Kirkland & Ellis has absorbed 17-lawyer elite Washington DC boutique, Bancroft PLLC.
Two of its top lawyers, Paul Clement and Bancroft founder Viet Dinh, will also join Kirkland as part of the move.
Clement is praised as one of the most successful Supreme Court advocates in the US. He left King & Spalding to become US solicitor general under President George W. Bush before joining Bancroft in 2011.
Dinh launched Bancroft in 2004 after leaving government where he had served as assistant attorney general in Bush’s administration. The firm specialises in Supreme Court and appellate litigation, government investigations, national security law and corporate governance.
Kirkland is hiring all of Bancroft’s lawyers, although it has not pitched the acquisition as a merger. The team will join Kirkland’s DC office on 1 October when the new Supreme Court term begins.
Kirkland executive committee chairman Jeffrey Hammes said: “Paul Clement is one of the most well-regarded Supreme Court lawyers in the country, and the team he and Viet have assembled at Bancroft is truly remarkable
“They join our premier litigation practice, which includes more than 435 lawyers around the world. Their skills and experience and Kirkland’s global platform will be a very powerful combination for clients.”
DC litigation partner Gene Assaf added: “The accomplishments of the Bancroft team are amazing, with 120 US Supreme Court arguments, nine Supreme Court clerkships, 17 courts of appeals clerkships, and five Presidential appointments. We see immense opportunity in combining forces.”
Clement said: “We are building strength on strength. Kirkland has an unrivalled litigation practice, and adding our appellate group will provide a remarkable team for our clients.”
Meanwhile Bancroft founder Dinh added: “This is a natural combination of Kirkland as the number one global full-service firm and Bancroft as the leader in Supreme Court and appellate litigation. The fit is perfect.”
Kirkland has made a run of notable hires in the US this year, also taking PwC global general counsel Javier Rubinstein in Chicago last week.
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