Wake Up Call: Partner Classes Shrink for Second Year in a Row

Welcome to Bloomberg Law’s Wake Up Call, a daily rundown of the top news for lawyers, law firms, and in-house counsel.

• New partner class sizes declined by an average of 4% in 2024, continuing a trend from 2023 that saw class sizes shrink by 2% compared with 2022. Mergers and acquisitions and private equity remained the most popular practice areas for promotions—taking up 22% of all elevations announced. (Law.com)
• Attorney General Merrick Garland is encouraging career lawyers at the Justice Department to remain in their jobs through Donald Trump’s second administration, stressing that institutional knowledge is important as new leaders take hold. (The Washington Post)
• Almost two-thirds of in-house legal teams believe artificial intelligence should be applied to their work, according to a report from Thomson Reuters. Just over a quarter of law firms and in-house teams are currently using public AI tools, while only 12% are currently using legal-specific AI tools, and 43% plan to adopt legal industry-focused AI tools within the next three years. (Global Legal Post)

Laterals, Moves, In-House

• Matthew Bettinger and Seth Henslovitz joined Kirkland & Ellis as partners in its real estate practice group. Bettinger joins from Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson. Henslovitz joins from Schulte Roth & Zabel.
• Jay Singer joined Hogan Lovells as a tax partner in its corporate and finance practice group in Washington. He joins from A&O Shearman.
• Jean-Christian Six, Paul Van den Abeele, and Yannick Arbaut joined Simpson Thacher & Bartlett as partners in its European funds practice in the firm’s new Luxembourg office. Six and Arbaut join from A&O Shearman. Van den Abeele joins from Clifford Chance.
• Victoria Rosamond joined Weil, Gotshal & Manges as a partner in its executive compensation and benefits group. She joins from White & Case.
• Meredith Mackey joined Weil as a partner in its banking and finance practice in New York. She joins from Fried Frank.
• Arthur Tso joined Reed Smith as a partner in its global corporate group in Hong Kong. He joins from DLA Piper.
• Courtney Barksdale Perez and Joshua Bennett joined BakerHostetler as partners in its labor and employment and litigation groups in Dallas. They join from Carter Arnett Bennett & Perez.
• Hugh Hollman rejoined Baker Botts as an antitrust partner in its litigation department in Washington.
• Kristen Broz joined Ballard Spahr as a partner in its antitrust and competition group in Washington. She joins from Fox Rothschild.
• Nathan Richardson joined Honigman as a partner in its business litigation practice group in Washington. He joins from Dechert.
• Nathan Davis joined Stoel Rives as a partner in its insurance litigation practice in Portland, Ore. He joins from Pasich.
• Jeremy Paner joined Hughes Hubbard & Reed as a partner in its sanctions, export controls, and anti‑money laundering practice in Washington.
• Kate Sullivan Morgan rejoined Dentons as a partner in its health-care practice in Dallas.
• Melissa Hodgman joined Freshfields as a litigation partner in Washington. She joins from the Securities and Exchange Commission.