Financial Times Article Cites Edwards Gibson on the ‘Kirklandisation’ of Big Law

We are proud to announce that Edwards Gibson and Director Scott Gibson were featured in the Financial Times’ recent article by Suzi Ring and Kaye Wiggins, “’Kirklandisation’ of Big Law pushes firms to launch salaried partnerships”.

We’re also particularly pleased to see that the term “Kirklandisation”, used by Gibson in the article, is catching on!

The article explores how the rise of non-equity partnership tiers – once a rarity back in the day – has become increasingly popular among the world’s leading law firms as they seek to emulate the profitability and aggressive growth model of the arch-disrupter – Kirkland & Ellis.

Scott Gibson, a Director at Edwards Gibson, is quoted in the piece:

“The now near-universal adoption of the non-equity partner tier is part of the ‘Kirklandisation’ of Big Law”

As the FT reports, 87 of the 100 largest global firms now operate with non-equity partnership structures. This shift, the article notes, allows firms to offer partnership titles to younger lawyers, without diluting equity pools. The article also addresses the rising pressure on firms still holding out, as the two-tier model becomes increasingly the norm across the global elite.

Read the full Financial Times article here (paywall).

For Edwards Gibson’s own follow-up article which takes this story one stage further and looks into some of the UK specific ramifications of these changes, please click Freshfields’ Non-Share Home Turf Handicap