselThe White House Counsel is a staff appointee of the President of the United States.-Role:The Counsel's role is to advise the President on all legal issues concerning the President and the White House...
to President Bill ClintonBill ClintonWilliam Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation... - George Postolos, associate — former President and CEO of Houston RocketsHouston RocketsThe Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston, Texas. The team plays in the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was established in 1967, and played in San Diego, California for four years, before being...
- Samuel Rascoff, associate —NYU Law School professor
- Jed RubenfeldJed RubenfeldJed Rubenfeld is the Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law at Yale Law School. He is an expert on constitutional law, privacy, and the First Amendment.-Biography:...
, associate — Yale Law SchoolYale Law SchoolYale Law School, or YLS, is the law school of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Established in 1824, it offers the J.D., LL.M., J.S.D. and M.S.L. degrees in law. It also hosts visiting scholars, visiting researchers and a number of legal research centers...
professor - Andrew SchlaflyAndrew SchlaflyAndrew Layton "Andy" Schlafly is an American lawyer, conservative political activist, teacher of homeschooling classes, and the founder and owner of wiki Conservapedia...
, associate — founder of ConservapediaConservapediaConservapedia is an English-language wiki project written from a self-described American conservative Christian point of view. The website considers itself to be a supporter of "conservative, family-friendly" content...
, General Counsel for Association of American Physicians and SurgeonsAssociation of American Physicians and SurgeonsThe Association of American Physicians and Surgeons is a politically conservative American non-profit organization founded in 1943 to "fight socialized medicine and to fight the government takeover of medicine." The group was reported to have approximately 4,000 members in 2005, and 3,000 in... - Peter Schuck — Yale Law School professor
- Ed HerlihyEd HerlihyEdward Joseph "Ed" Herlihy was an American newsreel narrator for Universal-International. His voice was heard in countless films on every subject, making him one of the best-known voices in broadcast history...
— partner, lead lawyer in the Merrill Lynch merger with Bank of America