Uncovering Baltimore’s Legal Landscape
Baltimore, with its rich history as a port city and trade hub, has always played a crucial role in the mid-Atlantic region and beyond. Established as a major seaport in 1706, it quickly became an important center for finance, shipping, and commerce. Over the centuries, the city’s legal landscape has evolved along with its economy and demographics. Today, the "Charm City" is home to a diverse population and an array of industries, from healthcare and education to technology and manufacturing, all underpinned by a strong legal framework that supports these sectors.
The city’s strategic location along the Chesapeake Bay and its role as a transportation nexus have made it an attractive point for large law firms, where they can service their corporate clients and regional businesses . Baltimore also boasts a long history of being the political center of Maryland, giving law firms based there sway within the state’s government and legislative process. This combination of financial influence and political significance has drawn large firms looking to establish their presence in an area that commands attention in both the legal and business communities.
Moreover, Baltimore’s legal market benefits from its comparably lower cost of living when compared to other large cities like Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia, making it an attractive location for both domestic and international law firms seeking to hire top talent without the extortionate salaries found in the nation’s capital. Whether through mergers or local expansions, Baltimore continues to grow as one of the most significant hubs for law firms in the mid-Atlantic region, casting a long shadow over the local legal landscape.
Determining the Top Law Firms
A myriad of factors are taken into account when determining which law firms best serve the interests of the public while providing a stable and lucrative work environment for their attorneys. The obvious ones, like the number of attorneys employed, the areas of specialization, reputation and overall clientele, all play a key role in establishing these firms. One of the most important, yet often overlooked, factors, is the size of the law firm when it comes to general public service. Simply put, larger firms have additional capacity that allows them to extend not only more services, but also a higher level of service to their individual clients. Smaller firms simply do not have the room to do more than handle their standard cases with the level of service that each client deserves. Top firms in Baltimore take care to remain at their full capacities to ensure that they have enough room to take on additional clients and provide them with quality, prompt legal services.
Top Firm: Venable LLP
About Venable LLP: Established in 1900 Venable LLP, is a highly reputable business law firm that caters to a multitude of clients. Their area of expertise is in intellectual property law, but their practice extends into various other fields such as business, financial services, advocacy, litigation and trust and estate administration. They have around 700 lawyers and are considered one of the largest law firms in Baltimore.
Key Practice Areas: Broadly, Venable’s key practice areas are Intellectual Property, Corporate Law, Litigation, eLearning and Privacy.
Notable Cases: Venable’s recent successes include representing a Fortune 50 Pharmaceutical Client against the Commonwealth of Virginia in one multi-billion dollar tax recovery case as well as representing the megabit company, Shopify in a trademark dispute with fashion mogul, Coach.
Runner-Up: Gordon Feinblatt LLC
A leading mid-sized firm in Baltimore, Gordon Feinblatt LLC has gained an impressive reputation since its establishment in 1956. Founded by two veterans of the U.S. Army during World War II, one of whom was a partner at the D.C.-based law firm Arnold & Porter, the firm was able to expand to several hundred attorneys in the Baltimore and Annapolis areas. As one of the largest law firms in Baltimore, Maryland, Gordon Feinblatt has earned itself pride of place in the competitive landscape of such an industry-heavy city, earning high praise from several professional rating services as well. Apparently the firm prides itself on being a somewhat of a melting pot of big names in the legal and financial industries, with a truly diverse list of specialties in such practice areas as antitrust, collective bargaining, condemnation, commercial litigation, communications and intellectual property, construction, criminal defense and investigations, divorce and family law, employment and medical malpractice, insolvency and bankruptcy, insurance, international, performance and warranty, real estate and tax law. Gordon Feinblatt’s litigation team alone is estimated to consist of about a third of their attorney-staff, making this firm a true bastion of litigation practices in Baltimore. The firm is most noted for its municipal work, involving various public and quasi-public entities throughout Baltimore and Maryland. Gordon Feinblatt serves as bond counsel to, and/or special and/or disclosure counsel for, the State of Maryland and to larger metropolitan areas surrounding Baltimore. In addition, the firm has branched out into helping clients with their international requirements, serving as attorneys to many foreign investors and governments looking to do business with or settle into Baltimore and Maryland. This full-service firm is also heavily involved in the desired practice area of health care, archery medical malpractice and professional studios liability. Ten years ago, they began expanding internationally into Central and South America, the Caribbean and Europe.
Leading Contender: DLA Piper
The global DLA Piper firm has a strong presence in Baltimore through its six offices surrounding the area. With one of its global headquarters in Baltimore, DLA Piper plays a major role as one of the top law firms in Baltimore.
Founded in 2005, DLA Piper is an international law firm with over 4,200 lawyers across 20 countries, and bills itself as the largest law firm in the world. Major practice areas for DLA Piper include corporate and finance, employment, tax, litigation and intellectual property. Lesser practice areas for DLA Piper include real estate, education, government affairs, construction, and media and telecom.
In addition to its six Baltimore offices, DLA Piper also has offices in suburban Maryland and near Annapolis. It is ranked as the 64th largest law firm in the United States by the National Law Journal, and has a total of $1.27 billion in gross revenue.
Legendary Name: Miles & Stockbridge
The group has long attracted legal talent from many law schools across the country. In the current year (2013), 27 first year associates from 19 different law schools are working in the firm’s Baltimore, Washington D.C., and Northern Virginia offices. Miles & Stockbridge also has an office in Tysons Corner, Virginia, which is home to a team of nine associates.
The firm’s impressive body of work ranges from advice on strategic deregulation to employment discrimination to corporate finance. Miles & Stockbridge’s clients come from both the private and public sectors. The attorneys who work here have experience representing the interests of various industries and professions, including energy, engineering, and information technology, to name a few. Like many law firms that maintain a presence in Baltimore, Miles & Stockbridge is heavily involved in the city. Its lawyers volunteer for Baltimore nonprofits, serve on local committees, offer pro bono services to individuals in need, and more . The group also partners with local private sector organizations to help the city attract or develop businesses in specific sectors. In 2005, Miles & Stockbridge launched a Baltimore-based real estate fund to help support and catalyze industrial economic development in the city. More recently, Miles & Stockbridge worked to connect one of its clients with the Baltimore mayor to help grow the company’s presence in the Baltimore area.
Widely respected by its peers, Miles & Stockbridge was identified as the 20th largest law firm in the Baltimore area by the Baltimore Business Journal in 2011, and was rated the number one law firm in Prince George’s County, Maryland, according to a 2011 survey of the Private Business Consumer Guide. Miles & Stockbridge focuses on business litigation and high stakes litigation, commercial litigation, construction law, contracts, real estate law, environmental law, intellectual property, and securities and customer class actions.
Noteworthy Contender: Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LLP
With a long history of providing exceptional legal representation, Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LLP has proven to be one of the best leading law firms in Baltimore. Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LLP is an Am Law 100 firm that offers a full range of legal services with a regional, national, and international reach. The firm’s nine offices are strategically located in key US markets. This footprint provides a unique perspective on the clients they serve, ranging from individuals and families to startups, enterprises, municipalities, and government agencies. The number of practice areas and industries in which the firm’s lawyers practice is indicative of their commitment to clients across diverse segments. With some of the most accomplished and recognized attorneys in the country, Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LLP represents Philadelphia’s 76ers, the BB&T Center in Sunrise, Florida, Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut, as well as non-profit clients such as Embrace Kids, Beers for Queers, and Vitamin Angels. What sets Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LLP apart is their deep understanding of their clients. They understand that what drives their clients are more than legal considerations. The firm leverages insights into each client’s values and goals to build relationships based on trust and a shared vision for the future. For more than 100 years, the firm has been dedicated to protecting the rights of their clients. They are intentional about developing client relationships that transcend individual matters, and instead reflect a deep understanding of their clients’ legal needs that support their broader objectives for the long term. As a full-service law firm, Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr provides its clients with comprehensive legal services. Bolstered by these qualities, Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LLP has expanded its global reach. The firm has established alliances with leading law firms in Washington D.C., New York City, Chicago, San Francisco, London, Hong Kong, and Frankfurt, Germany. The firm’s international practice helps guide their clients through complex legal issues and challenges presented by global operations. More importantly though, Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr LLP helps international clients navigate their business challenges inside of the U.S.
Rising Stars
Additionally, as the landscape of the legal field continues to grow and change, so does the face of Baltimore’s law firms. A handful of new, cutting-edge firms are making their mark in the legal community, proving themselves quickly and gaining ground amongst long-standing competitors. The Schwartz Baris Group: Founded in 2015, the Schwartz Baris Group is changing the way people think about criminal defense. Previously, reputable lawyers in this field would never think of basing their entire practice on a single area; however, Schwartz Baris has taken that path and are rapidly becoming well-known as a top firm in this area of practice in Maryland. Of the founding partners, Michael Baris has had great success in large criminal firms across Maryland. He has then gone on to build the firm into an often-mentioned name when it comes to criminal defense in Baltimore. Founded in 2012, Belsky, Weinberg & Horowitz, LLC is yet another example of new firms quickly rising to prominence in Baltimore. They have benefitted from an early focus on a small number of areas of law, in particular personal injury and employment law. In just a short time, they have built a well-respected and highly rated firm.
Concluding Remarks and Future Inspections
Legal practice in Baltimore is likely to face a mixed future. Economic prosperity and regional growth will offer numerous opportunities for top-tier firms to expand their capabilities and client rosters, increase their revenue streams, and hire top talent. However, the legal industry as a whole is undergoing great change. Note that The American Lawyer’s much-debated "Law Firm Consulting" survey from 2018 revealed many top law firms reporting lower revenue figures, with approximately one-third of mid-sized firms already seeing profit-per-equity partner declines by 20 percent or more in less than five years. "Law firms everywhere are grappling with strategic challenges," writes legal industry expert Louis Beletsky. "Competition for clients and their increasingly limited legal budgets is intensifying at the same time that innovative technology is poised to disrupt the traditional approach to legal work." Given these unusually challenging market conditions and apparent transformation in the legal industry, what does the future hold in store for Baltimore’s top law firms? Many industry experts argue the legal sector is not too likely to see the level of disruption that other industries have experienced, at least not in the near-term outlook . Corporate legal departments and general counsels remain surprisingly optimistic regarding their administration’s growth in the next few years, and there has been a general return to pre-recession law firm growth calculations. "We’ve seen evidence that big law and firms of all sizes are doing better across the board," offers the Chief Executive Magazine’s Donald Jay Korn. Others suggest the legal business community in Baltimore is uniquely fit to adapt to the unique challenges and opportunities ahead. "I’m bullish," says Maryland-born candidate for the chair of the American Bar Association’s Center for Innovation Andrew Perlman. "The geographic footprint, diverse population, range of different education programs and resources for entrepreneurs – both nonprofit and for-profit – have positioned the state of Maryland to be a leader in the delivery of legal services." The bottom line for Maryland’s top law firms is marked by great uncertainty. What law firms ultimately experience great success and emerge triumphant in the years ahead among the community of Baltimore’s top law firms? Only time will tell.